Recommended books about Ant
This site introduces recommended books about Ant. This site also provides you the reviews from the readers. I hope this site will help you to choose the book to buy.
Maven: The Definitive Guide
| Title | Maven: The Definitive Guide |
| Author | Sonatype Company |
| Publisher | O'Reilly Media, Inc. |
| Price | $3499 |
| Available | Usually ships in 24 hours |
Description
For too long, developers have worked on disorganized application projects, where every part seemed to have its own build system, and no common repository existed for information about the state of the project. Now there's help. The long-awaited official documentation to Maven is here.
Written by Maven creator Jason Van Zyl and his team at Sonatype, Maven: The Definitive Guide clearly explains how this tool can bring order to your software development projects. Maven is largely replacing Ant as the build tool of choice for large open source Java projects because, unlike Ant, Maven is also a project management tool that can run reports, generate a project website, and facilitate communication among members of a working team.
To use Maven, everything you need to know is in this guide. The first part demonstrates the tool's capabilities through the development, from ideation to deployment, of several sample applications -- a simple software development project, a simple web application, a multi-module project, and a multi-module enterprise project.
The second part offers a complete reference guide that includes:
Written by Maven creator Jason Van Zyl and his team at Sonatype, Maven: The Definitive Guide clearly explains how this tool can bring order to your software development projects. Maven is largely replacing Ant as the build tool of choice for large open source Java projects because, unlike Ant, Maven is also a project management tool that can run reports, generate a project website, and facilitate communication among members of a working team.
To use Maven, everything you need to know is in this guide. The first part demonstrates the tool's capabilities through the development, from ideation to deployment, of several sample applications -- a simple software development project, a simple web application, a multi-module project, and a multi-module enterprise project.
The second part offers a complete reference guide that includes:
- The POM and Project Relationships
- The Build Lifecycle
- Plugins
- Project website generation
- Advanced site generation
- Reporting
- Properties
- Build Profiles
- The Maven Repository
- Team Collaboration
- Writing Plugins
- IDEs such as Eclipse, IntelliJ, ands NetBeans
- Using and creating assemblies
- Developing with Maven Archetypes
Several sources for Maven have appeared online for some time, but nothing served as an introduction and comprehensive reference guide to this tool -- until now. Maven: The Definitive Guide is the ideal book to help you manage development projects for software, web applications, and enterprise applications. And it comes straight from the source.
Emergence: The Connected Lives of Ants, Brains, Cities, and Software
| Title | Emergence: The Connected Lives of Ants, Brains, Cities, and Software |
| Author | Steven Johnson |
| Publisher | Scribner |
| Price | $1600 |
| Available | Usually ships in 24 hours |
Description
A VOICE LITERARY SUPPLEMENT TOP 25 FAVORITE BOOKS OF THE YEAR
AN ESQUIRE MAGAZINE BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR
In the tradition of Being Digital and The Tipping Point, Steven Johnson, acclaimed as a "cultural critic with a poet's heart" (The Village Voice), takes readers on an eye-opening journey through emergence theory and its applications. Explaining why the whole is sometimes smarter than the sum of its parts, Johnson presents surprising examples of feedback, self-organization, and adaptive learning. How does a lively neighborhood evolve out of a disconnected group of shopkeepers, bartenders, and real estate developers? How does a media event take on a life of its own? How will new software programs create an intelligent World Wide Web?
In the coming years, the power of self-organization -- coupled with the connective technology of the Internet -- will usher in a revolution every bit as significant as the introduction of electricity. Provocative and engaging, Emergence puts you on the front lines of this exciting upheaval in science and thought.
Description
An individual ant, like an individual neuron, is just about as dumb as can be. Connect enough of them together properly, though, and you get spontaneous intelligence. Web pundit Steven Johnson explains what we know about this phenomenon with a rare lucidity in Emergence: The Connected Lives of Ants, Brains, Cities, and Software. Starting with the weird behavior of the semi-colonial organisms we call slime molds, Johnson details the development of increasingly complex and familiar behavior among simple components: cells, insects, and software developers all find their place in greater schemes.
Most game players, alas, live on something close to day-trader time, at least when they're in the middle of a game--thinking more about their next move than their next meal, and usually blissfully oblivious to the ten- or twenty-year trajectory of software development. No one wants to play with a toy that's going to be fun after a few decades of tinkering--the toys have to be engaging now, or kids will find other toys.
Johnson has a knack for explaining complicated and counterintuitive ideas cleverly without stealing the scene. Though we're far from fully understanding how complex behavior manifests from simple units and rules, our awareness that such emergence is possible is guiding research across disciplines. Readers unfamiliar with the sciences of complexity will find Emergence an excellent starting point, while those who were chaotic before it was cool will appreciate its updates and wider scope. --Rob Lightner
Nice soft intro to concepts of self-organisation
Review DateF2008-08-04 RatingF
Review DateF2008-08-04 RatingF
For those with a technical interest in the matter, this is a nice soft intro to the topics with which concerned. It is written with a somewhat emotional style; probably not an ideal technical resource.
For the readers not akin to the concepts at all, the book successfully conveys a nice (and vitally important) way of interpreting natural phenomena (that of self-organisation, collective intelligence, etc.), but, through its somewhat emotional style, may create a sort of hype around the concept.
A pleasant and fast read, over-all; worth it.
For the readers not akin to the concepts at all, the book successfully conveys a nice (and vitally important) way of interpreting natural phenomena (that of self-organisation, collective intelligence, etc.), but, through its somewhat emotional style, may create a sort of hype around the concept.
A pleasant and fast read, over-all; worth it.
Emergence - The Study of Macro-behavior resulting from Micro-level Agents.
Review DateF2008-06-13 RatingF
Review DateF2008-06-13 RatingF
The property of "emergence" is essentially the top-level or macro-level view of the behavior or intelligence of a system. The system can be an ant colony, the Internet, a nation, or any collection of individual agents or actors.
To take one example, an ant colony, can be studied in terms of the individual intelligence and actions and behavior of the individual ants in the colony. This is the micro-view.
However, collectively, the ants function together in a system (i.e., the colony). Thus, the colony can also be studied in terms of its behavior, intelligence and actions. This is the macro-view. This is the systems view. Emergent properties are the top level properties that "emerge" from the properties, functions, behavior and actions of the individual units in the system (i.e., the individual ants).
Emergence is a very important concept, especially in terms of group behavior, the world wide web and the Internet, as well as in artifical intelligence and biological and ecological systems. Emergence is also a very important concept in "swarm intelligence" and "hive" type intelligence. These are important concepts for computer science, among many other fields.
Thus the importance of this book which elucidates the concept of "emergence" by describing it in the context of several different areas of study in which it appears.
To take one example, an ant colony, can be studied in terms of the individual intelligence and actions and behavior of the individual ants in the colony. This is the micro-view.
However, collectively, the ants function together in a system (i.e., the colony). Thus, the colony can also be studied in terms of its behavior, intelligence and actions. This is the macro-view. This is the systems view. Emergent properties are the top level properties that "emerge" from the properties, functions, behavior and actions of the individual units in the system (i.e., the individual ants).
Emergence is a very important concept, especially in terms of group behavior, the world wide web and the Internet, as well as in artifical intelligence and biological and ecological systems. Emergence is also a very important concept in "swarm intelligence" and "hive" type intelligence. These are important concepts for computer science, among many other fields.
Thus the importance of this book which elucidates the concept of "emergence" by describing it in the context of several different areas of study in which it appears.
Disappointment
Review DateF2008-01-11 RatingF
Review DateF2008-01-11 RatingF
I saw Steven Johnson's lively and a compellingly fascinating presentation on the topic of the book at a conference, which inspired my desire to read his book.
Unfortunately, the 250+ pages of the book provide very little insight beyond a 30+ minute presentation. The writing style is not forceful or engaging, but rather dull and lifeless. The lasting feeling is that the author is attempting to make the book accessible to a group of smart 10 year olds by using short sentences, simple vocabulary and endlessly repeating the same ideas over and over again.
The initial excitement wears off after about first 50 pages and the impetus to try to read it would help you stumble through the drudgery of another 50 pages, but except to give up sometime soon afterwards.
Unfortunately, the 250+ pages of the book provide very little insight beyond a 30+ minute presentation. The writing style is not forceful or engaging, but rather dull and lifeless. The lasting feeling is that the author is attempting to make the book accessible to a group of smart 10 year olds by using short sentences, simple vocabulary and endlessly repeating the same ideas over and over again.
The initial excitement wears off after about first 50 pages and the impetus to try to read it would help you stumble through the drudgery of another 50 pages, but except to give up sometime soon afterwards.
Great start; Unresolved ending; Ultimately disappointing
Review DateF2007-08-19 RatingF
Review DateF2007-08-19 RatingF
I purchased this book on something of a whim; it was listed as recommended by Amazon and looked like something worth checking out. This is appropriate because software systems that make recommendations based on history and feedback are one of the topics that get discussed in this book. The concept appealed to me for a number of reasons. First, it seemed like a fascinating study of complex systems and the relationship therein between the components, the system as a whole, and that which may be greater then the sum of its parts - that which is emergent. Which in fact, for a while it was. Second, I appreciate the idea that a city is a complex system that is not dissimilar to other complex systems. And third, I felt like taking a chance on something that just sounded interesting. Sadly, after high expectations brought on by a well developed first half, this book ultimately disappoints.
