Editorial Review

Provides a rapid and thorough exposition of the JavaScript programming language, as well as an in-depth reference section covering each JavaScript function, object, method, and even handler. Experienced programmers will quickly find the information they need to start writing JavaScript programs. ... Read more

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Reviews (226)

The one JavaScript book to rule them all...
I'm a technical trainer, and we've decided to distribute this book as part of our Ajax courseware.We've reviewed many other JavaScript books, but we keep coming back to this one.
Best JavaScript Reference!
This is the 5th edition of this almost thousand page book (992), and has been pretty much the gold standard for JavaScript reference books.I have the 4th edition that came out a few years ago and it was worth upgrading to this new 5th edition.
The Bible
It's called "The Definitive Guide" for a reason. Covers everything from simple variables to complex AJAX coding. Beginners may be a bit overwhelmed by it, but I would still recommend any O'Reilly guide as it's the one you'll actually use as your skills increase.. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Computer Books: Languages    2. Computers    3. Computers - Languages / Programming    4. JavaScript (Computer program language)    5. Object-oriented programming (Computer science)    6. Programming Languages - CGI, Javascript, Perl, VBScript    7. Web servers    8. Computers / Languages / Programming    9. Computers / Programming Languages / CGI, JavaScript, Perl, VBScript    10. Java & variants    11. JavaScript, Ajax, DHTML, HTML, scripting, css, dom, httprequest,    12. Object-oriented programming (Computer science   

Reviews (17)

Excellent, the one-stop shop for Java
This book really is the one-stop shop for Java language information. While many complain that the page count is very high and the book is slightly heavy, this is actually a *good* thing. I love the fact that all this info is in ONE book. One book to buy, one book to carry around, one book to reference, one book to bind them...hey wait a minute!
Excellent book, AND door stop
This book is really useful to have on hand, but it is HUGE for a nutshell book. I realize that they need every page to document the code it is just makes it hard to keep this book on the desk.Over all I think the book could have used more examples on how to make the method calls rather than showing the methods and what they do.Over all if you need a book that documents most of the java libraries this is an excellent choice, but don't expect to pick up this book if you have no programming experience and learn how to call these methods.

Indispensible
I use this Java book more than any other programming book I've ever had. That's probably because it's a reference book. Although all the reference material I could need is available online, I still like having the book on the desk next to me so I can look up a class or a method without playing around on the computer. I became a Sun Certified Java Programmer several years ago and although I've read many Java books before then and since then, the only book I would be hard pressed to do without is this one! ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Computer Books: Languages    2. Computers    3. Computers - Languages / Programming    4. Java (Computer program language)    5. Object-oriented programming (Computer science)    6. Programming Languages - Java    7. Web servers    8. Computers / Languages / Programming    9. Computers / Programming Languages / Java    10. Java & variants    11. Java, J2SE, Java VM, Java Virtual Machine, Java SDK    12. Object-oriented programming (Computer science   

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Reviews (9)

Great bang for your buck with useful, very well explained examples.
This book rocks.I started learning Java about 2 months ago with the Head First Java book, which is AMAZINGLY helpful (even if you know absolutely nothing beforehand).Once I got through that all that I began writing small apps on my own, but found in many cases that the API (Javadoc) was hard to understand because my limited Java knowledge leaves me with no context in many cases.I would think, "ok, it says this class can do this using these methods, and that's what I want, but how exactly do I put this into practice."Java Examples in a Nutshell fills this need perfectly with excellent examples(!), explanations, and clarifications.There's only so much that it can cover, but what it does cover, it covers really well.
Summary of Java
Great overall summary of Java with examples.Replaces short surveys, tutorials and cookbooks of Java.

