Re: Books reviewed

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From: William Ryan eMVP (dotnetguru_at_comcast.nospam.net)
Date: 05/29/04 

Date: Sat, 29 May 2004 17:46:46 -0400

I'm with you 100% on the MacDonald stuff. Actually, just about everything
he's written for .NET rocks. You've got to be impressed by his command of
so many different areas. 

-- 
W.G. Ryan MVP Windows - Embedded
http://forums.devbuzz.com
http://www.knowdotnet.com/dataaccess.html
http://www.msmvps.com/williamryan/
"Rick Spiewak" <rickspiewak@mindspring.com> wrote in message
news:uqINGWaREHA.3348@TK2MSFTNGP09.phx.gbl...
> You guys have done a great job covering the material and I'm going to hang
> on to your lists to add to my library - but I wouldn't leave out Visual
> Basic .NET Programmer's Cookbook, by MacDonald. It's great for those quick
> answers - especially the kind that make you re-think your whole approach.
> And, for dealing with some of those C# examples - the C# and VB.NET
> Conversion Pocket Reference by Mojica (O'Reilly) is handy.
>
> "Earl comcast net>" <brikshoe<at.> wrote in message
> news:OUcSZBaREHA.2404@TK2MSFTNGP09.phx.gbl...
> > Hehe ... if they weren't on my list, I just haven't gotten to them yet.
> > However, I'm cognizant of Bill Vaughn's stuff (I have read some of his
> stuff
> > online), as well as the "recommended reading list" on devbuzz. Also, the
> > Tiffany SQLCe book I've seen touted well, but just have not gotten to it
> > yet.
> >
> > There have been a few books I read before .Net that are so good that I
> hate
> > letting go of, including "PocketPC Dvelopement in the Enterprise" by
> > Christian Forsberg and Andreas Sjostrom (simply invaluable for pulling
all
> > of the PPc concept together) and "ADO: ActiveX Data Objects" by Jason T.
> > Roff (a heckuva ADO reference).
> >
> > Thanks for the advice -- so when are you writing yours?
> >
> > "William Ryan eMVP" <dotnetguru@comcast.nospam.net> wrote in message
> > news:OXxG9VZREHA.3452@TK2MSFTNGP10.phx.gbl...
> > > I appreciate your intent here, but you've left off a few books that
are
> so
> > > good and such must haves I have to chime in.
> > >
> > > If you are going to do any serious VB.NET Development, Francesco
> Balena's
> > > Visual Basic .NET Core Reference is the one book to have. There are a
> ton
> > of
> > > other books that address certain areas better than this book does, but
> > it's
> > > the most thorough book on VB.NET there is, and there's always enough
> > > discussion and samples of any topic to get you over the hump.  However
> it
> > by
> > > no means only caters to newbies and there are plenty of examples that
> more
> > > advanced developers would find useful
> > >
> > > As far as ADO.NET goes, I totally agree with your statement on
Sceppa's
> > book
> > > and from my observation, it's one of the most universally loved books
> > there
> > > is.  However Bill Vaughn's ADO & ADO.NET Best Practices is another
must
> > > have.  He's got a ton of insights in that book that only Gurus like
> Vaughn
> > > have I think these two books, although on the same subject, compliment
> > each
> > > other well.  Learning ADO.NET wouldn't have been nearly as much fun
> > without
> > > both of them.
> > >
> > > As far as CF Books go, there's a good list and discussion on them here
> > > http://www.devbuzz.com/content/books.asp
> > > On the Compact Framework, Dan Fergus and Larry Roof's Definitive Guide
> to
> > > the Compact Framework can't be left out of any must have list.  Andy
and
> > > Steven's book is the first one I bought on the subject and it's  a
first
> > > rate book from start to finish.  Dan and Larry's Book though is quite
> > large
> > > and had the benefit of being published a little later on.  As such
they
> > have
> > > some more examples and they elaborate more on many subjects.  If you
> think
> > > that Andy and Steven's book is dry, I don't know that I'd agree but I
> will
> > > say that they stay very focusedon any given topic.  Dan and Larry's
book
> > > definitely injects a lot more of the author's personality's into it.
> But
> > > ti's as good of a book as it gets.  I wouldn't want to write CF apps
> > without
> > > both of them.
> > >
> > > Not everyone using the compact Framework will be using SQL Server
CE,but
> > if
> > > you are, Rob Tiffany's Sql Server CE Development with the .NET Compact
> > > Framework is a must have for two reasons.  1) It's a great book, has a
> > bunch
> > > of great examples and is easy to follow 2) It's the only one out there
> on
> > > SQL CE and CF Development.
> > >
> > > Dan Fox and Jon Box's Building Solutions with the Microsoft .NET
Compact
> > > Framework is another great one to have in the collection. It's smaller
> > than
> > > the above two are, but that in a way is its strength.  The fact they
get
> > so
> > > much info across in a relatively small amount of space is testimony to
> how
> > > good they commmunicate.  It's not a definitive reference like the
other
> > two
> > > are, but it touches upon many important issues and the examples are
> > > excellent as well..
> > >
> > > As far as General .NET books, you can't leave out Jeffrey Richter's
> > Applied
> > > .NET Framework Programming, the quintessential text on undrestanding
how
> > the
> > > framework works.  It's a must have if you care about understanding how
> the
> > > framework works behind the scenes, and this one has a picture of Jeff
> and
> > > his new hellicopter which should provide plenty of incentive to learn
> the
> > > framework as best you can.
> > >