Credit where credit is due, this book starts off as well as a book can. In keeping with the old adage that a picture is worth a thousand words, there is a wonderful illustration at the start of this book featuring a map of Hamburg dated circa 1850 next to a diagram of a human brain. Whether there is ultimately anything to them or not, the similarities are astounding. It really went a long way towards grabbing my attention and making this book one that I looked forward to reading. For half of the book, my expectations were met.
The first three chapters take the seemingly mundane and unrelated topics of ant colonies, computer programs based on slime mold observations, and city layout, and make an effective comparison. Something I really liked early on about this book was its observation that both ant colonies and cities expand with an order that suggests a central plan, when in fact the main force behind their development is the elemental units just doing the things that they do. Soldier and worker ands don't do their jobs because the queen orders them to, they do them because taking care of the queen keeps the colony alive, thus sustaining their existence. Neighborhoods don't spring up because someone issues a decree to build homes, they spring up because people have wants and needs regarding where they live. And their existence in a certain place creates a continuing cycle, almost fractal in nature, of more people with their own set of wants and needs. The concept of evolution is also thrown in, and quite effectively.
I think that the strongest point the book makes is that cities are not just clusters of people, they are patterns in time. Human beings wired the way they are seem predestined to create printing presses, newspapers, radios, communications networks, TV's, and internets. But here lies the problem with this book. This is potentially a great point, and I would argue a correct one. It's just that it comes along right at about the halfway point in the book. And after that there not much else other than words. The first half of this book does what the first half of a book should do, it develops an idea. But the development of an idea needs to lead to some sort of conclusion that contains some sense of resolution. Unfortunately, somewhere shortly after the start of chapter 4, this book lets go of all of the cohesion it so nicely developed and spins into seemingly endless and tired commentary about video games and the web. Moreover, the commentary is not very good, and becomes repetitive. By the last couple of chapters it becomes quite clear the only thing concluded will be that the author thinks that in a few more years something really significant is going to come about from recent technological changes. They always do. That in and of itself is not worth very much. In the author's defense, I did read this book in 2007 and it was written in 2000. But still, a book should say considerably more this one does.
If the second half were as good as the first, this book could have been ground-breaking. I appreciate the first half, so I don't consider it a complete waste. However be prepared for quite a let down - 2 stars.
Credit where credit is due, this book starts off as well as a book can. In keeping with the old adage that a picture is worth a thousand words, there is a wonderful illustration at the start of this book featuring a map of Hamburg dated circa 1850 next to a diagram of a human brain. Whether there is ultimately anything to them or not, the similarities are astounding. It really went a long way towards grabbing my attention and making this book one that I looked forward to reading. For half of the book, my expectations were met.
The first three chapters take the seemingly mundane and unrelated topics of ant colonies, computer programs based on slime mold observations, and city layout, and make an effective comparison. Something I really liked early on about this book was its observation that both ant colonies and cities expand with an order that suggests a central plan, when in fact the main force behind their development is the elemental units just doing the things that they do. Soldier and worker ands don't do their jobs because the queen orders them to, they do them because taking care of the queen keeps the colony alive, thus sustaining their existence. Neighborhoods don't spring up because someone issues a decree to build homes, they spring up because people have wants and needs regarding where they live. And their existence in a certain place creates a continuing cycle, almost fractal in nature, of more people with their own set of wants and needs. The concept of evolution is also thrown in, and quite effectively.
I think that the strongest point the book makes is that cities are not just clusters of people, they are patterns in time. Human beings wired the way they are seem predestined to create printing presses, newspapers, radios, communications networks, TV's, and internets. But here lies the problem with this book. This is potentially a great point, and I would argue a correct one. It's just that it comes along right at about the halfway point in the book. And after that there not much else other than words. The first half of this book does what the first half of a book should do, it develops an idea. But the development of an idea needs to lead to some sort of conclusion that contains some sense of resolution. Unfortunately, somewhere shortly after the start of chapter 4, this book lets go of all of the cohesion it so nicely developed and spins into seemingly endless and tired commentary about video games and the web. Moreover, the commentary is not very good, and becomes repetitive. By the last couple of chapters it becomes quite clear the only thing concluded will be that the author thinks that in a few more years something really significant is going to come about from recent technological changes. They always do. That in and of itself is not worth very much. In the author's defense, I did read this book in 2007 and it was written in 2000. But still, a book should say considerably more this one does.
If the second half were as good as the first, this book could have been ground-breaking. I appreciate the first half, so I don't consider it a complete waste. However be prepared for quite a let down - 2 stars.
finger food for the mind
Review DateF2006-12-14 RatingF
Review DateF2006-12-14 RatingF
This is a pretty good read - it moves quickly and doesn't get you bogged down in the dna of the concept of emergence. go to wikipedia, read it. then pick up a copy of this and it will provide more context and usefulness. while this may not be the 'grand slam' of books...and to some degree it may be viewed as a popular fad topic...this book is better written than many that end up in the waste bend after page 47. if highlighter markings and cryptic notes in the margin are an indicator for me then it is safe to say that i got my money's worth...and...it contributed to my ongoing pondering of this and many other esoteric terms from the science realm.
Groovy in Action
| Title | Groovy in Action |
| Author | Dierk Koenig,Andrew Glover,Paul King,Guillaume Laforge,Jon Skeet |
| Publisher | Manning Publications |
| Price | $4999 |
| Available | Usually ships in 24 hours |
Description
Groovy, the brand-new language for the Java platform, brings to Java many of the features that have made Ruby popular. Groovy in Action is a comprehensive guide to Groovy programming, introducing Java developers to the new dynamic features that Groovy provides. To bring you Groovy in Action, Manning again went to the source by working with a team of expert authors including both members and the Manager of the Groovy Project team. The result is the true definitive guide to the new Groovy language. Simple and collective Groovy data types Working with Closures and Groovy Control Structures Dynamic Object Orientation, Groovy style How to Work with Builders and the GDK Database programming with Groovy Tips and Tricks Unit Testing and Build Support Groovy on Windows
Groovy in Action introduces Groovy by example, presenting lots of reusable code while explaining the underlying concepts. Java developers new to Groovy find a smooth transition into the dynamic programming world. Groovy experts gain a solid reference that challenges them to explore Groovy deeply and creatively.
Because Groovy is so new, most readers will be learning it from scratch. Groovy in Action quickly moves through the Groovy basics, including:
Readers are presented with rich and detailed examples illustrating Groovy's enhancements to Java, including
Groovy in Action then demonstrates how to Integrate Groovy with XML, and provides,
An additional bonus is a chapter dedicated to Grails, the Groovy Web Application Framework.
Early PDF chapters of Groovy in Action are available from the Manning Early Access Program (MEAP) at http://www.manning.com/koenig. As part of this program, readers can also discuss the early manuscript with the author and help shape the manuscript as it's being developed by joining the Author Forum.
The K&R of Groovy programming books
Review DateF2008-11-08 RatingF
Review DateF2008-11-08 RatingF
Groovy brings advanced language features such as closures, dynamic typing, and the meta object protocol to the Java platform, and at the same time makes your codebase smaller and more concise. By concise I don't mean so compact that nobody can understand it. Groovy builds on your existing experience and familiarity with the Java platform and allows you to pick and choose when to use particular tools and when to combine Groovy and Java.
The book begins by introducing you to what you will need to compile and run Groovy as far as jar files and tools. Part one of the book is entirely dedicated to the language basics: syntax, grammar, and typical idioms. The language is presented via a combination of examples and discussion. The descriptions are detailed but are not overly academic. Chapter two is most important here, because that is where many of the examples lie that you will need to come back to later in the book.
Part 2, "Around the Groovy Library", explores how Groovy extends the Java Runtime Environment. Part one of the book demonstrated how Groovy makes commonly performed tasks easier. The second part shows how the same principle is applied in Groovy's libraries, using many of the advanced language features available to let you do more work with less code. Chapter 8 introduces the builder concept, which is one of Groovy's distinctive capabilities, because it can only be implemented in a general library class with a truly dynamic language. There are builders that come as part of the Groovy distribution, and you are also shown how to create your own builders. Chapter 9 covers the object/method pure GDK library capabilities. Chapter 10 goes covers Groovy's library support for dealing with relational database systems, providing great flexibility when necessary, and significant shortcuts when simple solutions will do. Chapter 11 presents various methods of making Java applications more dynamic by integrating them with Groovy. I found this to be one of the book's most useful chapters, but you need the first 10 for chapter 11 to make sense.
Part 3 supplies guidance on how to best apply your new Groovy knowledge to practical tasks. Chapter 13 reveals tricks of the trade - how to avoid common errors, using snippet collections, and command-line and automation support. Chapter 14 is about unit testing. I just skimmed this part since the subject doesn't appeal to me. Chapter 15 takes Java and Groovy to the Windows platform. It shows how to put Groovy's expressiveness into action for the automation of Windows controls and applications. Finally, chapter 16 looks at Grails and shows how it leverages J2EE, Hibernate, Spring, and Groovy to allow rapid application development.
