Java for Practitioners: An Introduction and Reference to Java and Object Orientation (Practitioner Series (Springer-Verlag).)

Rating:
Summary: Easy to absorb and teaches you how to think OO
Review: Don't get me wrong. This book is an excellent one. I should know because I purchased his Java and Object Orientation: An Introduction which also is excellent. Dr. Hunt is an excellent writer and the clarity of his text is easy to absorb and gets you thinking OO. It is well worth purchasing. The one down side is that I bought it based on Amazon reviews without seeing it first. There was no mention that this new book contains many chapters from the previous book verbatim just layed out differently. If I had known that, I would have hesitated. It might have been a good idea to create a separate book. It's like getting a book full of API listings again. But like I said... If you are thinking about getting the previous book, don't. But this excellent volume instead.

Rating:
Summary: Very accessible and clear
Review: I liked this book as it was clear, easy to read and didn't talk down to me. I found the explanations of object orientation and Java were well presented and well illustrated. I also liked the many "how to" style chapters which made it easy to see how to use RMI, Servlets, Sockets etc. I also really liked the Java self tester and the chapter on Java programming problems. The self test material was also provided on-line at the books web site, which also has all the source code form the book and lots of additional examples. This is a really great book with good support - the author also answered my questions by email!

Rating:
Summary: many errors
Review: I purchased this book based upon the reviews shown here, but have found the book to be full of coding errors and mistakes. It also reads like a text book written by a professor without any connection to the real world. It does have some value, but it certainly isn't worth the price. My recommendation is to look elsewhere.

Rating:
Summary: Very accessible and clear
Review: While I have the utmost respect for Eckel's Tkinking About Java and Meyer's O-O work, this book lays out just what you need to know. It is particularly helpful to those (like me) who have been exposed to a patchwork of methods and picked up wrong ideas. Hunt also wrote Key Java, which has been very favorably reviewed at Amazon.