Rating: 
Summary: Gold Book!!!
Review: The Deitel's are great author's.
I programming in Object Pascal and C++ (Delphi and C++Builder)
and this book clearly any obscure side of C++.
Congratulations an thank's Deitel's.
This is the book!!
Rating: 
Summary: C++ How to Program, 3rd Ed., Deitel & Deitel
Review: Deitel & Deitel's book C++ How to Program, 3rd Ed., looks
promising when you view the table of contents. However,
once you start reading, forget about it! They excessively
reference items that are not to be covered for chapters, their
use of "best practices, coding tips, etc" dispersed throughout
the chapter reading is distracting and they summarize each
detail again at the end of each chapter. distracting!!!!
Rating: 
Summary: One of the better books on any subject
Review: I used this book in a C++ class at college recently. It was my very first programming class ever. I thoroughly enjoyed both the book and the class. The book is layed out very well and it's easy to follow. They give alot of code that accentuates the concepts and syntax of the language as they are discussed. Each chapter has a review of the key points, and has many sample excersises for you to complete and they are very helpful. The book does use alot of references to things that were discussed in earlier chapters but the book is not made to be a reference so they assume that you have worked through the book, which you should have done. All in all one of the better books on any technical subject that I have used in my 4 years at college.
Rating:
Summary: Great coverage, great problems, great advice, poor reference
Review: This book covers C++ in detail and offers much in the way of practical real-world "dos and don'ts". Also, it has the best set of *challenging* problems I've ever seen in a programming text. Within the first few chapters you're rolling up your sleeves and really starting to think like a computer. And there are MANY problems, too. Unlike some books, the problems are not simple "go back a few pages for an identical example". They make you think -- and learn along the way. Some may find this overly challenging or frustrating, but then again if you're not into problem solving you probably shouldn't be into programming in the first place. The book looks intimidating at first, and may not be right for someone who's looking for something "easy", but it's a real winner in the end. It frequently warns of common programming errors and advises of portability and performance tips, among other things. Many great tips to keep your code clean and readable, as well as solid and bug-free. The text starts with a good introduction to computers, programming and even the World Wide Web. It progresses quickly to program control, functions, arrays and pointers. About 1/3 through the text begins the discussion of classes and abstraction, which means that the book could easily be used for at least two semesters of undergraduate coursework. Other topics that are comprehensively covered include inheritance, overloading, polymorphism, preprocessor directives, templates, exception handling, file processing, the STL, string processing and more. There's even a chapter on data structures such as linked lists and b-trees -- this in universities is often a class itself (though the 50 or so pages in this book might best serve only as an introduction to that course). On the negative side, it's not a good quick-reference at all. In fact, it's a poor one, so you might not want to buy it for that reason alone. It's also expensive, but I'd argue well worth the cost. To sum it up, it's challenging to work through, but a very rewarding learning experience. I highly recommend it to everyone that's SERIOUS about learning the *right* way to program! If you're using this book to learn on your own, take the challenge and go through *all* the problems -- many may not be as simple as they seem!! I hope this review is helpful to you.
Rating: 
Summary: 'C++ How to Drive You Insane'
Review: 'C++ How to Program' by Deitel & Deitel is one of those books that set out to be the one and only, the perfect textbook that teaches you everything about C++ to everyone from the absolute beginners to the truly advanced programmers all at once. The book falls very short under the weight of its own ambition. By just reading the table of contents, it seemed that the book properly offers the complete coverage of the syntax of the C++ language, and each topic seemed to be presented in the sensible order which facilitates the readers to learn C++ step by step without getting lost or tangled up with the bits of coverage all over the textbook. The only thing presented in the sensible order in this book is the table of contents. Despite the quite large volume, Paul and Harvey (D&D hereafter) decided to babble aimlessly in very verbose fashion without any focus or making any sense. I mean the language they employee is English only in appearance. D&D could have babbled in Russian and I wouldn't have known the difference. They don't seem to have fundamental ability to deliver their knowledge to the readers in clear fashion, and the level of knowledge of C++ has nothing to do with it. Now 'C++ Primer' by Stanley Lippman and Josee Lajoie or 'The C++ Programming Language' by Bjarne Stroustrup are indispensable guides for the advanced programmers that will teach you so many techniques your ordinary textbook do not cover, and yes, they are definitely not for the novice programmers. This is not the case with D&D. I mean C++ is arguably the toughest programming language to master, but it doesn't have to be this painful just to browse through the textbook. From the get-go, D&D clearly aimed to please both "technically oriented people with little or no programming experience, and experienced programmers who want a deeper treatment of the language" (from chapter 1 section 1). This is such a contradiction. As a result, what could have been a impressive textbook became a expressway to frustration. Sentences tend to be written in the overly complex fashion without serving much purpose. They are just totally confusing and incomprehensive. Much concise, terse, and simplistic writing style is desired and would have done the job better for everyone. The higher level of knowledge on C++ doesn't have to be translated into more complicated writing. It gives out the wrong impression to the beginners that it is their lack of C++ knowledge that hinders the understanding of the book. D&D's ability to convey their knowledge to the readers doesn't match with their impressive programming career. The coding style is awful and definitely not recommended to anyone although it is not syntactically wrong. Too many details are explained in the context of C language as if the knowledge in C is assumed before learning C++. Layout and color scheme are extremely disoriented and tiresome to your eyes. The coverage of each topic is scattered all over the textbook. D&D just love to say "We will later discuss about...", "We previously discussed about...", and so on instead of focusing on each topic one at a time and then moving on. There are too many pop-out boxes for various tips and warnings that are repeated over and over and over to the point they are disturbing. D&D arrogantly try to write the textbook that teaches you all the syntax of the language and the lawbook that teaches you all the semantics and the techniques of the language at the same time. They set out to achieve the impossible and succeed to do neither. This book is too confusing for the beginners to the point that people will hate C++, and it is too repetitive and shallow for the advanced programmers. If anyone can overcome these difficult obstacles, however, this book has quite a lot of information. I would not recommend this book to anyone who just start learning C++. Believe me when I say this because you will be committed to the mental asylum within the first few minutes if you attempt to learn C++ with this book. Try 'Absolute C++' by Walter Savitch or 'Starting out with C++' by Tony Gaddis instead. If you have a solid knowledge on C++, D&D's book can be a decent reference book. Then again, you are better off with 'The C++ Programming Language' by Bjarne Stroustrup, 'C++ Primer' by Stanley Lippman and Josee Lajoie, and 'Effective C++ Series' by Scott Meyers if you are able to enjoy D&D's book.