This book is a great introduction to Groovy, and even at its rather advanced age for a programming book it is still the best of the Groovy introductory texts. However, I am a person who needs an extreme amount of examples to really get something. For that reason I also highly recommend Groovy Recipes: Greasing the Wheels of Java (Pragmatic Programmers). What this book lacks in examples that book has. What that book lacks in detailed explanation, this book has. Thus they go hand in hand extremely well.
The book begins by introducing you to what you will need to compile and run Groovy as far as jar files and tools. Part one of the book is entirely dedicated to the language basics: syntax, grammar, and typical idioms. The language is presented via a combination of examples and discussion. The descriptions are detailed but are not overly academic. Chapter two is most important here, because that is where many of the examples lie that you will need to come back to later in the book.
Part 2, "Around the Groovy Library", explores how Groovy extends the Java Runtime Environment. Part one of the book demonstrated how Groovy makes commonly performed tasks easier. The second part shows how the same principle is applied in Groovy's libraries, using many of the advanced language features available to let you do more work with less code. Chapter 8 introduces the builder concept, which is one of Groovy's distinctive capabilities, because it can only be implemented in a general library class with a truly dynamic language. There are builders that come as part of the Groovy distribution, and you are also shown how to create your own builders. Chapter 9 covers the object/method pure GDK library capabilities. Chapter 10 goes covers Groovy's library support for dealing with relational database systems, providing great flexibility when necessary, and significant shortcuts when simple solutions will do. Chapter 11 presents various methods of making Java applications more dynamic by integrating them with Groovy. I found this to be one of the book's most useful chapters, but you need the first 10 for chapter 11 to make sense.
Part 3 supplies guidance on how to best apply your new Groovy knowledge to practical tasks. Chapter 13 reveals tricks of the trade - how to avoid common errors, using snippet collections, and command-line and automation support. Chapter 14 is about unit testing. I just skimmed this part since the subject doesn't appeal to me. Chapter 15 takes Java and Groovy to the Windows platform. It shows how to put Groovy's expressiveness into action for the automation of Windows controls and applications. Finally, chapter 16 looks at Grails and shows how it leverages J2EE, Hibernate, Spring, and Groovy to allow rapid application development.
This book is a great introduction to Groovy, and even at its rather advanced age for a programming book it is still the best of the Groovy introductory texts. However, I am a person who needs an extreme amount of examples to really get something. For that reason I also highly recommend Groovy Recipes: Greasing the Wheels of Java (Pragmatic Programmers). What this book lacks in examples that book has. What that book lacks in detailed explanation, this book has. Thus they go hand in hand extremely well.
Excellent resource
Review DateF2008-10-30 RatingF
Review DateF2008-10-30 RatingF
Highly recommend the book to those starting to learn Groovy and as a reference for those that are somewhat familiar with it.
Groovy is different. Get this book and learn
Review DateF2008-07-20 RatingF
Review DateF2008-07-20 RatingF
I feel like Groovy is like a programming language "Eintopf", it aggregates some best characteristics of a variety of programming languages. No matter which programming style you prefer - procedural, functional, object-oriented, meta-programming, static typed, dynamic typed... - Groovy has much to offer. The most beautiful thing is, you can easily combine different programming styles in one language and write most concise and self-explanatory code to solve your problem. With Groovy, you suddenly have so much mind-freedom, you have the choice of expressing your algorithms as close to the nature of the problems as possible.
There are languages having very concise syntax but the code is not easy for human to read. There are languages and APIs require more strikings on keyboard than thinking. Groovy is different. You have all kinds of syntax sugar while the code still tells a literal story in your problem domain.
The only fields I think Groovy might not be suitable are the machine-level infrastructures and image/audio/video processing. C and assembly languages are not replaceable by Groovy. In most other application fields, using Groovy can dramatically boost programmers' productivity and reduce programming errors.
I started off by simply renaming all .java files in my test packages to .groovy files. Worked. Then tried out it's closures and curry calls. For me there are a lot more to explore. Haskel fans will like Groovy. Smalltalk fans will like Groovy. Python fans will like Groovy. Lisp fans maybe too. Java folks? I for one, have already been conquered. If you program at all, by all means do yourself a favour and have a look at Groovy.
Groovy in Action is an excellent book on Groovy and programming. Get this book and get the insight, you'll be glad you do.
There are languages having very concise syntax but the code is not easy for human to read. There are languages and APIs require more strikings on keyboard than thinking. Groovy is different. You have all kinds of syntax sugar while the code still tells a literal story in your problem domain.
The only fields I think Groovy might not be suitable are the machine-level infrastructures and image/audio/video processing. C and assembly languages are not replaceable by Groovy. In most other application fields, using Groovy can dramatically boost programmers' productivity and reduce programming errors.
I started off by simply renaming all .java files in my test packages to .groovy files. Worked. Then tried out it's closures and curry calls. For me there are a lot more to explore. Haskel fans will like Groovy. Smalltalk fans will like Groovy. Python fans will like Groovy. Lisp fans maybe too. Java folks? I for one, have already been conquered. If you program at all, by all means do yourself a favour and have a look at Groovy.
Groovy in Action is an excellent book on Groovy and programming. Get this book and get the insight, you'll be glad you do.
Groovy In Action is an awesome Groovy book and reference.
Review DateF2008-04-07 RatingF
Review DateF2008-04-07 RatingF
For those of you who haven't heard of Groovy, Groovy is a scripting language that is built on top of Java. Since it is written on top of Java, a Java developer can pick up pick Groovy in a snap.
I first heard about Groovy In Action (also known as GINA) during a Groovy presentation almost a year ago, the presenter was referring to Groovy In Action as one of the best references out at the time, After reading GINA, I was not disappointed. The roadmap given at the beginning of the book is a great guide to see how the book is organized out. As an added bonus, the book includes some great reference information at the end of the book. It contains Groovy Language information, a GDK API quick reference, and several great cheat sheets for items such as closures, lists, etc.
The book is full of great examples that you can use (some of the examples illustrate some of the finer points of the language).
In fact someone recently asked about where to find a complete specification of the Groovy Language. Guillaume Laforge, Groovy Program Manager and co-author of Groovy In Action, responded that the most current information can be found in Groovy In Action (source user@groovy.codehaus.org mailing list 3/16/2008).
Groovy in Action is one of the Groovy books that is a must have for anyone looking to get into Groovy Development.
I first heard about Groovy In Action (also known as GINA) during a Groovy presentation almost a year ago, the presenter was referring to Groovy In Action as one of the best references out at the time, After reading GINA, I was not disappointed. The roadmap given at the beginning of the book is a great guide to see how the book is organized out. As an added bonus, the book includes some great reference information at the end of the book. It contains Groovy Language information, a GDK API quick reference, and several great cheat sheets for items such as closures, lists, etc.
The book is full of great examples that you can use (some of the examples illustrate some of the finer points of the language).
In fact someone recently asked about where to find a complete specification of the Groovy Language. Guillaume Laforge, Groovy Program Manager and co-author of Groovy In Action, responded that the most current information can be found in Groovy In Action (source user@groovy.codehaus.org mailing list 3/16/2008).
Groovy in Action is one of the Groovy books that is a must have for anyone looking to get into Groovy Development.
awesome
Review DateF2008-03-22 RatingF
Review DateF2008-03-22 RatingF
This book is totally awesome. The book makes it very easy to jump around and come back to previous chapters. The book's online forum is great too. The author(s) respond very quickly. It is well worth the money. Order it now and you will be programming in Groovy very quickly.
Wicket in Action (In Action)
| Title | Wicket in Action (In Action) |
| Author | Martijn Dashorst,Eelco Hillenius |
| Publisher | Manning Publications |
| Price | $4499 |
| Available | Usually ships in 24 hours |
Description
There are dozens of Java frameworks out there, but most of them require you to learn special coding techniques and new, often rigid, patterns of development. Wicket is different. As a component-based Web application framework, Wicket lets you build maintainable enterprise-grade web applications using the power of plain old Java objects (POJOs), HTML, Ajax, Spring, Hibernate and Maven. Wicket automatically manages state at the component level, which means no more awkward HTTPSession objects. Its elegant programming model enables you to write rich web applications quickly.
Wicket in Action is an authoritative, comprehensive guide for Java developers building Wicket-based Web applications. This book starts with an introduction to Wicket's structure and components, and moves quickly into examples of Wicket at work. Written by two of the project's earliest and most authoritative experts, this book shows you both the "how-to" and the "why" of Wicket. As you move through the book, you'll learn to use and customize Wicket components, how to interact with other technologies like Spring and Hibernate, and how to build rich, Ajax-driven features into your applications.
Must have reference for wicket developer
Review DateF2008-10-30 RatingF
Review DateF2008-10-30 RatingF
There is already a lot of appreciation of the book, don't have much to say here
A great informative and technical book
Review DateF2008-10-19 RatingF
Review DateF2008-10-19 RatingF
I have been developing with Wicket for a year or so. When I started working with Wicket I didn't have a good book as a reference. The community is very helpful in this case. In the mailing list you can sometimes see the two writers of this book. Their responses are very helpful. And so is the book.
