Rating: 
Summary: It depends upon how you use it - NOT a good starting point.
Review: Having been through the torture imposed by all graduate programs in physics, I think we all agree that although Jackson's text is an excellent reference and a superb supplementary text, this is NOT what most people would call an appropriate starting point. Granted, some (and note bene SOME) problems are useful, a more graduated approach could be used without losing any of the flow of the text. Indeed, once I finished my two semesters (and took a LONG break), I found out many things in this text were a nice surprise upon review (it also helps if your original professor speaks English). Buy it. Keep it on the shelf as a badge of honor. You should, however, end up reading it and working through at least some of the problems.
Rating: 
Summary: If only one has the background
Review: I used Jackson for my graduate level advanced electrodynamics class. I was befuddled the first semester but made a good grade. Between the first and second semesters I had to study for and take the qualifiers. I used Jeans and Smythe's Static and Dynamic Electricity and found these to be excellent though difficult texts. As a corollary I also re-studied the required mathematics. Now I understood where Jackson was coming from! I was able to not only solve all the problems in the electostatics and Maxwell equations sections of Jackson but also my studies from Smythe and Jeans covered much of the second semester of Jackson also. When I took the second semester I was able to breeze through solving the problems and taking the tests to such an extent that my professors, who had trouble with the problems, wondered what had happened. It did not hurt that a close friend and I had recently built a radio telescope array in the hills of Tennessee during vacation thereby obtaining a nearly irreproducible knowledge of antenna theory. In my opinion, Jackson is mostly a guideline for studying electrodynamics. Once the student has the background Jackson is both fun and enlightening. Therein lies the difficulty. I have noticed that many libraries have "put up" or gotten rid of their Jeans and Smythes and other classical texts. The new books are not really a substitute. Since many professors did not really learn electrodynamics that well themselves, this make it truly difficult to obtain a really great grounding in the subject. I did not truly understand the difference until I was doing a lot of computational electrodynamics years later. Regardless of how one goes about it, somehow the student must get the required background before really using Jackson in any meaningful fashion. Current education in physics has made this more not less difficult.
Rating: 
Summary: Jackson: Can't Live With It, Can't Live Without It!!!
Review: (...but I wish I could!!!)The title of my review just about sums my opinion on this "classic" grad electrodynamics text. The book kind of [stinks] as a textbook, but there is nothing even remotely close to it in scope out there. So like a previous reviewer said: "Jackson's here to stay; GET USED TO IT!!" ...P>For those who still want my opinion on the specifics of this book (I promise, they won't help you-- you still have to get through Jackson!) I offer the following brief comments, some of which you may have heard before, some which may be new: (1) The problems are hard. Damn hard. Someone else already said that, and I agree. What I WILL add, however, is that some of the problems are also simply STUPID and a waste of time, offering or enhancing physical understanding very little if at all. (Don't get me wrong-- there are some problems which, while hard, are also pretty darn cool. Unfortunately, there are too many of the other kind, too.) The type of problems I am talking about are of the following ilk: "Prove the following six-term vector identity;" "Re-derive equation #72 for a transverse magnetic field'" "Prove equation #27." Quite simply: WHO CARES!?! (2) While the volume is pretty encyclopedic, it is often hard to follow. Jackson often simply states things in the text without explaining where they come from, how they are derived, or why they are important,--- for example, as I read the text, I began to hate the two words "we see," which are used is cases like (paraphrasing now) "Therefore, we see the following relationship holds"---when it was not at all clear to me where the heck this relationship was coming from! I often felt stupid because, in fact, I often did NOT "see" at all!!! In those cases, I began to just say to myself "well, if Jackson says so," and then moved on. Whether I am stupid or not is open for debate, surely, but nevertheless I would have liked a little more pedagogical assistance--- which, in my mind, does not seem too unreasonable a thing to expect in a *gasp!