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Rating: 
Summary: brevity is both a feature and a shortcoming in this book
Review: At 319 pages, a rarity in computer books, the book manages to cover a lot of ground about building dynamic Web pages with Macromedia's Dreamweaver UltraDev4 by using Active Server Pages, though not in great detail in any part. The authors sate in their introduction that the "goal of this books is to provide the reader with foundation skills that can be combined as needed." If you already know how to use Dreamweaver (which the authors assume you do), and if you already took a class, or played around a bit with Microsoft Access, this book can help you take your skills to a new level by helping you to start learning how to combine them. Discussing databases and recordsets may seem superfluous to those who can't wait to get on with the designing the Web pages themselves. But, as someone who earns part of my living by cleaning up badly built databases in the first place, I am the first to appreciate a book that states the obvious when it comes to creating a database. So, even if you think you know how to build a database, I recommend you glance through this section. It will save you time and make your code leaner when you tget to wworking with your data on the Web page with UltraDev, which has its own limitations! That said, I find it strange that the book, which concentrates on using Microsoft's Active Server Pages server model for building dynamic Web pages, displays 99 percent of its examples in a Mac environment. And yet, this may even turn out to be one of those bugs that is really a feature: let Mac users know that they, too, can build data-driven pages with Dreamweaver UltraDev 4, provided they have access to a server, which the authors discuss in adequate detail early in the book. In general, I tend to buy several how-to computer books that deal with the same subject, using parts of one over parts of others when I learn ... I found that I frequently returned to consult this book on some detail as I was learning, precisely beacuse it keeps things fundamental, and, therefore, widely adaptable for different situations.
Rating: 
Summary: I bought it for all my developers.
Review: Congratulations and thank you to Mooney and Mohler. A book like this comes along too infrequently. This is one of the few technical books I've seen that effectively addresses a wide audience, from novices to experts. If you have even the slightest experience with Dreamweaver--beginning or advanced--this is THE book to use to learn UltraDev. Matt Mooney and James Mohler use sound instructional principles, coupled with an outstanding understanding of server models, relational databases, web development fundamentals, and the UltraDev application, to deliver a one-of-a-kind learning experience. At the end of 302 pages (including the highly useful appendices), you will emerge a competent UltraDev user. Even better, you will understand what happens "under the engine," which means you'll be able to really take off with dynamic web development. One warning, though--once you pick the book up, it's hard to put down.
Rating: 
Summary: some good references for semi - advanced users
Review: I actually bought this book because of the 1 star comments saying this book spent too much time on Servers and Databases. Well Hey, those subjects are for the big boys who actually make 6 figures a year. I am an advanced programmer, but fairly new to UltraDev - i create web applications where the Html/JSP/ASP side is just half of the picture and this book has helped in linking the two. BUT, i did find that the author(s) tried to stuff too much into the book to make it to 300 pages - i already know how to do the basic stuff in Dream Weaver - bring on the advanced stuff. Half of it did seem to be copied from the Utradev tutorial help!
Rating: 
Summary: Not what I expected
Review: I bought this book based on the reviews but after spending [item price] and seeing that the first 80 pages had nothing to do with UltraDev 4 at all and only on servers, databeses and languages I guess I can say it didn't start off very well. If i wanted to learn about what a database, server or other languages are then I would buy a book based on that. Not only was there a lot of unessesary information in the book but I bought the book to learn "Dreamweaver Ultra Dev 4" and the book played all the components off that were in "Dreamweaver" to be learned from a "Dreamweaver" book and only covered things that pertained to UltraDev 4. Well I have Macromedia Dreamweaver Ultra Dev 4 and I don't have Dreamweaver itself... When I buy a book that says "Dreamweaver UltraDev 4" on it I expect that it will cover everything that is in the Dreamweaver UltrDev 4 program. They don't tell you that in any of these reviews... Who wrote these anyway? Friends, family and publishers... The book has 306 pages of content and I think only 100 pages are usefull. Sorry go with another book.
Rating:
Summary: Are you an instructional designer/technologist?
Review: If so, and if you want to take your web development skills up to the next level, you need to buy this book. This book avoids the pitfalls of the field (it actually sticks to its objectives) and will have you up and running in no time. You won't believe how much this book will simplify your instructional development; it did mine.
Rating: 
Summary: THE WORST BOOK EVER!
Review: Just look at the review by jsonterre1... I agree with him 100%
This is the worst money ever spent on a book. I am currently going through exercises that often don't seem to work. Very frustrating when you're actually expecting to learn from the book you have purchased. This book is more complicated than UltraDev itself. I don't recommend this book to anyone.
Rating:
Summary: New To UltraDev: Clear and Useful Book
Review: This is NOT a particularly fat book which is merciful. I was actually able to read it cover-to-cover and follow the author's logic and directions (as they suggest), and really feel like I learned how to use UltraDev. I found the book to be well-thought out. The UltraDev tutorial, for example, is good but it over-explains every step. This book starts off detailed and then as you learn it assumes you know more and doesn't waste your time telling you the most basic stuff again and again when stepping you though exercises. Even so, the authors don't leave out any important details. Every exercise worked for me. I was never left saying, "Hugh?" The reviewer below that said that this book reads like it was written by people who have experience teaching others was right on. My only complaint is relatively minor but worth noting: The CD did not have the tables used for the exercises in enough different formats. Everything is in Access 2000 which I don't have. There are a few tables that are in Excel format, which was helpful because I could then import them into Access 97. But oddly enough the complete final table with all the data, that is used in exercises throughout the book was NOT in Excel format. This may have been a CD 'typo'. This was an inconvenience because I had to have someone with Access 2000 save the file down for me. After that it worked fine. The book itself is nicely done.
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