The book covers a lot of theoretical Wicket stuff, which I think is very useful if one wants to understand it better.
The book is great for a newcomer as well. Just follow the examples and you'll understand Wicket.
I found the book very useful to me, an intermediate / expert Wicket developer.
Each time I read a few pages or a chapter, I learn something new.
I recommend this book to anyone that uses Wicket or plan to use it.
The book covers a lot of theoretical Wicket stuff, which I think is very useful if one wants to understand it better.
The book is great for a newcomer as well. Just follow the examples and you'll understand Wicket.
I found the book very useful to me, an intermediate / expert Wicket developer.
Each time I read a few pages or a chapter, I learn something new.
I recommend this book to anyone that uses Wicket or plan to use it.
Well layed out, well thought out and concise
Review DateF2008-10-13 RatingF
Review DateF2008-10-13 RatingF
As the Manning publications book Wicket in Action is soon to hit the shelf of your local book store, I was granted the opportunity of a sneak preview. Now, I'm not a person with a lot of spare time on my hands these days but I felt an obligation to give this book a serious read because A) Wicket is an excellent framework for building web applications B) The people who wrote this book are extremely helpful on the mailing list and irc channel and I wanted to know if their talents translated well to book writing. I'm happy to report it has, in spades....
[...]
[...]
Great indepth book about a great technology
Review DateF2008-10-02 RatingF
Review DateF2008-10-02 RatingF
I already bought this book before it was released. I love wicket and this book sure makes it easier to work with Wicket. It gives you a great in depth view on how wicket works. Adding more and more complexity in all the different chapters.
A needed read for anyone who wants to get the most out of Wicket.
A needed read for anyone who wants to get the most out of Wicket.
Well written, in-depth coverage
Review DateF2008-09-26 RatingF
Review DateF2008-09-26 RatingF
I don't normally review books on Amazon but this is one of the best technical books that I've read in a while. The authors do a great job of organizing and presenting the material. The book is easy to read and I was able to get through it in about two evenings. I'm now using it as a reference while I work on my first major Wicket application. It might help that Wicket itself is well structured which makes the concepts that much easier to understand.
That being said, there are a few short-comings:
1) The cheese and lasagna examples get really old really quickly. The authors could have used different concepts or something a little more relevant or interesting to most developers.
2) The book is somewhat short. While they covered the core topics well, I felt that a few things we missing. I was surprised to see that the publisher trimmed the book and put an extra chapter online but not in print.
3) Some fundamentals like what DTD to include in an HTML page or what the Wicket web.xml should look like would be nice. You can find these answers online with a quick search but this book should really cover it.
But these faults don't hurt the overall usefulness of the book. It would be nice if most/all of this documentation was available in the Wicket project itself, but no such luck which makes this book even more valuable. I don't know if it will be in all copies, but my copy had a coupon for a free version of the digital book (PDF I suppose)... nice touch.
I recommend buying this book and learning about a very reasonable alternative to JSF.
That being said, there are a few short-comings:
1) The cheese and lasagna examples get really old really quickly. The authors could have used different concepts or something a little more relevant or interesting to most developers.
2) The book is somewhat short. While they covered the core topics well, I felt that a few things we missing. I was surprised to see that the publisher trimmed the book and put an extra chapter online but not in print.
3) Some fundamentals like what DTD to include in an HTML page or what the Wicket web.xml should look like would be nice. You can find these answers online with a quick search but this book should really cover it.
But these faults don't hurt the overall usefulness of the book. It would be nice if most/all of this documentation was available in the Wicket project itself, but no such luck which makes this book even more valuable. I don't know if it will be in all copies, but my copy had a coupon for a free version of the digital book (PDF I suppose)... nice touch.
I recommend buying this book and learning about a very reasonable alternative to JSF.
JBoss at Work: A Practical Guide
| Title | JBoss at Work: A Practical Guide |
| Author | Tom Marrs,Scott Davis |
| Publisher | O'Reilly Media, Inc. |
| Price | $3495 |
| Available | Usually ships in 24 hours |
Description
Consisting of a number of well-known open source products, JBoss is more a family of interrelated services than a single monolithic application. But, as with any tool that's as feature-rich as JBoss, there are number of pitfalls and complexities, too.
Most developers struggle with the same issues when deploying J2EE applications on JBoss: they have trouble getting the many J2EE and JBoss deployment descriptors to work together; they have difficulty finding out how to get started; their projects don't have a packaging and deployment strategy that grows with the application; or, they find the Class Loaders confusing and don't know how to use them, which can cause problems.
"JBoss at Work: A Practical Guide" helps developers overcome these challenges. As you work through the book, you'll build a project using extensive code examples. You'll delve into all the major facets of J2EE application deployment on JBoss, including JSPs, Servlets, EJBs, JMS, JNDI, web services, JavaMail, JDBC, and Hibernate. With the help of this book, you'll:
Implement a full J2EE application and deploy it on JBoss
Discover how to use the latest features of JBoss 4 and J2EE 1.4, including J2EE-compliant web services
Master J2EE application deployment on JBoss with EARs, WARs, and EJB JARs
Understand the core J2EE deployment descriptors and how they integrate with JBoss-specific descriptors
Base your security strategy on JAAS
Written for Java developers who want to use JBoss on their projects, the book covers the gamut of deploying J2EE technologies on JBoss, providing a brief survey of each subject aimed at the working professional with limited time.
If you're one of thelegions of developers who have decided to give JBoss a try, then "JBoss at Work: A Practical Guide" is your next logical purchase. It'll show you in plain language how to use the fastest growing open source tool in the industry today. If you've worked with JBoss before, this book will get you up to speed on JBoss 4, JBoss WS (web services), and Hibernate 3.
Perfect Introduction!
Review DateF2007-11-14 RatingF
Review DateF2007-11-14 RatingF
Some books have alot of pages with little information. This book is short, but every page is rich with facts and insights.
I work with integrating a 3rd party application that uses JBoss, and come from a Microsoft development background, so this whole world of Java/JBoss/EJB was a bit new to me. I needed a good guide which would explain what JBoss is, how it works, and how to set it up.
JBoss at Work was exactly what I needed. It walks through setting up JBoss and using it a practical application of a car sales website. Though the entire system is quite complex, the authors have distilled the essence of how it works and why. The examples are simple, yet reveal the full power of JBoss. And the examples build on each other, with sample code that you can edit, compile and deploy yourself. It was an incredible thrill to me (a java newbie) to actually create and deploy a full EJB application on my low-end laptop in just a few short chapters!
Though I know this is the tip of the iceberg into the JBoss world, Tom Marrs and Scott Davis have written an excellent map, laying down a good foundation for anyone who wants to understand JBoss.
I work with integrating a 3rd party application that uses JBoss, and come from a Microsoft development background, so this whole world of Java/JBoss/EJB was a bit new to me. I needed a good guide which would explain what JBoss is, how it works, and how to set it up.
JBoss at Work was exactly what I needed. It walks through setting up JBoss and using it a practical application of a car sales website. Though the entire system is quite complex, the authors have distilled the essence of how it works and why. The examples are simple, yet reveal the full power of JBoss. And the examples build on each other, with sample code that you can edit, compile and deploy yourself. It was an incredible thrill to me (a java newbie) to actually create and deploy a full EJB application on my low-end laptop in just a few short chapters!
Though I know this is the tip of the iceberg into the JBoss world, Tom Marrs and Scott Davis have written an excellent map, laying down a good foundation for anyone who wants to understand JBoss.
JBoss at work
Review DateF2007-10-19 RatingF
Review DateF2007-10-19 RatingF
JBoss at Work: A Practical Guide
Great book. It is as the subtitle implies: a practical guide. It was easy to work through the book and the sample code and get a quick yet detailed overview of JBoss and Java web technology. Unlike some huge books, I did not get lost in the complexities. Any technology like this is complex enough as it is. I like to start with an overview, and this book is exactly that: a great introduction and overview. Even so, it's practical enough to put the knowledge to work right away. Hence it's "JBoss at Work."
Great book. It is as the subtitle implies: a practical guide. It was easy to work through the book and the sample code and get a quick yet detailed overview of JBoss and Java web technology. Unlike some huge books, I did not get lost in the complexities. Any technology like this is complex enough as it is. I like to start with an overview, and this book is exactly that: a great introduction and overview. Even so, it's practical enough to put the knowledge to work right away. Hence it's "JBoss at Work."
Encompassing
Review DateF2007-10-11 RatingF
Review DateF2007-10-11 RatingF
Aimed at the beginning J2EE developer, this book does a great job of encompassing several exciting technologies and showing how they can all work together (JBoss, Ant, XDoclet, Hibernate, etc.) to achieve the end goal of deploying a robust ear file. XDoclet and ant pair to automate several of the tedious tasks (read deployment descriptor generation) no developer wants to be bogged down with. I am a huge fan of how it introduces all the necessary technologies involved w/o diving into the mundane detail of each and every one. If more depth is required, citations are always provided to other great O'Reilly titles. This book stays true to its title w/o going off on tangents due to other author's personal bias. All decisions are objectively defended (like their decision to illustrate Hibernate as their ORM of choice) and options are always provided. Very practical and a great starting point. Overall, two thumbs up.