Very good book of examples of specific Java concepts
This book should not be expected to substitute as a tutorial for people looking to learn the Java language. Instead, it is a book full of short programs that each illustrate specific concepts in the Java language. If you are needing a tutorial on the Java language in general, I suggest "Head First Java", which is also published by O'Reilly and Associates. You can either read the appropriate chapters of this book in parallel with that one, or look through this book after you finish the Head First Java book. If you already know Java, keeping an updated edition of this book around as a reference is a great idea.
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Subjects:  1. Computer Books: Languages    2. Computers    3. Computers - Languages / Programming    4. Java (Computer program language)    5. Programming Languages - Java    6. Computers / Languages / Programming    7. Computers / Programming / General    8. Computers / Programming Languages / Java    9. Java & variants   

Editorial Review

At 4.5 by 7 inches in size and only 89 pages long, the aptly named Read more

Reviews (17)

Where's the rest?
I realize it's a pocket reference, but this is a brief guide to syntax and then the DOM for the rest of the book. It doesn't cover any of the API stuff like the Date class. It'd be nice to have more information at the price of needing slightly larger pockets.

Moderately good.
I am not a big fan of these 'Pocket Reference' books by O'Reilly.Although I have 8 of them, I find them too brief to be very helpful as a reference.Usually they come up short on many parts of the language.
Missing the Point
If you are new to JavaScript and looking for a helper title, this isn't it.If you're already familiar with JavaScript, and need specific information, you probably need more than an extremely condensed pocket reference is going to provide. There really isn't anything wrong with the pocket reference - it has correct information, formatted pretty well, and contains the most common parts of the core language as well as the common DHTML references one needs for general use.What it doesn't have, and shouldn't for a pocket reference, are complete explanations for the components, or any usage examples - two things needed by people who are turning to a reference book.JavaScript is really too complex to be summarized along with DHTML elements in 127 half-sized pages.If you're looking for a JavaScript reference, purchase the authors full-sized reference guide, "JavaScript: The Definitive Guide" (ISBN: 0596000480) instead. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Computer Books: General    2. Computers    3. Computers - Languages / Programming    4. Internet - Web Site Design    5. JavaScript (Computer language)    6. JavaScript (Computer program language)    7. Programming Languages - CGI, Javascript, Perl, VBScript    8. Programming Languages - Pascal    9. Reference - General    10. Computers / Languages / Programming    11. Computers / Programming Languages / CGI, JavaScript, Perl, VBScript    12. Computers/Internet - Web Site Design    13. Computers/Reference - General    14. Java & variants    15. JavaScript, scripting language, Explorer, Netscape, scripting   

Subjects:  1. Computer Books: Languages    2. Computer Books: Operating Systems    3. Computer Operating Systems    4. Computer Programming    5. Computers    6. Computers - Languages / Programming    7. Operating Systems - General    8. Operating Systems - XWindows    9. Programming - Software Development    10. Programming Languages - General    11. Windows (Computer programs)    12. X toolkit (Computer file)    13. Computers / Languages / Programming    14. Computers / Programming / Software Development    15. Computers / Programming Languages / C    16. Computers/Computer Graphics - General    17. Computers/Operating Systems - General    18. Computers/Programming Languages - General    19. Unix, Unix Linux & Unix TCL/TK   

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Reviews (26)

Error-Prone, yet valuable notebook
First off, i sincerely appreciate O'Reilly on their innovative idea of a notebook series. This series is targetted towards busy developers who dont find the time to crunch through big fat books and learn about every grain of sand; rather they would spend less time and learn what is absolutely required. This is certainly a welcome concept.
Quick intro to Tiger features
This book delivers on what it promises - quick and dirty introductions to the new features of Tiger. It does a great job of getting one familiar with all of the new features, though, as noted by other reviewers, it is not intended to be an in depth reference. The chapters on generics and concurrency could certainly be deeper, but the book provides a good grounding in the basics, opens the door to more complete study, and provides enough sample code to get one writing code.

Great for updating your knowledge of Java's new features
This book was never intended to teach newbies the Java language version 5.0. Its purpose is to teach those features of Java 5.0 that are completely new to the language to veteran Java programmers. This is very helpful to those of us who already know Java and do not want to invest in an $80 1200 page tome that will teach the entire Java language to us once again. The book consists of 10 chapters:
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Subjects:  1. Computer Books: Languages    2. Computers    3. Computers - Languages / Programming    4. Java (Computer program languag    5. Java (Computer program language)    6. Programming - General    7. Programming Languages - CGI, Javascript, Perl, VBScript    8. Programming Languages - Java    9. Computers / General    10. Computers / Languages / Programming    11. Computers / Programming Languages / Java    12. Computers/Programming - General    13. Java & variants    14. Java, JDK, Brett McLaughlin, David Flanagan, generics, boxing, unboxing, varargs, enumerated types, for/in loop, Developer's Notebook   

Editorial Review

The 3rd edition of the well-known reference, Read more

Reviews (103)

Inexpensive Knowledge Repository
A long time fan of O'Reilly books, the CD bookshelves and this deluxe edition are one of the best ideas I've seen from a publisher.If you don't mind reading onscreen these will save you money.If you do pick this up in addition to the hardcopy simply for the search capabilities.A great reference tool from any serious programmer.