* TEXTBOOK, of all things!! (We aren't taking about a paper in a peer-reviewed journal now, are we?? We are talking about a textbook for people who don't know, but are trying to learn, E&M.) (3) This is a comment on the Third Edition (ie. "the Blue One") versus the Second Edition (ie. "the Red One"). In the Red One, Jackson uses Gaussian units throughout, which seemed to work well for me when I first started using the book on my own several years ago. Then, when I recently took a grad course on E&M the professor used the Blue One-- wherein Jackson switches between Gaussian and SI units, depending on which chapter you are in. He explains his rationale-- which makes sense on the surface (you really need to know both units as a working physicist)-- but in practice all this did was make learning 20 times more difficult! First you get used to the way the Gaussian system works, then suddenly all the constants and definitions change and you are in SI units in the third chapter, then you are back in Gaussian units, having to remember that certain things and definitions change and certain stay the same, all the while trying to incorporate new concepts into this body of knowledge, then you're back in SI and so on. It is simply the biggest blunder that he could have made in expanding to the new edition. While there are new problems and so on in the Blue One, when I actually wanted to learn something I gave up on the Blue One and pulled out my handy Red One. And finally... (4) A (very minor) point: The actual SIZE and FEEL of the Red book itself is much better than the newer Blue One. The Red One feels sleek and self-contained and fits well in your hand and your backpack. The Blue One, on the other hand, is thicker, wider, bulkier and more unwieldy, and borders on the "Is there some way I can leave the book in school rather than dragging it home?" category. In short, the Blue One feels like a burden, while the Red One feels sleek and cool. Using the Red One makes you feel like you're doing something cool, slick and important, while using the Blue One makes you feel like you are burdened with the weight of physics (I'm sure all of us have felt both at some time or another-- but if you're gonna publish a textbook, go with the first!) Well, I guess that's about it for now. I hope it was helpful. ...
Rating:
Summary: Good and compact text for advanced undergraduates
Review: Jacksons text still remains as the classic text for E and M. The problems are challenging and difficult I do admit. I found that having the mathematics background helped when it came to solving some of Jacksons problems. From the other reviews that I saw that gave this book low ratings probably didnt have the mathematical background to tackle this text. Before attempting to read and solve the problems of Jackson, you should have an excellent working knowledge of Multivariable calculus including vector calculus, differential equations (including partial differential equations),complex variables, Legendre and Bessel functions. If you dont have this background, you will have a very difficult time with this book.
Rating:
Summary: Jackson's book is here to stay . Get used to it.
Review: For the last few decades, J.D. Jackson's book has been the standard textbook for graduate-level physics courses in electricity & magnetism. I don't think this is going to change: it presents and develops useful tools and it covers the topics needed (plus more). It's not perfect. In particular:
- It CANNOT be used for an introduction. It assumes a very good understanding of the physics of E&M, as presented in an undergraduate course.
- It is NOT intended for self-study. It was developed in the context of a lecture course, and this is what it supports.
- The theoretical treatment does leave irritating holes in some presentations.
- For some topics, the approach is not the most elegant.
- The problems are hard. The problems are damn hard. Nonetheless, it covers an enormous amount of material in a way that can be referred to later (post-course), including mathematical tools and explicit formulas. This is quite useful, once you have suffered through it. If you want to LEARN ABOUT E&M, you can study other books, many of which have been mentioned by other reviews. But if you really need to be GROUNDED in E&M, you will probably have to study this book: you probably won't be given a choice by your professor. This doesn't mean you can't find other sources to supplement the presentation. It's probably a good idea, anyway, not to think you're going to be able to find everything in one book.
Rating:
Summary: lack of insight
Review: I am currently taking a course from this book and my personal opinion is J.D. Jackson provides nothing but mathematical details. It is poorly written, i.e. he never mentions why I should bother about a certain topic in the book. Once you are done with this book, you will have no idea where you are heading in current research. I think Landau and Lifschitz' Classical Theory of Fields is the masterpiece of this area. If you want to start publishing in theoretical physics, you will need it sooner or later. It is even more difficult than this book but the clarity of explanations is wonderful.
Rating:
Summary: Everything you have never dare to ask about electromagnitism
Review: Like the Born & Wolf, the Jackson is one of those classic title that everyone knows (or fears)! Electrodynamics is a hard topic, and Jackson is a hard book. However, it covers the subject in great details, that's make it a great book. Nowhere else I have been able to find the correct treatement for the diffraction in a converging beam. However, it very difficult to use for a quick search for answer because it covers many topic in great details. The last edition include a welcome charge: the utilisation of the internatinal system of unit.
