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Summary: A "must-have" quick lookup guide for C++ programmers
Review: C++ In A Nutshell by Ray Lischner is a thorough and expert reference to the C++ programming language, its runtime library, the C++ preprocessor, and more, all conforming to the ISO/IEC 14882 standard plus Technical Corrigendum 1. Including syntax diagrams, information on usage, concise examples for all C++ statements and keywords in its first half, and with a second half devoted entirely to C++ runtime library reference (organized by header file), C++ In A Nutshell is a "must-have" quick lookup guide for C++ programmers everywhere.
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Summary: The C++ Reference I've been waiting for!
Review: For years, I've searched for a book like this... the pre-existing C++ References books rarely covered the STL, templates, namespaces, or were just "C++ as a better C" Reference books with basic object information in them. Of course, textbooks just are not organized for a reference. While is is not the book to learn C++, this book is EXACTLY what a modern C++ programmer needs on the desk! It is already helping me become a better C++ programmer and expanding my knowledge of this large, powerful programming language. Additionally, it contains standard (K&R) library reference material.
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Summary: An excellent Nutshell. C++? A+!
Review: I bought this to replace another C/C++ reference book. The other book was abysmal, with poor organisation, lacks of detail, depth and clarity. The Nutshell is a refreshing delight. It covers everything about C++, from the ground up. It's not a tutorial, but anyone familiar with C should be able to grasp C++ from this reference. Very detailed, even including a BNF grammar of the language. Excellent.
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Summary: excellent reference
Review: I purchased this book after having come to rely on the pre-publication version posted on the web.I usually use the book for its info on the standard library (particularly containers, which were incorporated from the STL to the language standard itself fairly recently, if I recall correctly). While not a C++ guru, the other material in the book appears quite thorough. The book is concisely laid out, yet is easy to read; different fonts are nicely used to improve readability (e.g., program code is set in a different font, which is fixed-width), as is typical for O'Reilly books. Like any reference book, not recommended for a tutorial introduction, though the book does have a few examples. Finally, the index to the book is pretty thorough, which is a must for any reference text.
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Summary: Perfect reference, doesn't try to teach at all
Review: If you're famililar with the Java "Nutshell" books, they go half-way towards trying to teach you Java, assuming you might know a C-syntax language already, but not Java. This book does not waste space trying; it assumes you know C++, and have a fairly good proficiency with it. It is impossible to sit down with this C++ nutshell book and just read it for the heck of it; I tried, but there is just no casual, conversational language to curl up with and space out. And that is a good thing, because the book doesn't try to do two things at once, and it doesn't waste space on material you will only read once and then wish wasn't there. Well over half the book contains terse descriptions of classes and functions, organized by header file. The earlier third does have chapters on I/O, chapters on templates, and things like that, but most of the earlier chapters are named things like "Statements", "Declarations", "Expressions", etc. It's the kind of thing you flip open to, skim until you find the few paragraphs you want, and then put down and get back to writing code. It is wonderful; every C++ programmer must have 5 or 6 long-winded books full of professor's lectures and hand-holding examples, Strotroup's being the obvious example, but this one just sits on your desk until you want it, then goes away until you want it again. Saves tons of time!!
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Summary: Perfect reference, doesn't try to teach at all
Review: If you're famililar with the Java "Nutshell" books, they go half-way towards trying to teach you Java, assuming you might know a C-syntax language already, but not Java. This book does not waste space trying; it assumes you know C++, and have a fairly good proficiency with it. It is impossible to sit down with this C++ nutshell book and just read it for the heck of it; I tried, but there is just no casual, conversational language to curl up with and space out. And that is a good thing, because the book doesn't try to do two things at once, and it doesn't waste space on material you will only read once and then wish wasn't there. Well over half the book contains terse descriptions of classes and functions, organized by header file. The earlier third does have chapters on I/O, chapters on templates, and things like that, but most of the earlier chapters are named things like "Statements", "Declarations", "Expressions", etc. It's the kind of thing you flip open to, skim until you find the few paragraphs you want, and then put down and get back to writing code. It is wonderful; every C++ programmer must have 5 or 6 long-winded books full of professor's lectures and hand-holding examples, Strotroup's being the obvious example, but this one just sits on your desk until you want it, then goes away until you want it again. Saves tons of time!!
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Summary: Excellent reference for the practicing programmer
Review: Most of the "reference" books I've seen for C++ have been more advanced primers (lippman/lajoie, pratta, josuttis). This is the first book I've seen for someone who knows C++, has been using it for some time, and needs a library and language reference. A welcome addition to my desk, especially since I learned C++ in 1992 and sometimes still need a gentle push away from archaic usage. The language reference is concise but appears complete, and I disagree with the reviewer who said it is poorly organized (the library reference is alphabetical by library, the language reference follows the same convention everyone else does: Basics,Declarations,Expressions,Statements,Functions,Classes,Templates,I/O,Containers). The library reference is very, very valuable, often providing usage and code snippets as well as syntax. This won't replace all the books on your shelf (you do have Effective C++ and More Effective C++, right?) but it will be a well used reference if you are a professional software guy (or faking it).
Rating:
Summary: Excellent reference for the practicing programmer
Review: Most of the "reference" books I've seen for C++ have been more advanced primers (lippman/lajoie, pratta, josuttis). This is the first book I've seen for someone who knows C++, has been using it for some time, and needs a library and language reference. A welcome addition to my desk, especially since I learned C++ in 1992 and sometimes still need a gentle push away from archaic usage. The language reference is concise but appears complete, and I disagree with the reviewer who said it is poorly organized (the library reference is alphabetical by library, the language reference follows the same convention everyone else does: Basics,Declarations,Expressions,Statements,Functions,Classes,Templates,I/O,Containers). The library reference is very, very valuable, often providing usage and code snippets as well as syntax. This won't replace all the books on your shelf (you do have Effective C++ and More Effective C++, right?) but it will be a well used reference if you are a professional software guy (or faking it).
Rating:
Summary: Excellent reference
Review: O'Reilly has done it again. C++ in a Nutshell is a great reference. The first 275 pages are a technical introduction to the language. The next 50 pages provide a preprocessor and language reference. The final 400 pages provide a reference to the library. Those last 400 pages are the real gem. Sections are organized by header file (e.g. <sstream>). A full prototype of each major class is provided and each function is explained individually. Also, the index is complete, so it's easy to find information on a class or function you're looking for. Descriptions are complete, but concise---all the information you need and not a char more. This book isn't for beginners, but if you've had experience with C or C++ and are looking for a complete, well-organized reference to C++, this is the book to get.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent reference
Review: O'Reilly has done it again. C++ in a Nutshell is a great reference. The first 275 pages are a technical introduction to the language. The next 50 pages provide a preprocessor and language reference. The final 400 pages provide a reference to the library. Those last 400 pages are the real gem. Sections are organized by header file (e.g. <sstream>). A full prototype of each major class is provided and each function is explained individually. Also, the index is complete, so it's easy to find information on a class or function you're looking for. Descriptions are complete, but concise---all the information you need and not a char more. This book isn't for beginners, but if you've had experience with C or C++ and are looking for a complete, well-organized reference to C++, this is the book to get.
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