Rating: 
Summary: If you are a beginner, look for something else.
Review: This book did a good job of frustrating me. This book has too many go to paragraphs, if you know what I mean, so if you like spaghetti code, then maybe you will enjoy this book because too many times you need to go to later chapters to get the full picture. In other words, it's not well structured. But hey, I'm just a beginner. If you are a beginner, don't waste your money.
Rating:
Summary: see the trees but not the forest
Review: Despite its overwhelming collections of examples, this book fails to convey the essence of programing principles. As a how-to book that teaches experienced programmers the C++ syntax, it is only mediocre; as a college level introduction to computer science, it is disastrous -- it covers very little science indeed.
Rating:
Summary: Don't Waste Your Money
Review: I've read that many people have bought this book in the past. I can't understand why! I have found the book to be cluttered and and small print is almost unbearable. It is definately not a very good "How to" book. I equate the instruction to handing some carpenters tools to someone and tell them to go build a house. We are using this book as a "text" here at my school this year. We won't use it again. If you buy this book and it helps you, that's teriffic, but I'm certain that there must be better resources available. Good Luck!
Rating: 
Summary: A comprehensive introductory text
Review: This is a later edition of the text that I learned from. It is up to date, and unlike most other C++ books, it is comprehensive -- there is nothing worse for a student than to blow away $70 or so on a book, and find that the book you have does not even discuss the basic language features (for example, too many C++ texts don't discuss STL or even strings.)I found the book very clear and readable. There are a lot of examples, and the examples are explained in detail, line by line. The book includes several interesting exercises (as any textbook should), and quizes (comprehension tests on concepts and language features) at the end of each chapter. Overall, I'd recommend the book. The one feature unique to this book is that it really does cover all C++ language features (including exceptions, STL, RTTI, new style casts, namespaces). This is a gem -- students who make this book their first will find that it serves them well. And they won't find themselves buying several supplements to compensate for deficiencies in their textbook! The only gripe I have is that it makes the common mistake (or what I consider to be a mistake anyway) of forcing the students to use a crude and primitive C-like version of the language in the beginning, instead of using the library straight away. But then, the only book I've seen that doesn't take this traditional (and wrong) approach is "Accelerated C++".
Rating:
Summary: What a Gem of a Book
Review: At first glance, you will be overwhelmed at the level of detail these authors have taken to present the material to their readers in a clear, concise manner. Both, students and professionals, will benefit from using this text. The layout is excellent !, e.g., color screen captures of source code and output, icons emphasizing 'bugs', 'programming tips', etc. The text is very complete. The authors have gone above & beyond the quality of similar textbooks on the market by including a level of detail above that of an introductory text. Numerous, well-commented code samples help emphasize the concepts presented in the text. Professionals will appreciate the thoroughness of the text. Reading the prefatory material is a must, to take best advantage of the authors' efforts. I eagerly await their upcoming editions on JAVA, Advanced C++, and Advanced JAVA, in their 'How To Program' series.
Rating:
Summary: Best beginner tutorial book out there
Review: I started with the second edition and learned, so much. When I was half-way through the second edition, the third was released. I must say the third is even better. I have a stack of how to program c++ books and I could not get anything out of the rest. This book will save you tons of money and time. A must by for any new and advanced programmer out there. The coverage of the UML and the new ansi standards are a plus.
Rating:
Summary: An outstanding addition in this cluttered field
Review: Generally, the Deitels' (Harvey and Paul, father and son) publications are fabulous. Their entire lineup of books provide an invaluavle service to the software community. This particular "C++, How to Program" 3rd ed. book is nothing short of deserving the highest praise. I have several of Deitel's books on my shelf, including "C++ How to", "JAVA 2, How to", and "Visual Basic, How to Program"--all latest editions. A book from Deitel on distributed computing (open systems) using CORBA could be a great addition to any serious developer's library. My background is in mathematics--combinatorics, later papers in probability theory. I made the transition to software engineering later in life. I like the way the Deitels look at things: as a mathematician I'm very scrutinizing and in their books I find the sort of details that help me make sense of this hugely confusing arena of software development. Keep up the good work Harvey and Paul Deitel. I will be looking forward to more books in the "How to Program" series. Bravo, bravisimo!
Rating: 
Summary: Great C++ OOP book, but not for beginners
Review: This is a great reference book for those trying to get the most out C++ object oriented programming. In just a few days I now understand some of the finer points of C++, points that alluded me for many years. This is not a beginner's book, however. There is no reference for the C++ language or any topics on how to program in C++. These are expected to already be second nature before going to this book. But, once past being a beginner, this book tells you how to program OOP in C++ the RIGHT way (UML). And it gives great tips, heads up on possible errors and traps to fall into, etc. And, it is a remarkably small (yet heavy) book for almost 1200 pages! I strongly recommend the book for those who want to get past doing C++ OOP "off the top of their heads", and get down to how it's really suppose to be done...
Rating:
Summary: Great book.. Plenty of examples!
Review: For those of you complaining this book is too advanced for the beginner, turn to the back of the book where they advertise the other books they have written and you will see "Getting Started With VC++..." Furthermore, this book has coding examples on just about every page with the first five chapters just about covering beginner C++ in depth. Lastly, the person complaining about the lack of preprocessor/compiler/linker information is dead wrong. Try turning to pp 15. Oh, and OOD is covered through the last friggin half of the book. What are you people smoking?
Rating:
Summary: Is there a need for any other C++ book?
Review: I don't think anybody can find a better C++ book than the Deitels. Their step-by-step explanations of code help the beginner to understand how things work. Their examples also show what the language can do. I find myself boing back the Deitel book for reference now even though I am already in an advanced data structure class that deals with C++. I have also read their book on Java and it is also another wonderful textbook. If you want to be a great programmer, a Deitel textbook is all you need.
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