Great Developer book for starters to JBOSS
Review DateF2007-08-14 RatingF
Review DateF2007-08-14 RatingF
Its a great book if you have just started your development with JBOSS 4. It is easy to read from a developer/deployment perspective and also delves into how to automate the deployment descriptors and deploy into JBOSS. Covers most of the common J2ee/Web applications using hibernate and Ant. Probably needs upgrading to JBOSS 5 but is great if your current development is in JBOSS 4.
Great learning tool
Review DateF2007-06-26 RatingF
Review DateF2007-06-26 RatingF
I am most of the way through this book and so far, it's been extremely helpful and informative. It breaks all the steps down one by one and takes you from a simple Hello-World type app, to a more complicated enterprise application. A great read all-around.
Ant in Action (Manning)
| Title | Ant in Action (Manning) |
| Author | Steve Loughran,Erik Hatcher |
| Publisher | Manning Publications |
| Price | $4999 |
| Available | Usually ships in 24 hours |
Description
This second edition of a Manning bestseller has been revised and re-titled to fit the 'In Action' Series by Steve Loughran, an Ant project committer. Ant in Action introduces Ant and how to use it for test-driven Java application development. Ant itself is moving to v1.7, a major revision, at the end of 2006 so the timing for the book is right. A single application of increasing complexity, followed throughout the book, shows how an application evolves and how to handle the problems of building and testing. Reviewers have praised the book's coverage of large-projects, Ant's advanced features, and the details and depth of the discussion-all unavailable elsewhere. How to Manage Big projects Library management Enterprise Java Continuous integration Deployment Writing new Ant tasks and datatypes
This is a major revision with the second half of the book completely new, including:
very usefull reference for web developers as well
Review DateF2008-11-07 RatingF
Review DateF2008-11-07 RatingF
I began using Ant as part of my build process for Joomla! (CMS) development to save time on building, debugging, and deploying new Joomla extensions. While Ant and "Ant in Action" are geared toward helping a developer with a Java project it was also very useful for PHP web development. It contained great code examples and covers all of the useful ways one can use ant (many of which people are un-aware of).
creating a good build process
Review DateF2008-03-30 RatingF
Review DateF2008-03-30 RatingF
"Ant in Action" is really the second edition of "Java Development in Ant." I think the original title was more descriptive as the book focuses more on process, tools and techniques than most Ant books. For example, they introduce continuous integration and why you would want to write unit tests. Not that the Ant coverage isn't good - it's excellent - just that the book is so much more. The book assumes you know Java, but walks you through everything else.
Like most Ant books the authors don't rehash the excellent online manual and API. For those new to Ant, features are clearly described with good examples and good descriptions of "what happens if ____." The flow diagrams helped visualize concepts nicely.
For those who have been using Ant, there are margin notes about what was added in 1.6/1.7 along with coverage of Ivy. I also liked the Java 6/JEE 5 examples. The techniques for writing reusable/maintainable code and extending Ant provided significant value. I was a little disappointed that the JUnit examples used JUnit 3.8. The authors did explain the reasoning and I understand their reason. I still would have liked to see it though as this book will still be used when JUnit 4 is in wider use.
Coverage of related tools is also useful. It's good to know what libraries to look into to increase productivity with Ant. I've been using Ant for complex builds for three years and still had a page of take away points from this book. I recommend it for the valuable information and techniques.
Like most Ant books the authors don't rehash the excellent online manual and API. For those new to Ant, features are clearly described with good examples and good descriptions of "what happens if ____." The flow diagrams helped visualize concepts nicely.
For those who have been using Ant, there are margin notes about what was added in 1.6/1.7 along with coverage of Ivy. I also liked the Java 6/JEE 5 examples. The techniques for writing reusable/maintainable code and extending Ant provided significant value. I was a little disappointed that the JUnit examples used JUnit 3.8. The authors did explain the reasoning and I understand their reason. I still would have liked to see it though as this book will still be used when JUnit 4 is in wider use.
Coverage of related tools is also useful. It's good to know what libraries to look into to increase productivity with Ant. I've been using Ant for complex builds for three years and still had a page of take away points from this book. I recommend it for the valuable information and techniques.
Excellent reference so far
Review DateF2008-03-10 RatingF
Review DateF2008-03-10 RatingF
Being a general novice with Ant, I needed to get up to speed to amateur/expert level for my new job. So far its been a great reference getting in depth information about lesser used tasks in Ant.
Since I work on a large scale project here, Chapter 10, Working with Big Projects has really been the most useful for me. Overall, I would say this book fits my needs and doesn't require me to buy any additional Ant books at this time. I would recommend it to others in similar situations.
Since I work on a large scale project here, Chapter 10, Working with Big Projects has really been the most useful for me. Overall, I would say this book fits my needs and doesn't require me to buy any additional Ant books at this time. I would recommend it to others in similar situations.
Very thorough update to a classic!
Review DateF2007-10-08 RatingF
Review DateF2007-10-08 RatingF
Boy, was this new version that covers version 1.7 needed! Manning's first version was 2003 (Own it, too), and it was really starting to show its age. This book was, and still is, the only game in town. Its therefore a good thing it is written so well!
So why 4 stars? I really, really, wanted a thorough treatment of the Ant API, and didn't get it. I selfishly want to call Ant from within Java code, but the section on Embedding only had a very simplistic example using echo().
I also have to give 4 stars because as the only book out there on Ant (at this level), there is nothing to compare it to.
So why 4 stars? I really, really, wanted a thorough treatment of the Ant API, and didn't get it. I selfishly want to call Ant from within Java code, but the section on Embedding only had a very simplistic example using echo().
I also have to give 4 stars because as the only book out there on Ant (at this level), there is nothing to compare it to.
The best and most complete book on Apache Ant
Review DateF2007-08-17 RatingF
Review DateF2007-08-17 RatingF
As a build tool, Apache Ant has been in existence for quite a while now and remains the number one Java build scripting tool. A large number of books have been written on its implementation - both good and unfortunately bad - and here is a brand new one which covers Ant 1.7.
This book is a retitled second edition of Java Development with Ant by the same authors but is not just a minor update - the back cover quotes 50% new content and I can well believe it. Personally, I have implemented lots of build processes using Ant and even written a book on its implementation myself. I therefore thought I knew most things about the tool - however I was pleasantly surprised that I still managed to learn some new things from this book.
In general I don't really like books over 250-300 pages - and this one stretches over 560 pages. Although there is probably some content that could have been left out, there are also gems such as Managing Dependencies with Apache Ivy (although I prefer the Ant tasks for Maven), Working with XML and Automating Deployment using a tool called SmartFrog. For me these chapters made the purchase of the book worthwhile.
If you are new or have limited experience of Ant then you should add an extra star to my rating. I believe this is probably the most complete book at taking you from an Ant novice to expert, in as short a time as possible.
It would have been nice to see some more examples of how Ant can be integrated into automated build processes, and rather strangely the book uses Luntbuild as an example rather that the more popular CruiseControl tool. Also it would have been nice to see how Ant can work alongside commercial tools such as the Build Forge build/release framework, application servers such as Weblogic or WebSphere and deployment tools developed by the likes of Tivoli or Microsoft. On the whole however, these are relatively minor complaints.
In summary, if you are new to Ant then buy this book now. If you are an experienced Ant user then well, still buy this book!
This book is a retitled second edition of Java Development with Ant by the same authors but is not just a minor update - the back cover quotes 50% new content and I can well believe it. Personally, I have implemented lots of build processes using Ant and even written a book on its implementation myself. I therefore thought I knew most things about the tool - however I was pleasantly surprised that I still managed to learn some new things from this book.
In general I don't really like books over 250-300 pages - and this one stretches over 560 pages. Although there is probably some content that could have been left out, there are also gems such as Managing Dependencies with Apache Ivy (although I prefer the Ant tasks for Maven), Working with XML and Automating Deployment using a tool called SmartFrog. For me these chapters made the purchase of the book worthwhile.
If you are new or have limited experience of Ant then you should add an extra star to my rating. I believe this is probably the most complete book at taking you from an Ant novice to expert, in as short a time as possible.
It would have been nice to see some more examples of how Ant can be integrated into automated build processes, and rather strangely the book uses Luntbuild as an example rather that the more popular CruiseControl tool. Also it would have been nice to see how Ant can work alongside commercial tools such as the Build Forge build/release framework, application servers such as Weblogic or WebSphere and deployment tools developed by the likes of Tivoli or Microsoft. On the whole however, these are relatively minor complaints.
In summary, if you are new to Ant then buy this book now. If you are an experienced Ant user then well, still buy this book!
