Rating: 
Summary: Great Book!!
Review: If you are serious about your java programming you must get this book. This book is FULL of great examples, tips, techniques, and general information that is gauranteed to improve your java programming skills. And, best of all, the explainations are clear and to the point. No fluff, no nonsense, just real information that real programmers in the trenches can start using right away. I read this book cover to cover and benifited greatly. I reccomend you purchase as a complement to this book "The Java Programming Language, Third Edition" published by Addison Wesley. These two books work great together.I hope this helpes :)
Rating:
Summary: fun to read, very useful to know
Review: Now this is what I call good wisdom. This book is not for beginners, those who have done some programming in Java and/or c++ will really appreciate the insight of the author.
I was really stumped by the praxis on equals method. I looked upon myself as an idiot after reading the praxis and realized how basic but true it was. If you have been programming for a while, you may be indeed knowing some of these practices but its anyway worthwhile to refresh yourself of the ABCD.
I really liked the approach of the author to illustrate his thoughts using bytecode representation. It really drives home the point.
I also noticed that this book takes help from The art of Programming, Effective Java language guide by Joshua, Effective C++ by Meyers. All these are great books to read.
Buy this book definitely, go to starbucks and enjoy a cup of coffee breezing through this book. For the passionate reader, it should just take a weekend to read it.
Rating:
Summary: fun to read, very useful to know
Review: Now this is what I call good wisdom. This book is not for beginners, those who have done some programming in Java and/or c++ will really appreciate the insight of the author.
I was really stumped by the praxis on equals method. I looked upon myself as an idiot after reading the praxis and realized how basic but true it was. If you have been programming for a while, you may be indeed knowing some of these practices but its anyway worthwhile to refresh yourself of the ABCD.
I really liked the approach of the author to illustrate his thoughts using bytecode representation. It really drives home the point.
I also noticed that this book takes help from The art of Programming, Effective Java language guide by Joshua, Effective C++ by Meyers. All these are great books to read.
Buy this book definitely, go to starbucks and enjoy a cup of coffee breezing through this book. For the passionate reader, it should just take a weekend to read it.
Rating:
Summary: Practical Hints And Suggestions For Solid Java Development
Review: Practical Java Programming Language Guide offers up helpful hints, tips, and suggestions ("Praxis") on proper Java programming practices and techniques. The book covers a variety of Java topics such as String vs. StringBuffer use, the cost of object creation, exception handling, and threading. If you happen to be a fan of Scott Meyers' Effective C++ books, then you will feel right at home with Practical Java Programming Language Guide. I think this book is targeted towards intermediate Java developers that have a pretty firm grip on the language. Most of the topics and examples will seem obvious once read, but the author does an excellent job of clearly explaining each topic. Novice Java developers will find ample guidance, but do not mistake this book for "learn Java guide." Of particular interest to novice Java developers should be the sections on exception handling. The author provides excellent examples and clearly explains the reasons for various techniques. Expert Java developers may find this book useful as a refresher or perhaps a validation of Java programming practices. All in all Practical Java Programming Language Guide is an excellent resource and a welcome edition to my library. It is closer to a FAQ than a pure reference. To explain, if you need some advice on interfaces or abstract classes, you are sure to find a Praxis or two on these topics. Highly recommended.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent Practical Java Guide line book!
Review: Practical Java Programming Language Guide used the "essay" style similar to "Effective C++" to explain some issues in Java. It covers General Technique,Object and Equality, Exception Handling, Performance, Multithreading and Class & Interface with total 68 'Praxis'. This 'essay' style is my favorite. It represents topics in each small 'essay' and you can easily pick up the topic you are interested in without getting lost, or just read the book from cover-to-cover. It is also very useful for checking up something in which you'd like to have more understanding. You won't get bored there! I would say this book is for intermediate to advance Java programmer. It is not a book to learn how to program in Java, it is a good book to get more understanding with Java. It will help you learn more about Java, become a better Java programmer. I feel like I've learn a lot even with my 4-years professional Java programming experience. Also, if you are new to Java, this book will help you Ace your Java interview:) Sometimes, as a programmer, we tend to forget the low-level details as to why we do things that way. For example, the difference between "==" and ".equals()", we all know we need to use .equals() to comare Object reference, use "==" for primitive data type. After reading this book, I know more about "why" we did things that way than just "what" to do. That's just a small example, I bet you'll find lots of "ah-ha" monents in reading this book. One shortcoming I'd like to point out is there are some duplicates in explaining some topic. Maybe the author wanted to emphasis some points but I feel like it is redundant. e.g. both Praxis 11 and praxis 15 talk about how to immplement equals() method which I think only one would be enough. Also, it would be great if the broadth of the topic was expanded some more. Overall, it is a great book. I've been enjoying reading it and find it very helpful. I am looking forward to something like "More practical Java programming Language Guide" coming...
Rating:
Summary: Excellent Practical Java Guide line book!