Rating: 
Summary: A poorly written learning tool
Review: As a graduate student who is currently taking a course using Jackson, I can honestly say that it is very poorly written. The primary reason Jackson's text has survived this long is that it has challanging problems, which are an important part of learning e&m. Unfortunately, the actual text is difficult to follow and largely devoid of examples. While I can't comment on many of the contemporary graduate level alternatives to Jackson, I have personally found Griffiths text to be an excellent undergraduate level text which has proven useful in understanding some of the more cryptic parts of Jackson where topics overlap. The only good graduate text I've examined that I think is both at the same advanced level of complexity as Jackson and lucid enough to learn from is Sir James Jeans text, which is unfortunalely out of print and a bit obsolete in its notation. I have found Jeans to be quite helpful when learning some of the more advanced level material covered in Jackson.
Rating:
Summary: A good book on EM, with reservations
Review: Let me state it bluntly: you cannot get a firm grasp of EM with this book. This is not a good book to learn from. This is a book to read AFTER you THINK you know EM. Jackson treats almost every conceivable topic in this monstrous compendium. A reader who wishes to hone his/her EM skills should pick up this book and read the relevant section, then work out the problems at the end of each chapter. This is, in my opinion, the ONE AND ONLY purpose of this book. I think it achieves it rather well - the text, along with the problems, greatly increase the reader's skills, confidence and understanding. The problems are essential.
Jackson is NOT a good reference either - to understand what he's saying you have to usually read the entire chapter. What IS a reference anyhow? A book with all EM formulas in it? A book of problems with solutions? There are other books that deal with these issues much better than Jackson.
Even worse - his chapters are often interdependent, so you can't just read the chapter on radiation when you want to learn all about radiation. Nope. That's because chapter 14 deals with single particle radiation and chapter 6 introduces retarded solutions - in short, the ideas are scattered throughout the text.
So I'll say it again: this book will reward hard, linear study, and reward it greatly, but the reader is expected to show a lot of maturity - meaning assuring himself he understands everything in the text, working out the examples alone, and then doing all the problems he can. If you can't master that maturity - DON'T spend your money on it. Very simple! There are a lot of good books out there on EM that don't intend to make you a master. Try them out - my personal favorite is The EM Field by Albert Shadowitz (great undergraduate text, cheap too!). If it's problems and solutions you're looking for, try "Problems and Solutions on Electromagnetism" by Kim Lau (not sure about the author's name) for a GREAT collection of problems with solutions. But leave Jackson alone if you don't want to invest your time in it. It's way better than getting frustrated and typing angry reviews here at amazon.com.
A word about the problems: some are hard, some are not, but if you read the chapter carefully before approaching the problems at the end, chances are most will be doable, even if some require you to meditate upon them for several days. A few stubborn ones defy solution, but they are the exception, not the rule. Besides, it's always good to know there are problems out there to challenge you and help you advance your knowledge.
Rating:
Summary: Jackson Fan Club member!!
Review: Initially, I despised this book. From peer reviews, this book is difficult, opaque, a supposedly random conglomeration of nth order Spherical Harmonics, Bessel fns etc.....
Well, this book does live up to its single reputation - difficult. But reading through the text not once, but twice or more times, I eventually get the idea. Furthermore, the text in my opinion, tries to word concepts as precisely as possible. I can't imagine how much attention Dr. Jackson gave to the little details, which is essential in sending the right message to the readers.
Therefore, I feel that this book is exceptional. The author has a strong sense of responsibility on the concepts he would like to convey to the reader.
Finally, concerning the homework problems in this book (thorn to many readers), I found out that if one actually reads Jackson carefully (not randomly browsing through looking for equations) and understanding, he gives hints to many problems. There are some problems that are really hard, but usually its due to the complexity in the math, therefore a math reference or two (e.g. Arfken and Weber) would be very helpful.
I still can't do the problems...
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