Groovy Recipes: Greasing the Wheels of Java (Pragmatic Programmers)
| Title | Groovy Recipes: Greasing the Wheels of Java (Pragmatic Programmers) |
| Author | Scott Davis |
| Publisher | Pragmatic Bookshelf |
| Price | $3495 |
| Available | Usually ships in 24 hours |
Description
Each recipe in Groovy Recipes begins with a concise code example for a quick start, followed by in-depth explanation in plain English. These recipes will get you to-to-speed in a Groovy environment quickly.
You'll see how to speed up nearly every aspect of the development process using Groovy. Groovy makes mundane file management tasks like copying and renaming files trivial. Reading and writing XML has never been easier with XmlParsers and XmlBuilders. Breathe new life into Arrays, Maps, and Lists with a number of convenience methods. But Groovy does more than just ease traditional Java development: it brings modern programming features to the Java platform like closures, duck-typing, and metaprogramming.
As an added bonus, this book also covers Grails. You'll be amazed at how quickly you can have a first-class web application up and running from ground zero. Grails includes everything you need in a single zip file|a web server (Jetty), a database (HSQLDB), Spring, Hibernate, even a Groovy version of Ant called GANT. We cover everything from getting a basic website in place to advanced features that take you beyond HTML into the world of Web Services: REST, JSON, Atom, Podcasting, and much much more.
Great book for getting into Groovy
Review DateF2008-05-23 RatingF
Review DateF2008-05-23 RatingF
Groovy Recipes is an excellent introductory book into Groovy programming. The first few chapters give clear instructions for learning how to use Groovy. The remaining chapters give clear instructions for using some of Groovy's cool features: using Groovy with Java, Grails programming, metaprogramming, working with XML, File manipulation, and web services).
Much akin to the fun and energetic manner that Davis speaks in his presentations he writes Groovy Recipes.
If you haven't heard him speak(and even if you have), do a quick Google Video search for Scott Davis Groovy and you'll find a presentation or two of his. I recommend them.
One technique that I found especially useful is how Davis compared performing a simple task in the Java world, and then showed how it could be done in the Groovy world. Of course, it's easier in the groovy world for all the examples. It's nice to see areas where we can take advantage of Groovy's strengths.
Groovy Recipes has enough content to sit on an experienced Groovy developer's book shelf, but the more novice Groovy people will find more value in Groovy Recipes.
Much akin to the fun and energetic manner that Davis speaks in his presentations he writes Groovy Recipes.
If you haven't heard him speak(and even if you have), do a quick Google Video search for Scott Davis Groovy and you'll find a presentation or two of his. I recommend them.
One technique that I found especially useful is how Davis compared performing a simple task in the Java world, and then showed how it could be done in the Groovy world. Of course, it's easier in the groovy world for all the examples. It's nice to see areas where we can take advantage of Groovy's strengths.
Groovy Recipes has enough content to sit on an experienced Groovy developer's book shelf, but the more novice Groovy people will find more value in Groovy Recipes.
Some nice Recipes
Review DateF2008-05-19 RatingF
Review DateF2008-05-19 RatingF
It is a nice little book to have by your computer, if you are working with Groovy. I give this book 3 star review because this could have done without first 5 chapters. I think Groovy is a great language, and in my humble opinion it is more useful to a Java programmer, then Ruby, however the quality of Ruby books is far superior to books available in Groovy.
A great resource, but misleading title.
Review DateF2008-05-11 RatingF
Review DateF2008-05-11 RatingF
I got this book after hearing the author speak at JavaOne. His talk covers the content of the first chapter along with a few other items, but I didn't mind. It was quite helpful to read through the points and examples he made and try them out at my own pace.
The book is driven by a series of insights rather than complete, formal coverage. I found this approach very useful to getting started and experimenting. The writing is clear, light-hearted, and relaxed, especially in the beginning.
Towards the end of the book, the explanations wane a bit. The sample code is more often given without an introduction, beyond the section header. I was less sure what was going on in some of these cases, as I had gotten accustomed to picking things up very quickly in the beginning. The explanations that followed these code bits were good enough, but I missed that sense of the author's energy from beginning to end of each section.
I don't understand at all why it's called Groovy Recipes. There aren't any. The examples illustrate very well the power of this tool, but I didn't see anything that amounts to, say, the Groovy way to mine a web page, create an IM interface, read mail, etc. If you are looking for code you can apply immediately to some series of problems, this isn't the one.
The book is driven by a series of insights rather than complete, formal coverage. I found this approach very useful to getting started and experimenting. The writing is clear, light-hearted, and relaxed, especially in the beginning.
Towards the end of the book, the explanations wane a bit. The sample code is more often given without an introduction, beyond the section header. I was less sure what was going on in some of these cases, as I had gotten accustomed to picking things up very quickly in the beginning. The explanations that followed these code bits were good enough, but I missed that sense of the author's energy from beginning to end of each section.
I don't understand at all why it's called Groovy Recipes. There aren't any. The examples illustrate very well the power of this tool, but I didn't see anything that amounts to, say, the Groovy way to mine a web page, create an IM interface, read mail, etc. If you are looking for code you can apply immediately to some series of problems, this isn't the one.
Groovy Baby Very Groovy!!
Review DateF2008-05-09 RatingF
Review DateF2008-05-09 RatingF
'Groovy Recipes: Greasing the Wheels of Java' is a typical Pragmatic release in that it is written well, free of bells and whistles, and jam full of relevant and useful information. There is 250+ pages of information here on how to use and implement Groovy, the wonderful Java addition that makes programming easier and more exciting for any and all developers!
Content is spread over 12 chapters:
01. Intro
02. Getting Started
03. New to Groovy
04. Java + Groovy
05. Command Line Groovy
06. File Tricks
07. XML Parsing
08. Writing XML
09. Web Services
10. Metaprogramming
11. Grails
12. Grails + Web Services
As can be seen by the TOC, this is a book for programmers of today living in a networked world. The focus is on writing efficient, good code that is fast and useful. This book is extremely beneficial to any and all Groovy developers that want to learn better and faster this wonderful technology.
***** RECOMMENDED
Content is spread over 12 chapters:
01. Intro
02. Getting Started
03. New to Groovy
04. Java + Groovy
05. Command Line Groovy
06. File Tricks
07. XML Parsing
08. Writing XML
09. Web Services
10. Metaprogramming
11. Grails
12. Grails + Web Services
As can be seen by the TOC, this is a book for programmers of today living in a networked world. The focus is on writing efficient, good code that is fast and useful. This book is extremely beneficial to any and all Groovy developers that want to learn better and faster this wonderful technology.
***** RECOMMENDED
Want to pick up Groovy quick? Get this.
Review DateF2008-05-09 RatingF
Review DateF2008-05-09 RatingF
So you're in a hurry to pick up Groovy, and you're not a big fan of books that while informative, fill you with more language theory than useful knowledge. This buck, while around 240 pages in length, manages to take you from Hello World! to Web Service programming and Grails rapid development in a short period. If you know Java, you'll feel right at home with Groovy, and will feel good about your skills after you're done reading this book.
Java Enterprise in a Nutshell (In a Nutshell (O'Reilly))
| Title | Java Enterprise in a Nutshell (In a Nutshell (O'Reilly)) |
| Author | Jim Farley,William Crawford,Prakash Malani,John Norman,Justin Gehtland |
| Publisher | O'Reilly Media, Inc. |
| Price | $4495 |
| Available | Usually ships in 24 hours |
Description
Nothing is as constant as change, and this is as true in enterprise computing as anywhere else. With the recent release of Java 2 Enterprise Edition 1.4, developers are being called on to add even greater, more complex levels of interconnectivity to their applications.
To do this, Java developers today need a clear understanding of how to apply the new APIs, use the latest open source Java tools, and learn the capabilities and pitfalls in Java 2 Enterprise Edition 1.4 -- so they can plan a technology and implementation strategy for new enterprise projects.
Fortunately, this is exactly what they get with the new Java Enterprise in a Nutshell, 3rd Edition. Because most integrated development environments (IDE) today include API lookup, we took out the main API sections from our previous edition to make room for new chapters, among others, on Ant, Cactus, Hibernate, Jakarta Struts, JUnit, security, XDoclet, and XML/JAXP.
Revised and updated for the new 1.4 version of Sun Microsystems Java Enterprise Edition software, Java Enterprise in a Nutshell, 3rd Edition is a practical guide for enterprise Java developers.
Description
For the intermediate to advanced Java developer, Java Enterprise in a Nutshell shows how to work with all of today's relevant Java APIs. Plus, it's a topnotch reference for all enterprise classes. Part tutorial and part reference work that you can use everyday at your desk, this title is a worthwhile resource for any Java developer building Web or enterprise software.
The practical, succinct focus here on actual Java enterprise APIs helps distinguish this text from the pack. Early sections provide short, clear examples along with just enough background to help you use APIs like JDBC, servlets and JSPs, EJBs, and others. Coverage of Java's ability to interface with legacy CORBA systems is just excellent, with a full tour of Java IDL, CORBA services, and Remote Method Invocation (RMI). Typically, readers will be familiar with some J2EE APIs and not others. This book can help fill in the gaps.