Review: Practical Java Programming Language Guide used the "essay" style similar to "Effective C++" to explain some issues in Java. It covers General Technique,Object and Equality, Exception Handling, Performance, Multithreading and Class & Interface with total 68 'Praxis'. This 'essay' style is my favorite. It represents topics in each small 'essay' and you can easily pick up the topic you are interested in without getting lost, or just read the book from cover-to-cover. It is also very useful for checking up something in which you'd like to have more understanding. You won't get bored there! I would say this book is for intermediate to advance Java programmer. It is not a book to learn how to program in Java, it is a good book to get more understanding with Java. It will help you learn more about Java, become a better Java programmer. I feel like I've learn a lot even with my 4-years professional Java programming experience. Also, if you are new to Java, this book will help you Ace your Java interview:) Sometimes, as a programmer, we tend to forget the low-level details as to why we do things that way. For example, the difference between "==" and ".equals()", we all know we need to use .equals() to comare Object reference, use "==" for primitive data type. After reading this book, I know more about "why" we did things that way than just "what" to do. That's just a small example, I bet you'll find lots of "ah-ha" monents in reading this book. One shortcoming I'd like to point out is there are some duplicates in explaining some topic. Maybe the author wanted to emphasis some points but I feel like it is redundant. e.g. both Praxis 11 and praxis 15 talk about how to immplement equals() method which I think only one would be enough. Also, it would be great if the broadth of the topic was expanded some more. Overall, it is a great book. I've been enjoying reading it and find it very helpful. I am looking forward to something like "More practical Java programming Language Guide" coming...
Rating:
Summary: Useful information for intermediate java programmers....
Review: Practicl Java contains a good deal of practical and useful knowledge for intermediate java programmers. By "practical", I mean the knowledge in this book was gained through action and practice AND can be put to real use. No, it's not a theortical book with pie-in-the-sky ideas about object oriented programming; no, it's not a book for beginners; no, it's not specific to J2EE, swing, server-side, client-side, JFC or anything else. The book is practical knowledge on programming in java, and it's not only educational in nature for the intermediate java programmer, you can use this knowledge in the real work that you are doing. The book is organized into 6 main sections: general techniques, objects and equality, exception handling, performance, multithreading, and classes and interfaces. Within each section are about a dozen "Praxis". A "praxis" is defined as a practical application or exercise of a branch of learning. Or in other words, a habitual or established practice or custom. By understanding or learning these praxis then the whole of your java programming can be expected to improve. An analogy of what a praxis is in say...basketball are ...keep your hips square to the hoop when shooting...or flex your knees when shooting, etc... When you know and follow the 68 praxis in this book, your java programming will be refined to a much higher level -- which is what I assume the reader of this book is after. Interestingly, this praxis-oriented approach seems to be actually implemented in a software tool called JTest developed by a company named ParaSoft. This tool actually applies these praxis to your code and points out opportunities for improvement. Like I said, this is a good practical book for the intermediate java programmer. Receommended.
Rating:
Summary: Useful information for intermediate java programmers....
Review: Practicl Java contains a good deal of practical and useful knowledge for intermediate java programmers. By "practical", I mean the knowledge in this book was gained through action and practice AND can be put to real use. No, it's not a theortical book with pie-in-the-sky ideas about object oriented programming; no, it's not a book for beginners; no, it's not specific to J2EE, swing, server-side, client-side, JFC or anything else. The book is practical knowledge on programming in java, and it's not only educational in nature for the intermediate java programmer, you can use this knowledge in the real work that you are doing. The book is organized into 6 main sections: general techniques, objects and equality, exception handling, performance, multithreading, and classes and interfaces. Within each section are about a dozen "Praxis". A "praxis" is defined as a practical application or exercise of a branch of learning. Or in other words, a habitual or established practice or custom. By understanding or learning these praxis then the whole of your java programming can be expected to improve. An analogy of what a praxis is in say...basketball are ...keep your hips square to the hoop when shooting...or flex your knees when shooting, etc... When you know and follow the 68 praxis in this book, your java programming will be refined to a much higher level -- which is what I assume the reader of this book is after. Interestingly, this praxis-oriented approach seems to be actually implemented in a software tool called JTest developed by a company named ParaSoft. This tool actually applies these praxis to your code and points out opportunities for improvement. Like I said, this is a good practical book for the intermediate java programmer. Receommended.
Rating:
Summary: Extremely helpful
Review: Scott Meyer's books were so useful for C++ and this one takes the same approach for Java. I have already found several tips in here that have been a big help on the job and I have only had the book a few days. I really like the way he goes to the bytecode level to provide performance analysis. I haven't seen any of the other Java books provide this type of approach and information.
Rating:
Summary: "must have" desktop reference
Review: The Practical Java Programming Guide by Peter Haggar is a "must have" desktop reference for the Java Developer. The succinct way in which Practical Java covers issues related to performance, multithreading, exception handling, and objects make Practical Java an essential resource for Java developers of all experience levels. Additionally, a "detailed contents" section along with the clear examples and thorough explanations make this text an invaluable aid. I could even see Practical Java as required reading for Computer Science students taking "Intro to Java" type classes. Actually, Practical Java should be required reading for anyone programming in Java, since it would take years to even become familiar with all of the programming pitfalls and subtle aspects of the Java language that Practical Java elucidates in 279 pages.
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