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Summary: Reviwers comments from The Perl Journal #14 SUMMER 1999
Review: Dan Schmidt: I wish Perl: The Programmer's Companion had been around when I learned Perl. Chapman assuems that you are already a programmer, and he presents Perl as a language that helps you, the programmer, get things done. The exposition is exceptionally clear. Chapman knows his audience, and writes directly for it. Overall, though, this is the best introduction to Perl for programmers that I've seen. When someone at my workplace asks about Perl, this is the book I give them. I can't think of a higher recommendation than that. Rating: 5 out of 5. Vicki Brown: If you know (or are!) an experienced programmer seeking to learn Perl, you may want to skip the other introductory books on the market and start with Perl: The Programmers Companion. Unlike many books on Perl, however, this one does not assume familiarity with Unix. In fact, the book was written on a Macintosh using OzTex (a Mac port of LaTex) and the examples were tested with MacPerl. Perl elements and philosophies inherited from Unix are called out and explained, often with a wry comment or two. Tom Christiansen, in his Camel Critiques, awarded this book 5 camels (one of few books so honored). This is not surprising, as Tom has a keen eye for craftmanship. Jon Orwant hasn't told me what units I'm working with - camels or jelly beans - but I give this book 5 of them. Joe Johnston : Aimed not at the seemingly bottomless pit of "Idiot to Internet 7 days" consumers, Perl: The Programmer's Companion instead appeals to the latent computer science major in all of us.... This book will put you on the road to Perl matery. Mike Stok: If you read the introduction in a bookstore and like it, buy the book - it delivers on its promises. I was refreshed to find a book that contrasted Perl with other languages to show Perl's strengths and weaknesses. The ordering of the subjects is a natural way to introduce Perl to a programmer. I particularly liked Nigel Chapman's use of wry humor.
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Summary: Useful code examples keep reader interested
Review: Easy to read, with many useful code examples in every chapter which I could use immedialtely in my work. I liked it a lot, and since I have plenty of *real* exercises from my job, I didn't miss the lack of contrived exercises at all!
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Summary: Worthy of any accomplished Perl hacker
Review: Going beyond the mere discussion of how things work, this book delves into how to make things actually work in a useful way. The writing is excellent, and it's actually laugh-out-loud funny in places.
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Summary: The book you need to start learning PERL
Review: If you want to understand the logic of PERL and start working quickly with practical examples, this is THE book to buy. You won't be overwhelmed by details and syntaxical diagrams make PERL sometimes cryptic expressions quite clear. BRAVO!
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Summary: excercises and support material available...
Review: In response to Greg Wilson's advice, the latest reprint now contains excercises for the benefit of instructors using the book for courses, and for readers who find doing excercises a help in learning
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Summary: Excellent, lucid text
Review: Moderately experienced and seasoned Perl programmers looking for another book to contemplate on their way toward Perl mastery can't go wrong with this one. Nigel's prose is thoughtful and clear, and so is his Perl. And what do you know, the book is beautifully typeset as well! A little offbeat at times, but on the other hand it's helpful to experience a fresh new viewpoint. Useful and highly recommended.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent, lucid text
Review: Moderately experienced and seasoned Perl programmers looking for another book to contemplate on their way toward Perl mastery can't go wrong with this one. Nigel's prose is thoughtful and clear, and so is his Perl. And what do you know, the book is beautifully typeset as well! A little offbeat at times, but on the other hand it's helpful to experience a fresh new viewpoint. Useful and highly recommended.
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Summary: Fun read, useful reference
Review: Nigel Chapman has an awesome talent for conveying material clearly and concisely. In just 273 pages, you will learn all the basics and then some. Chapman copiously supplants his dictatorial, amusing content with practical examples. The tables dispersed throughout the book add to its value as a reference, and I've found them extremely useful on many occasions. Be aware, however, that this book will confuse you in no time if you're not already familiar with another programming language. He doesn't start with the classic "Hello, world!" example but quickly jumps into regular expressions, and he doesn't go out of his way to explain concepts like arrays and objects before teaching their syntax. Chapman concludes with overviews of some useful modules and CGI programming (both sections are somewhat outdated by now, though). My criticisms of this book are that its layout is somewhat primitive (this is not exactly a pretty book), and Chapman is afraid to venture too far into anything that's even slightly OS-dependent, like sockets and database programming (not included in his overview of modules). In my version, there also aren't any exercises at the end of the chapters. Overall, however, this book is PERFECT for you if you're somewhat literate (in at least one programming language and in the English language) and would like to learn Perl as quickly as possible. Highly recommended. And unlike whatever reviewers have suggested, I think it makes a lovely reference, too.
Rating:
Summary: Fun read, useful reference
Review: Nigel Chapman has an awesome talent for conveying material clearly and concisely. In just 273 pages, you will learn all the basics and then some. Chapman copiously supplants his dictatorial, amusing content with practical examples. The tables dispersed throughout the book add to its value as a reference, and I've found them extremely useful on many occasions. Be aware, however, that this book will confuse you in no time if you're not already familiar with another programming language. He doesn't start with the classic "Hello, world!" example but quickly jumps into regular expressions, and he doesn't go out of his way to explain concepts like arrays and objects before teaching their syntax. Chapman concludes with overviews of some useful modules and CGI programming (both sections are somewhat outdated by now, though). My criticisms of this book are that its layout is somewhat primitive (this is not exactly a pretty book), and Chapman is afraid to venture too far into anything that's even slightly OS-dependent, like sockets and database programming (not included in his overview of modules). In my version, there also aren't any exercises at the end of the chapters. Overall, however, this book is PERFECT for you if you're somewhat literate (in at least one programming language and in the English language) and would like to learn Perl as quickly as possible. Highly recommended. And unlike whatever reviewers have suggested, I think it makes a lovely reference, too.
Rating: 
Summary: Not a useful reference book
Review: Not a good choice for a reference book. Would be useful only if interested in light reading about a subject that you are already familiar with. I would highly encourage any newbie or anyone wanting to get real work done to avoid this book.... your time and money (sorry I already spent mine) would best be spent elsewhere.
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