Updated with the latest standards from Sun, including JDBC 3.0, Servlet 2.3, and EJB 2.0, this is an essential primer for today's high-end (and high-paying) Java. The basic presentation of servlets/JSP and EJBs (among the most important APIs for current Java Web development) is concise and nicely digestible. We also liked the chapter on JMS for messaging (also a hotbed of Java job activity).
The second half of this text lists every J2EE class, along with methods and properties, in a very valuable reference section that makes good use of two-toned shading for easy access. Entries are organized by package name. (One small oversight here is that an index of cross-listed packages, classes, and methods omits page numbers.)
Overall, this book is truly indispensable for any working Java programmer. The second edition of Java Enterprise in a Nutshell is a fully up-to-date tutorial and reference that lives up to the standards of O'Reillyfs Nutshell series. Both thorough and concise, it's a handy resource for anyone who works with the hundreds and thousands of Java enterprise APIs on a regular basis. --Richard Dragan
Topics covered: Introduction to enterprise computing with the Java 2 Enterprise Edition (J2EE), survey of Java enterprise APIs, JDBC 3.0 (including database connections, ResultSets, prepared statements, BLOB fields, transaction support, stored procedures), the JDBC Optional Package (and connection pooling), Remote Method Invocation (RMI) described (building stubs and skeletons, dynamically loaded classes and remote object activation, RMI over IIOP), in-depth tutorial for Java IDL (with CORBA) and designing remote objects, Java Servlet 2.3 APIs (basic servlet processing and the servlet lifecycle, chaining and filters, thread safety, managing state, cookies, servlets used with JDBC), JavaServer Pages (JSP): including custom tags, JNDI and directory tutorial (contexts, looking up objects, accessing and modifying directory entries), Enterprise Java Beans (EJB) 2.0 (conventions for entity, session and message beans, using transactions), Java XML APIs (DOM, SAX and XSLT), Java Message Service (JMS), point-to-point and publish-subscribe messaging models, message selectors, JavaMail, reference to SQL and relational databases, RMI tools, reference to all IDL keywords, data types and declarations; CORBA services, Java IDL tool reference, Enterprise JavaBeans Query Language (EJB QL) 2.0 query language, and an alphabetical listing of all APIs for Java enterprise programming (listing of classes, methods, and properties).
Disappointing
Review DateF2007-10-05 RatingF
Review DateF2007-10-05 RatingF
Warning to all buyers, the 3rd edition of this book does not include the J2EE library reference. While I realize this information is available online, having a printed form of library references is the primary reason I buy the "in a nutshell" series. Included in this book is a very general overview of various enterprise technologies, which unlike the very useful language reference include in other "in a nutshell" books, seems too broad and shallow to be useful. Any developer serious about working in JSP, for example, would be better served buying a book on JSP. Admittedly I just received this book so I can provide a cursory commentary on the usefulness of the material, but the lack of library details alone would have made me not purchase it if I was browsing in a store.
Very good
Review DateF2007-03-15 RatingF
Review DateF2007-03-15 RatingF
I'm very happy, i have got "java in a nutshell" too and I was very satisfied of my purchase, the book is simple and written very well, a "must" for a Java programmer.
VERY VERY HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!!
Review DateF2006-08-06 RatingF
Review DateF2006-08-06 RatingF
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).
Farley, Crawford, Malani, Gehtland and Norman, begin by presenting the general model that J2EE supports for assembling components and resources into full services or applications and how they are deployed to their runtime environments. Then, the authors demonstrate the basic techniques that are used to write servlets using the Sevlet API, including some common web development tasks such as cookie manipulation and session tracking. Next, they look at JSP from a Java programmer's perspective as opposed to that of a web site designer. The authors then provide a whirlwind introduction to programming with JavaServer Faces. They continue by providing a basic introduction to Enterprise JavaBeans. Then, the authors take a quick look at Sun's Java API for XML Processing (JAXP) Version 1.2, which provides a standardized approach to processing XML files in Java. Next, they focus on the JDBC 3.0 API, which includes a modest yet variable set of new features. The authors then provide an overview of transport and application security as well as defining the important concepts of authentication and authorization. They continue by focusing on developing, deploying, and using web services in your enterprise applications. They also examine the Java Remote Method Invocation (RMI) API--Java's native scheme for creating and using remote objects. Then, the authors look at an overview of the CORBA architecture and how it allows you to create, export, access, and manage remote objects. Finally, they give a brief overview of transaction terminology, including ACID properties and transaction isolation levels as well as the concepts of local and distributed transactions.
This most excellent book provides concise, fast paced tutorials on a broad range of enterprise Java tools and APIs. More importantly, this book is both a practical guide and quick reference for Java programmers who are writing enterprise applications.
Farley, Crawford, Malani, Gehtland and Norman, begin by presenting the general model that J2EE supports for assembling components and resources into full services or applications and how they are deployed to their runtime environments. Then, the authors demonstrate the basic techniques that are used to write servlets using the Sevlet API, including some common web development tasks such as cookie manipulation and session tracking. Next, they look at JSP from a Java programmer's perspective as opposed to that of a web site designer. The authors then provide a whirlwind introduction to programming with JavaServer Faces. They continue by providing a basic introduction to Enterprise JavaBeans. Then, the authors take a quick look at Sun's Java API for XML Processing (JAXP) Version 1.2, which provides a standardized approach to processing XML files in Java. Next, they focus on the JDBC 3.0 API, which includes a modest yet variable set of new features. The authors then provide an overview of transport and application security as well as defining the important concepts of authentication and authorization. They continue by focusing on developing, deploying, and using web services in your enterprise applications. They also examine the Java Remote Method Invocation (RMI) API--Java's native scheme for creating and using remote objects. Then, the authors look at an overview of the CORBA architecture and how it allows you to create, export, access, and manage remote objects. Finally, they give a brief overview of transaction terminology, including ACID properties and transaction isolation levels as well as the concepts of local and distributed transactions.
This most excellent book provides concise, fast paced tutorials on a broad range of enterprise Java tools and APIs. More importantly, this book is both a practical guide and quick reference for Java programmers who are writing enterprise applications.
Java developers will want this as an essential desk reference
Review DateF2006-05-02 RatingF
Review DateF2006-05-02 RatingF
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
Review DateF2006-02-16 RatingF
Review DateF2006-02-16 RatingF
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.
Ant: The Definitive Guide, 2nd Edition
| Title | Ant: The Definitive Guide, 2nd Edition |
| Author | Steven Holzner |
| Publisher | O'Reilly Media, Inc. |
| Price | $3495 |
| Available | Usually ships in 24 hours |
Description
Soon after its launch, Ant succeeded in taking the Java world by storm, becoming the most widely used tool for building applications in Java environments. Like most popular technologies, Ant quickly went through a series of early revision cycles. With each new version, more functionality was added, and more complexity was introduced. Ant evolved from a simple-to-learn build tool into a full-fledged testing and deployment environment. Ant: The Definitive Guide has been reworked, revised and expanded upon to reflect this evolution. It documents the new ways that Ant is being applied, as well as the array of optional tasks that Ant supports. In fact, this new second edition covers everything about this extraordinary build management tool from downloading and installing, to using Ant to test code. Here are just of a few of the features you'll find detailed in this comprehensive, must-have guide:
- Developing conditional builds, and handling error conditions
- Automatically retrieving source code from version control systems
- Using Ant with XML files
- Using Ant with JavaServer Pages to build Web applications
- Using Ant with Enterprise JavaBeans to build enterprise applications
Check out internet instead.
Review DateF2007-05-16 RatingF
Review DateF2007-05-16 RatingF
This book is a regurgitation of O'Reilly web material. This book had a real opportunity to discuss Ant internals or at least something that can't be found on tech sites or the software documentation. Project wikis will undoubtedly replace the need for tech books of this sort.
Got Me Going Quickly
Review DateF2007-02-05 RatingF
Review DateF2007-02-05 RatingF
Web research on Ant revealed a lot of explanations, but they were very hard to understand. And I didn't want to waste time scratching my head. This book explained what Ant is and how it works in an approachable way without insulting my intelligence. The author obviously has a lot of experience in Ant and many of the other technologies it interacts with. While other comments have pointed out that it's not a reference, I can easily get those other details on the internet. This book got me up and running with Ant quickly and painlessly. It contained useful examples that actually worked when I tried to follow them.
The best book on Ant
Review DateF2006-10-12 RatingF
Review DateF2006-10-12 RatingF
Apache Ant is the primary build tool for Java projects and this book is excellent introduction to it. Although the title is misleading - this is not really a definitive guide (its not really reference book for starters), it is well written and easily understood. If you work through this book from start to finish then I'm confident that you'll come out the other end as an Ant expert.
A Good Introduction, but Only an Introduction
Review DateF2006-08-18 RatingF
Review DateF2006-08-18 RatingF
This book provides a good enough introduction to Ant, but it only takes you to the point of knowing how to use Ant and not the point of knowing how to use ant on a project of any size. As an introduction it works well. You learn how to get up and running with Ant very early on in the book, and you learn all of the key tasks rather quickly as well. Everything is explained clearly, and it seems reasonably organized. What it lacks is really any explanation of various best practices for using ant, whether on a small program or a large one. For a book of this size, I was surprised at the absence of this info and ultimately I felt that it was only a bit more useful than the free online docs for ant.
