Rating: 
Summary: Looks good, but hard to comprehend
Review: This is a fantastic looking book. However, it is very poorly organized. The one star is for crispness. Unfortunately, I found it to be completely unusable.
Rating:
Summary: NOT the book for learning Illustrator
Review: This is basically a re-hashed manual that was barely updated from version eight of IlluStrator.
Rating:
Summary: Just a reworked manual
Review: This is obviouly Adobe's solution for getting $$ from people who have illegal copies of the software. The problem is, it's hard to follow, a terrible teaching tool, and is missing most of the critical information needed to use the product. It isn't a reference book, it isn't a tutorial (Adobe would beg to differ), and it isn't a "getting started" book. Instead, it tries to be all of these things, and instead takes you on a whirlwind tour of obscure features and techniques that you'll never use in the real world.Just because it is from Adobe doesn't mean it's good; they do great software but this is a terrible book.
Rating:
Summary: The manual gets smaller
Review: This is the missing portion. Portions not in the manual get better treatment here. However it appears, because of the tutorial nature of the book, this is not as useful as the manual.
Rating: 
Summary: Very suspect
Review: This really seems a lot like the manual, just in a different format. It's of very little use by itself, unlike the manual, however. I consider this to be a grand waste of cash that could have been spent better on a different book. Rats.
Rating: 
Summary: Beginners beware...Intermediate have fun!
Review: Typical of the "Classroom in a Book" series, this book is set up as a series of lessons. They take you through the major functions of Illustrator providing both instructional overviews and hands-on exercises. Lessons-wise, I can't fault the authors. They did a bang up job of hitting all of the major functions of the program. I would however like to warn users to realize that this book and the others in the series are really not for beginners. Illustrator like its sister tool Photoshop packs A LOT of functionality. If you are a beginner and you start going through these lessons, you may feel VERY overwhelmed. I strongly suggest beginners start with another perhaps out of the SAMS 24 hrs version. Good intro. Then buy this book and try the lessons. You really need the grounding in the application so you won't feel blown away. I really did like this book, but it is truly for intermediate to advanced users only.
Rating:
Summary: Beginners beware...Intermediate have fun!
Review: Typical of the "Classroom in a Book" series, this book is set up as a series of lessons. They take you through the major functions of Illustrator providing both instructional overviews and hands-on exercises. Lessons-wise, I can't fault the authors. They did a bang up job of hitting all of the major functions of the program. I would however like to warn users to realize that this book and the others in the series are really not for beginners. Illustrator like its sister tool Photoshop packs A LOT of functionality. If you are a beginner and you start going through these lessons, you may feel VERY overwhelmed. I strongly suggest beginners start with another perhaps out of the SAMS 24 hrs version. Good intro. Then buy this book and try the lessons. You really need the grounding in the application so you won't feel blown away. I really did like this book, but it is truly for intermediate to advanced users only.
Rating:
Summary: CD Rom Problems-Be Warned!!!
Review: With all Classroom in a Book courses, your experience is determined by your own effort. Adobe has constructed a thoughtful series of lessons to make any user comfortable working in Illustrator. I have heard two competing (and contrary) objections to this book. People complain that there is a) either not enough or b) too much information in the Classroom in a Book series. It is true that Adobe has not developed a course that custom fits the requirements of every single possible user. This can hardly be held against them. They have created a series of straightforward courses for intermediate users. Neither this book (nor the application it is designed to teach) is for absolute beginners. It is for people who are not comfortable in front of their computer. Nor should an expert user looking for some advanced tricks and tips purchase it. There are other books available to fit these needs. Adobe Illustrator Classroom in a Book does a wonderful job orienting a typical computer user to a heavy hitting vector based graphics application. If you take the time to complete this course, you will know your way around Illustrator. By properly learning the skills featured in this book, you will be prepared to absorb the sorts of tricks you have always wanted to learn
Rating:
Summary: A handy course for intermediate users
Review: With all Classroom in a Book courses, your experience is determined by your own effort. Adobe has constructed a thoughtful series of lessons to make any user comfortable working in Illustrator. I have heard two competing (and contrary) objections to this book. People complain that there is a) either not enough or b) too much information in the Classroom in a Book series. It is true that Adobe has not developed a course that custom fits the requirements of every single possible user. This can hardly be held against them. They have created a series of straightforward courses for intermediate users. Neither this book (nor the application it is designed to teach) is for absolute beginners. It is for people who are not comfortable in front of their computer. Nor should an expert user looking for some advanced tricks and tips purchase it. There are other books available to fit these needs. Adobe Illustrator Classroom in a Book does a wonderful job orienting a typical computer user to a heavy hitting vector based graphics application. If you take the time to complete this course, you will know your way around Illustrator. By properly learning the skills featured in this book, you will be prepared to absorb the sorts of tricks you have always wanted to learn
| 