The Jr. Bible of Java
I've read the first 4 chapters as my introduction to Java. It was a struggle, but worth it. use the sdk documentation instead.
it is much better to use a jdk documentation which you can download instead of this reference book. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Computer Books: Languages    2. Computer Networks    3. Computers    4. Computers - Languages / Programming    5. Desktop Publishing    6. Java (Computer language)    7. Java (Computer program language)    8. Programming Languages - General    9. Programming Languages - Java    10. Java & variants   

Reviews (29)

The best offline reference for Java
For those that find that Javadoc hard to read (like me) or aren't "always on" the internet, this is a great alternative. The first few chapters are particularly - short, sweet and to the point - a cross between Javadoc and a cookbook and is quite readable.

Decent yet lacking
Java: In a Nutshell (4th ed.) is a decent reference manual for quick lookups. Be forewarned: it's very terse. This helps and hurts it; the Java language is pretty hefty itself, so concise reference is valuable, however sometimes I've found it to be a little bit on the lacking side when I really needed fast and easily understandable reference.
Way too terse to be useful
This book is way too terse to be useful.Modern Java development tools will help you use the correct class method signatures anyway.Buy the posters instead and give yourself a visual overview instead. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Computer Bks - Languages / Programming    2. Computer Books: Languages    3. Computers    4. Computers - Languages / Programming    5. Java (Computer program language)    6. Object-oriented programming (Computer science)    7. Programming Languages - Java    8. Web servers    9. Computers / Programming Languages / Java    10. Java & variants   

Editorial Review

The JFC/Swing classes offer a powerful way to build user interfaces in Java, and this richness comes with a lot more complexity. Read more

Reviews (5)

The Good Book
Wonderful book in wonderful codition.

Great reference tool...
This title is meant to be the second volume of a three volume set that covers the entire language.Volume one covers the basic core Java APIs, while volume three covers the enterprise classes. A book for Java programmers....
This is a truly good reference on the JFC with a thorough coverage of the various packages. It is not intended as a tutorial and is clearly not for beginners. Combine this with Java in a Nutshell and Java Examples in a Nutshell and you have nearly 2000 pages of detailed reference material. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Application software    2. Computer Books: Web Programming    3. Computer Programming Languages    4. Computers    5. Computers - Languages / Programming    6. Development    7. Java (Computer program languag    8. Java (Computer program language)    9. Microcomputer Graphics    10. Programming - General    11. Programming Languages - Java    12. Computers / Languages / Programming    13. Computers / Programming Languages / Java    14. Computers/Programming - General    15. Java & variants    16. Java Foundation Classes, programming, graphical user interfaces,   

Reviews (6)

An Excellent At-Your-Fingers Quick Reference
There isn't much in-depth knowledge I can impart based on this book.It fulfills its demanded function as "A Desktop Quick Reference".It provides a quick reference to the core language features and APIs in a succinct way.On the fly, this book is a great reference.If you are going to be carrying around a reference for Ruby, this should be it.Its small size does not deter it from being full of succinct information.Do not buy this if you are looking for a tutorial-style introduction to Ruby.(In that case, see Programming Ruby by Dave Thomas).If you are looking for a quick reference to this fun programming language, however, this book is a great choice!