Good Place To Start With Ant
Review DateF2006-08-15 RatingF
Review DateF2006-08-15 RatingF
This book can take you from zero Ant knowledge to being productive in a matter of days. After starting with some simple examples, it builds up the following concepts very well: properties and types, compilation, deployment, testing with JUnit, working with CVS, and Eclipse integration. I skipped chapters 8, 9, 10, and 12 because I did not anticipate a need for them right now. However, if I need to know about web deployments, working with XML docs, optional tasks, and extending Ant I know that this book covers these things too. To get the most out of the book, you need to download ant to your computer along with the example code from the book's web site. It is very easy to modify the code and see how different options for the various tasks work.
Ant Colony Optimization (Bradford Books)
| Title | Ant Colony Optimization (Bradford Books) |
| Author | Marco Dorigo,Thomas Sttzle |
| Publisher | The MIT Press |
| Price | $4300 |
| Available | Usually ships in 24 hours |
Description
The complex social behaviors of ants have been much studied by science, and computer scientists are now finding that these behavior patterns can provide models for solving difficult combinatorial optimization problems. The attempt to develop algorithms inspired by one aspect of ant behavior, the ability to find what computer scientists would call shortest paths, has become the field of ant colony optimization (ACO), the most successful and widely recognized algorithmic technique based on ant behavior. This book presents an overview of this rapidly growing field, from its theoretical inception to practical applications, including descriptions of many available ACO algorithms and their uses.
The book first describes the translation of observed ant behavior into working optimization algorithms. The ant colony metaheuristic is then introduced and viewed in the general context of combinatorial optimization. This is followed by a detailed description and guide to all major ACO algorithms and a report on current theoretical findings. The book surveys ACO applications now in use, including routing, assignment, scheduling, subset, machine learning, and bioinformatics problems. AntNet, an ACO algorithm designed for the network routing problem, is described in detail. The authors conclude by summarizing the progress in the field and outlining future research directions. Each chapter ends with bibliographic material, bullet points setting out important ideas covered in the chapter, and exercises. Ant Colony Optimization will be of interest to academic and industry researchers, graduate students, and practitioners who wish to learn how to implement ACO algorithms.
The book first describes the translation of observed ant behavior into working optimization algorithms. The ant colony metaheuristic is then introduced and viewed in the general context of combinatorial optimization. This is followed by a detailed description and guide to all major ACO algorithms and a report on current theoretical findings. The book surveys ACO applications now in use, including routing, assignment, scheduling, subset, machine learning, and bioinformatics problems. AntNet, an ACO algorithm designed for the network routing problem, is described in detail. The authors conclude by summarizing the progress in the field and outlining future research directions. Each chapter ends with bibliographic material, bullet points setting out important ideas covered in the chapter, and exercises. Ant Colony Optimization will be of interest to academic and industry researchers, graduate students, and practitioners who wish to learn how to implement ACO algorithms.
The gift of ants to mathematicians
Review DateF2008-09-27 RatingF
Review DateF2008-09-27 RatingF
Ant Colony Optimization focuses on the fact that ants foraging for food will quickly form a trail that is the shortest possible ditance betwen the food and home. Rach ant follows the scent trail laid on a path by previous travelers and adds its own pheromone to the scent, both going and coming. With a choice, ants tend to follow the strongest scent. Of a pioneer pair, the one choosing the shortest path will make the round trip before the other. Each pheromone trace evaporates in time, but an ant's antenna can detetct the slightest trace. That is a simplification of the introductory chapters of the book. The "pheromone trail" scheme is used to devise "artificial ant" which then takes part in the comnstruction of powerful ant algorithms for solving intractable problems such as the classical "Traveling Salesman" and other routing problems. The book is a complete text for a college course, with a large bibliography and many internal references to sources on the Internet. It is well written, with pseudo code showing how each algorithm can form computer programs. I can't evaluate the difficulty, but for me the math in later chapters is above my reach, but gratifying, nevertheless.
searching for the basic algorithms
Review DateF2006-01-18 RatingF
Review DateF2006-01-18 RatingF
The central idea in the book is to analyse what evolution has provided us. In the form of ants being able to find the shortest path over terrain. This ability has inspired the research described herein.
The book can be read as a fascinating deconstructionist approach to observing and manipulating ant colonies. By trying to look under the observations to discern the fundamental algorithms at work. And then to apply these to such longstanding contexts as the Travelling Salesman Problem.
The book can be read as a fascinating deconstructionist approach to observing and manipulating ant colonies. By trying to look under the observations to discern the fundamental algorithms at work. And then to apply these to such longstanding contexts as the Travelling Salesman Problem.
The intelligence and wisdom of ants
Review DateF2005-04-28 RatingF
Review DateF2005-04-28 RatingF
Being an ant isn't very complex, but it's a daily fight for life. The losers in that fight don't count, but the winners get to vote.
That is the basis of ant colony optimization. There are many parts to the idea, all of them very simple. First, there are many routes to the goal (food, if you're an ant) - some are better, some worse, you don't know which are which in advance, and the answer may change over time. Second, it's a random search. If you find any answer at all, no matter how convoluted, you get to vote on your route. Third, there are many other ants, all voting. Any leg of a trip that is heavily followed must be part of a good route, and gets many votes. There are details, but that's about it.
Chapters 1-3 are the most readable, and convey the basic spirit of the family of algorithms. Ch. 4-6 will drag a bit, for the general reader, but go into significant detail about the ant algorithm and specific applications.
Ch. 7 ends the book with a warm, informal discussion of the algorithm's history and some delightful variations. Dorigo, the principal author and founder of the ant school, uses this chapter to express his pure joy at having found such a wonderful thing, and at the similar approaches that others have also found.
The approach has some real limits. For example, it can solve only problems that look like finding the shortest route. The good news is that a wide range of unlikely problems can all be cast in these terms. The better news is that, given the many variations available, some form of the 'stigmergic' approach will probably solve any problem in that range. Best of all, though, is the sheer cleverness and the sincere appreciation expressed by the authors.
Nature is economical, but a brilliant problem solver. This is written by someone who as able to listen in on one of the lessons.
//wiredweird
That is the basis of ant colony optimization. There are many parts to the idea, all of them very simple. First, there are many routes to the goal (food, if you're an ant) - some are better, some worse, you don't know which are which in advance, and the answer may change over time. Second, it's a random search. If you find any answer at all, no matter how convoluted, you get to vote on your route. Third, there are many other ants, all voting. Any leg of a trip that is heavily followed must be part of a good route, and gets many votes. There are details, but that's about it.
Chapters 1-3 are the most readable, and convey the basic spirit of the family of algorithms. Ch. 4-6 will drag a bit, for the general reader, but go into significant detail about the ant algorithm and specific applications.
Ch. 7 ends the book with a warm, informal discussion of the algorithm's history and some delightful variations. Dorigo, the principal author and founder of the ant school, uses this chapter to express his pure joy at having found such a wonderful thing, and at the similar approaches that others have also found.
The approach has some real limits. For example, it can solve only problems that look like finding the shortest route. The good news is that a wide range of unlikely problems can all be cast in these terms. The better news is that, given the many variations available, some form of the 'stigmergic' approach will probably solve any problem in that range. Best of all, though, is the sheer cleverness and the sincere appreciation expressed by the authors.
Nature is economical, but a brilliant problem solver. This is written by someone who as able to listen in on one of the lessons.
//wiredweird
A comprehensive and very readable introduction
Review DateF2004-10-04 RatingF
Review DateF2004-10-04 RatingF
Fifteen years after the elegant double-bridge experiments by Deneubourg et al. that formed the basis of the Ant Colony Optimization algorithm, Marco Dorigo, the inventor of ACO, and Thomas Sttzle, an expert on stochastic local search methods, have pooled their knowledge to summarize the current state of the art.
This book gives a well paced introduction to ACO, describes its use in various optimization problems and gives interesting examples of its applications in industry. Explanations are clear and concise and, with the exception of a few well defined technical terms, free of scientific jargon. It is a pleasure to read for everyone with an interest in optimization theory. However, if you are looking for a book that celebrates the beauty of nature's problem solving capabilities, you are better of with "Swarm Intelligence" or Flake's "Computational Beauty of Nature". The initial idea of ACO may be bio-inspired, but this book has a crystal clear focus of the computational considerations in optimization theory.
This book gives a well paced introduction to ACO, describes its use in various optimization problems and gives interesting examples of its applications in industry. Explanations are clear and concise and, with the exception of a few well defined technical terms, free of scientific jargon. It is a pleasure to read for everyone with an interest in optimization theory. However, if you are looking for a book that celebrates the beauty of nature's problem solving capabilities, you are better of with "Swarm Intelligence" or Flake's "Computational Beauty of Nature". The initial idea of ACO may be bio-inspired, but this book has a crystal clear focus of the computational considerations in optimization theory.
A fine compilation
Review DateF2004-09-03 RatingF
Review DateF2004-09-03 RatingF
This book is a fine compilation of what have been done with the Ant Colony paradigm so far. Highly readable, even for people without previous experience in the field of optimization.
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