Rating: 
Summary: Overall - a solid REALbasic reference
Review: (The following review is aimed at people wanting to learn programming for the first time).If you have never programmed before, know this: Programming is not easy, period. Do not expect to pick up this book thinking in a short time you will be pumping out the next killer app. You do need to have a fair amount of intelligence to grasp programming concepts, and following this up with loads of experience makes you good at it. "REALbasic : The Definitive Guide" is a good start on this trip. It makes a good attempt at introducing programming to the novice, but at the same time, it is definitive in that besides giving a thorough rundown on each and every part that makes up the REALbasic programming environment, it also touches on the many nuances (and bugs) that make it different from others. Object-orientation seems to be the catch-cry of the day, and the simple explanation given here will give you a good basic understanding of its principles. Why did I give the book four stars and not five? Two reasons: One - a CD-ROM with the latest REALbasic demo (at time of printing), and your usual code examples etc. would have been nice; Two - I found it disconcerting at times that concepts or commands referred to hadn't been explained yet (a pointer to its existence or explanation further on in the book would have sufficed). However, these are only small gripes and should not influence your decision to buy the book. I would recommend this book as an essential tool to the novice and intermediate programmer, but experienced REALbasic programmers would still find it a good/thorough reference.
Rating: 
Summary: REALbasic books: Newburg vs. Tejkowski
Review: After more than twenty years programming computers, I decided to learn REALbasic, as I wanted more control over the presentation of my FileMaker databases. I bought REALbasic, the "Standard" version (mistake #1 - it isn't full-featured). Then I bought Newburg's book (mistake #2 - too difficult to start with). Then I upgraded REALbasic to "Professional" (good move), and bought Tejkowski's "REALbasic for Dummies" (at last I could understand!) Don't do as I did. If you REALLY want to learn REALbasic, get the "Professional" version, and BOTH Tejkowski's and Newburg's books. Start with TejKowski; it reads easily; do the examples. When you're through, use Newburg's book to give you the philisophical understanding, and as a reference. The manuals that come with REALbasic are well done, but still - start with "REALbasic for Dummies".
Rating:
Summary: REALbasic books: Newburg vs. Tejkowski
Review: After more than twenty years programming computers, I decided to learn REALbasic, as I wanted more control over the presentation of my FileMaker databases. I bought REALbasic, the "Standard" version (mistake #1 - it isn't full-featured). Then I bought Newburg's book (mistake #2 - too difficult to start with). Then I upgraded REALbasic to "Professional" (good move), and bought Tejkowski's "REALbasic for Dummies" (at last I could understand!) Don't do as I did. If you REALLY want to learn REALbasic, get the "Professional" version, and BOTH Tejkowski's and Newburg's books. Start with TejKowski; it reads easily; do the examples. When you're through, use Newburg's book to give you the philisophical understanding, and as a reference. The manuals that come with REALbasic are well done, but still - start with "REALbasic for Dummies".
Rating: 
Summary: RealBasic is not definitive.
Review: After wishing for many months for a programming language similar to Visual Basic for the Macintosh , I was immediately pleased when I heard of the RealBasic announcement. I looked for books on the application and then heard of RealBasic-The Definitive Guide. Great! I thought I would finally get down and dirty with RealBasic on the Mac. Unfortunately I was disappointed as I read this book it became apparent that it was more a computer science tome on OOP. It lacks useful practical information on RealBasic and any useful illustrations to back up the facts, as most VB books do. In fact it is mostly a rehash of the manuals RealSoftware gives away free on the web. I found myself consulting the manuals with this book in hand to make any sense out of it. My conclusion, caveat emptor.
Rating:
Summary: The essential reference to REALBasic
Review: An invaluable resource on REALBasic. Tightly-written in Matt Neuburg's signature style, this book offers accurate information on every aspect of this language, together with pertinent and usable examples. An excellent book. Highly recommended!
Rating:
Summary: Great overall book, i learned everything about REALbasic
Review: Great Book, i recommend this book fo everyone who wants to learn realbasic. It is easy to understand and gives lots of examples.
Rating: 
Summary: Disappointing
Review: I bought this book before the previous two reviews were posted. I puchased the book based on the expectation that I would be able to use it to learn RealBasic. The author takes you through many theoretical problems without leading one step by step in designing a program. Whereas the description of the book states " If you've never programmed before, the book offers both a primer in REALbasic ..." I found this tottally unture. For the programmer new to RealBasic I'd reccomend using the online tutorials and staying away from this book.
Rating:
Summary: Disappointing
Review: I bought this book before the previous two reviews were posted. I puchased the book based on the expectation that I would be able to use it to learn RealBasic. The author takes you through many theoretical problems without leading one step by step in designing a program. Whereas the description of the book states " If you've never programmed before, the book offers both a primer in REALbasic ..." I found this tottally unture. For the programmer new to RealBasic I'd reccomend using the online tutorials and staying away from this book.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent book but read it several times
Review: I came to REALbasic with some knowledge of programming, primarily database programming. I also had some familiarity with Virtual Basic on the PC. However, I had NO real knowledge of object oriented programming. This is a big hurdle that I was able to overcome with Neuburg's book. I read some of the web tutorials, the documentation and the Dummies book. My first go through Definitive Guide I did not understand much. Then I started on my project. At this point, I would look up particular issues and Definitive Guide would tend to be the most useful. Then I read it again. Finally, I started to click on what object oriented programming is. For this I credit Neuberg's book. Then I read it again. This time I found it enjoyable. I like his writing style. I think that he has many well-expressed insights and he has lots of information about the "quirks" of REALbasic. Knowledge of these quirks is important. I have come to the opinion that this is a VERY GOOD book. Learning a programming language "on your own" is not all that easy. I do not begrudge the cost of buying several books when I start learning a new language. Definitive Guide was absolutely key for me. I think that I would have failed without it, at least in terms of using the object oriented programming that is a part of Real Basic. Learning the language has been very rewarding. I cannot imagine trying to learn Real Basic as an object oriented program without this book.
Rating:
Summary: A Very Detailed and Helpful Tool
Review: I studied programming in school but had trouble grasping many of the concepts of programming, so dropped my studies, but continued trying to learn these past few years on my own, venturing in to Visual C++, Visual Basic, and a few others. I gave REALbasic a shot just for fun, and was doing ok, but the Definitive Guide has taken me farther in the month since I got it than in the past years with any language. Now, finally, I'm comfortable enough to purchase the full language and have fun with it. This book is much better than many of the textbooks I've been through and other books I've purchased for various languages.
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