Ruby In A Nutshell
This book is very much a brief reference for Ruby -- it is consistent with the general philosophy of the nutshell series.Don't expect to learn ruby from this book even if you are already an experienced programmer. It is strictly a reference for those who need a quick reminder of the syntax.
Slightly dated (1st printing) but good "quick" reference.
Forgotten the name of the libarary that does directory listings? Need to know the method of the IMAP libarary? This is the book for that. Full documentation, look elsewhere, but as a handy guide to keep on your desk. Not a beginners learn to code Ruby book, but a beginners and intermediates quick look up the method book. Learning Ruby? Get this _AND_ a beginner tutorial book. It will speed up your learning curve. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Computer Books: Languages    2. Computers    3. Computers - Languages / Programming    4. Internet - Web Site Design    5. Programming Languages - CGI, Javascript, Perl, VBScript    6. Programming Languages - General    7. Computers / Languages / Programming    8. Computers / Programming Languages / CGI, JavaScript, Perl, VBScript    9. Computers / Programming Languages / General    10. Programming languages    11. Ruby, Yukihiro Matsumoto, rails, flanagan, rake, activerecord, scaffolding, framework, web development, rubycon, rubyconf, pickaxe   

Subjects:  1. Computer Bks - Operating Systems    2. Computer Books: Operating Systems    3. Microcomputer Operating Environments    4. Operating Systems - General    5. Operating Systems - XWindows    6. Programming - General    7. Windows (Computer programs)    8. X Window System (Computer system)    9. Computer Programming    10. Microsoft Windows   

Editorial Review

Aimed at those who have some previous Java experience, Read more

Reviews (35)

Good book
The examples of this book are high-applicable, clearly. Essential step-by-step for beginners and handbook for developers. Readers will find everything they need to help them on learning and understand Java generally. If you are new to Java technologies, you will find thoroughly grounded in the basic pieces.

Good reference to a reference
This book is a wonderful addition to a java developer's library.This book will greatly complement introductory or textbook-style books with its concrete examples and thorough coverage of concepts in a realistic context. Very Useful
Most programmers learn by doing. When programming using a new API for the first time, I very often look at sample code to get the real feel for how the code should work. I also sometimes adapt existing code to suit my purposes.Read more

Subjects:  1. Computer Bks - Languages / Programming    2. Computers    3. Programming Languages - Java   

Editorial Review

For the intermediate to advanced Java developer, Read more

Reviews (24)

VERY VERY HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!!
Do you have all of the tools you need to build enterprise-class applications? If you don't, then this book is for you! Authors Jim Farley, William Crawford, Prakash Malani, Justin Gehtland and John G Norman, have done an outstanding job of writing the third edition of a book that provides a pragmatic introduction to the latest release of Java 2 Enterprise Edition (J2EE).
Java developers will want this as an essential desk reference
Jim Farley and William Crawford's Java Enterprise In A Nutshell: A Practical Guide packs in tutorials on a number of enterprise Java tools, offering new material covering Xdoclet and Java 5.0 Annotations, JavaServer Faces, and the Hibernate API. Also included are open source testing and build tools, tips on writing SOAP-based web services, J2EE security issues and operations, and much more. Serious Java developers will want this as an essential desk reference.

Great reference for an immense topic
Java Enterprise in a Nutshell tries to do the impossible - fit Enterprise Java into a nutshell.I don't think it matters how big of a nutshell you have, it would be a truly impossible task.Farley and Crawford, though, do a nice job shoe-horning as much Enterprise Java as they can into an 800+ page book.They go over many topics including all the J2EE standards like EJBs and JSPs to open source tools like JUnit, Cactus, and Hibernate.The book goes into enough detail to get more than just the gist of the subjects, but not so much detail to overwhelm someone looking for information on a particular topic.The book also has relevant code sections for the various topics outlining how that technology might be used.Overall, a compact, clear, well written reference. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Computer Books: Languages    2. Computers    3. Computers - Languages / Programming    4. Java (Computer program language)    5. Object-oriented programming (Computer science)    6. Programming - General    7. Programming Languages - Java    8. Web servers    9. Computers / Programming Languages / Java    10. Java & variants    11. Java, J2EE, RMI, EJB   