Rating:
Summary: A two-semester course contained in one book
Review: Deitel & Deitel's "How to Program C++" is a magnificent start for anyone --- whether they're taking a course or learning on their own --- to programming C++. The authors ease the beginner into programming with four chapters outlining some of the most general and useful tools of C++ which also happen to be very basic concepts included in other programming languages (although they might be called different names). The student first learns how to print a simple line of text on the screen, a "Hello, World!" which introduces the beginner to the world of computer science and program manipulation. Then he is eased into more difficult concepts -- looping code, if statements and comparisons -- and finally to writing his own functions using arrays. Then the student experiences the more abstract but equally useful concepts of pointers and manipulation of strings, moving on from there to create his own classes and re-use classes via inheritance. This is usually where one would end the first semester and begin with the next, but the independent learner need not care about that! More advanced topics follow, including virtual functions, polymorphism, templates, etc... all which are outlining the necessities of good object-oriented programming. The authors make it easy to learn as the book is resplite with examples, conceptual exercises that have answers in the book, and exercises involving creating and compiling your own program (which is really the only way to learn). Interested in computer science and programming? This book can be used by beginners --- even junior high school or elementary school students, if they are bright enough, but it is ideal for an introductory college course in C++ programming.
Rating:
Summary: C++ How To Program - 2nd Ed
Review: C++ How To Program, 2nd Edition was my first book by the Deitel and Deitel team. The other books I've read were Java How To Program, and a small text on MFC/C++. All three books were excellent, they accomodated beginners, and they gave me the skills to become a strong intermediate programmer. I say an intermediate programmer, because I feel advanced programmer status can only be obtained by commercial experience with that language. I am particularly fond of C++ How To Program, because it helped be out of a tight situation. I took an advanced course that assumed students were very familiar with C++, but I had never used C++ before. Playing catch up with the Deitel book, I was on the same level as the class by 4 weeks, by 10 weeks I was probably one of the better C++ programmers in the class. This is not to say I was an accomplished programmer after 10 weeks, but it is to say that I had learned enough that the other students were now coming to me for the answers. The Deitel books are more than a training manual, these books are my favorite reference books. The author's written text is no nonsense and precisely defines the use of the tools it is discussing. The written text gets into depth which is an attribute characteristic of good reference books. The examples presented are strong and can often be modified to fit real life needs. If you are serious about learning to program, I highly recommend the books by the Deitel team. These books can take you from a beginner, give you strong fundamentals, and then provide advanced understanding that developes you into programmer ready to tackle advanced subjects or try your expertise in the marketplace. Sincerely,
Mike Vest, Ph.D.
Programmer, Engineer at UOP LLC
Rating:
Summary: A real great book....
Review: I am currently a computer science student (INFORMATICS COMPUTER INSTITUTE). Honestly, finding a good "C" or "C++" books is very hard to find. But when I start this book "C++" how to program, I learned a lot from it. Aside from this book gives good details about "C++", the illustrations are very great, and you'll feel very interesting to read it, and it will help you understand "C++" very well. The book is very great. I would definitely recommend this book for those people who will study "C++"....
Rating:
Summary: Great Book!
Review: This is a great book! Not to mention all the pretty colors! =) Great coverage of all details of C++. Not to mention, from the beginning you are exposed to the design phase of programming. This is a book you won't regret.
Rating:
Summary: A good introduction, for college students
Review: I have been helping a friend who uses this book, and my first advice was to burn it. I repeated this advice several times, but it was naive. I was dismissing it because it was a college book without giving it a fair chance. So many college C++ books are so bad, that I couldn't see at first what made this one different. This is a good explanation for what programming is, and what C++ programming is in particular, and how this all relates to building actual software. The book is mainly about C++, but it has real, practical examples. It is probably not suitable for first-time programmers, but it would be good for anyone else. This book is not a self-teaching book; it brushes over many things very quickly, and different people will need different parts clarified by an instructor. That is one reason to be wary of this book. Unlike simple books like the K&R C book, a bad professor could ruin this book easily.
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