Reviews (2)

man pages give me a headache
I recently got some gift certificates for the holidays and spent them on this set. I am an experienced C/C++ and Perl programmer, and I just began learning Java several months ago. With my previous language and SE knowledge I blew through a tutorial without breaking a sweat, but then (and now) comes the hard part of building the vocabulary necessary to communicate fluently in the language. Good library for learning Java
This set of books is really helpful for anybody to learn Java. It includes four helpful books - Java in a Nutshell, Java Examples in a Nutshell, Java Enterprise in a Nutshell and Java Foundation Classes in a Nutshell, they are all "in a Nutshell" series from O'Reilly. As a CS1 student, these books give me a very clear concepts in programming in Java. I think they are really useful books for you! ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Computer Books: Web Publishing    2. Computer Networks    3. Computer Programming Languages    4. Computers    5. Computers - Languages / Programming    6. Internet - General    7. Programming - General    8. Programming Languages - Java    9. Java & variants   

Reviews (4)

So-so online reference
It is a CD-ROM with an associated user's book that has a bare minimum of information. Excellent searchable reference guide
I find this online searchable reference guide very helpful and can't live without it. The "copy protection" mentioned by another reviewer was a production problem, with a fix listed on the O'Reilly web site.

Don't buy this CD-Rom
This "Reference" consists only of a CD-Rom with 130 MB and a very small booklet which concentrates on how to use the CD. The online reference on the CD claims to be a complete listing of all Java Classes andPackages, but without any example it's not as valueable as expected.Unfortunatly the surely required copy-protection causes a denial ofservice, when you try to copy all the files to your harddrive. This is acertain drawback, when you want the reference to be quickly available. Nodetailed reference, really. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Computer Books: Languages    2. Computer Networks    3. Computer Programming Languages    4. Computers    5. Programming Languages - General    6. Programming Languages - Java    7. Software - Productivity - CDROM / Universal    8. Java & variants   

Subjects:  1. Computer Books: Operating Systems    2. Computers - Operating Systems    3. Operating Systems - General    4. Operating Systems - XWindows    5. Osf/Motif (Operating System)    6. Unix, Unix Linux & Unix TCL/TK   

Editorial Review

Java is a new, simple, portable, secure, elegant programming language that promises to make it possible to write entirely new kinds of applications for the Internet.This handbook is an indispensable quick reference designedto lie flat and wait faithfully by the side of every Java programmer'skeyboard.It contains an accelerated introduction to Java for C and C++ programmers who want to learn the language fast. ... Read more

Reviews (10)

A good reference for those already experienced in Java
Much like "Webmaster in a Nutshell", this book is a reference and should not be bought as a learning tool.Perhaps if you have spent years in C, this would provide a quick evaluation of the similarities and differences between the two.Otherwise, the first few chapters are an inadequate introduction to the language.In short, this is the book to get when you want to reference something you have already learned, not the place to begin learning it.That said, you might find it worthwhile to check out ORA's more in-depth volumes detailing specific aspects of the language(threads, , AWT, etc...).

Good reference tool, not sufficient for a novice
The book seems directed towards object oriented programmers, as it does not go in-depth into explaining the delicacies of object-oriented programming. Earlier chapters give the impression of an audience familiar with C or C++. However, later in the book, the examples (on which the book relies heavily) and the short-references of new concepts become difficult to comprehend for an average C/C++ programmer. Along with references from the official Java site, the book can be a very good reference tool though

A pretty good reference
While this book contains some silly statements about the relationship between Java, C, and C++, it is still quite useful. Hopefully it will be kept up to date with the changes in Java ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Computer Bks - Languages / Programming    2. Computer Books: Languages    3. Computer Programming Languages    4. Computers    5. Java (Computer program language)    6. Object-oriented programming (Computer science)    7. Programming Languages - General    8. Programming Languages - Java    9. Web servers    10. Java & variants    11. Object-oriented programming (OOP)    12. Programming languages   

Subjects:  1. Application Software    2. Computer Books: Languages    3. Computers - Operating Systems    4. Operating Systems - General    5. Windows (Computer programs)    6. X Window System (Computer system)    7. Computers / Operating Systems    8. Computers / Operating Systems / General    9. Unix, Unix Linux & Unix TCL/TK   

Subjects:  1. Adult Assortments Not to Be Sold Separately    2. Computer Books: Languages    3. Computers    4. Computers - Languages / Programming    5. Programming - Object Oriented Programming    6. Programming Languages - Java    7. Computers / Languages / Programming    8. Computers / Programming Languages / Java   

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