> > > Then there's the whole Addison-Wesley .NET Developer's Series.
> Everything
> > > in there is pure gold and although I admit it came out a bit late in
the
> > > game, they totally got it right
> > >
> > > Anyway, I just figured I had to chime in on this one b/c each of those
> > books
> > > has saved my *** more than a few times and definitely helped me quite
a
> > > bit.
> > >
> > > cheers,
> > >
> > > Bill
> > > -- 
> > > W.G. Ryan MVP Windows - Embedded
> > >
> > > http://forums.devbuzz.com
> > > http://www.knowdotnet.com/dataaccess.html
> > > http://www.msmvps.com/williamryan/
> > > "Earl comcast net>" <brikshoe<at.> wrote in message
> > > news:uHTOQUYREHA.3528@TK2MSFTNGP09.phx.gbl...
> > > > I've been on a mission this past year to move from VB6 to .Net. I'm
> > > > fortunate(!?) not to have the big catalog of some long-time VB
> > developers,
> > > > although I have some CE apps that have to be entirely rewritten in
CF.
> A
> > > lot
> > > > of what I develop has to be written for the PPc, so I knew I would
be
> > > > looking for information in .Net, ADO.Net, CF -- and SQL Server.
> > > >
> > > > So in the spirit that others might benefit from my journey, here are
> my
> > > > observations. Having been a tech writer many years ago (and a page
> > > designer
> > > > before that), I give these reviews with the caveat that I know how
> > > difficult
> > > > it is to write technical literature and also how difficult it is to
> pull
> > > > together all the aspects of a book. Thus I'm not going to give much
> > about
> > > > any specific errors or bugs, but a general feel for the book and how
> it
> > > > helped me.
> > > >
> > > > I will also give the caveat that I've never read ANY book that
didn't
> > give
> > > > up some useful bits of information -- no matter how bad that book
> might
> > be
> > > > otherwise. Final caveat is that I'm not there yet -- I'm still
> learning
> > > much
> > > > as I develop and I'll still have many questions here. But I don't
see
> my
> > > > opinions changing on the books I'm reviewing here.
> > > >
> > > > The following list is in no particular author order:
> > > >
> > > > Introducing Microsoft.Net 2nd Ed (note: the 3rd Ed is out now),
David
> S.
> > > > Platt
> > > > As its title implies, its a great book to get you started in the
.Net
> > way
> > > of
> > > > thinking. There are some examples, but that is not really the focus
of
> > the
> > > > book. Touches briefly on all areas of .Net. I wish I had read this
> book
> > > > first.
> > > >
> > > > VB.Net, Matthew McDonald
> > > > Strange, I've never seen any reviews of this book, and I got it for
> $10
> > at
> > > > the half-price bookstore, but its chock-full of information and
> > examples.
> > > > The book is aimed at developers moving from VB to .Net, so it was
> right
> > up
> > > > my alley. If you can find it, buy it.
> > > >
> > > > Visual Basic.Net, Matt Tagliaferri
> > > > Another out-of-the-mainstream book (spell that c-h-e-a-p) with some
> good
> > > > stuff in it. If you are interested in GDI, this might get you
> > kickstarted.
> > > > Also gave me some intro to the datareader and datasets.
> > > >
> > > > Visual Basic.Net Database Programming, Evangelos Petroutsos, Asli
> Bilgin
> > > > I've seen this book slammed in a few reviews, but I feel that's
> totally
> > > > undeserved. This is a very good book for those just starting with
> > ADO.Net.
> > > > Its deep enough, it gives you a lot of great examples, and is fairly
> > well
> > > > illustrated. I do have some minor heartburn as follows. Some of the
> > > examples
> > > > that required the Command Builder to be used did not show those in
the
> > > code
> > > > example. Literally, those examples would not run (I'm thinking this
> was
> > > one
> > > > of the places that William Ryan straightened me out). Next, a few of
> the
> > > > illustrations were actually screen shots of the code that were too
> small
> > > to
> > > > read (altho in fairness, you have a CD to pull the code up in front
of
> > > > you -- I'm not much on using the CDs unless I do not understand the
> > > written
> > > > word). Finally, the layout of the book is kinda goofy as regards the
> > > > DataReader (you have to look in a couple of different areas where
the
> > > > material should have been pulled together). I have about a dozen
pages
> > > > tabbed for future reference, so that may give you some idea that
> despite
> > > my
> > > > misgivings about a few errors, I still find the book very useful.
> > > >
> > > > Microsoft ADO.Net, David Sceppa
> > > > In the lingo of the 20-something crowd, this book is "the bomb". I'd
> > read
> > > > reviews of how good this book is, and its reputation is
well-deserved.
> I
> > > > have not finished the book yet, but after several chapters (and some
> > peeks
> > > > ahead into the "Questions that should be asked more frequently"), I
> can
> > > see
> > > > already that I'll feel more secure in my knowledge of ADO.Net once
I'm
> > > > finished. I'm thinking that this is probably the only book I've ever
> > paid
> > > > full-price for. If you were to be stuck with the task of creating a
> > robust
> > > > application with just any 3 books, this would be 1 of the 3. More
> about
> > > this
> > > > anon.
> > > >
> > > > .Net Compact Framework, Craig Morris, et. al.
> > > > One of the first books I bought and should've been one of the last.
> > > Examples
> > > > all in C#, and since I had no .Net experience at the time, I didn't
> > spend
> > > > much time with it. Fairly lightweight tome, but I'm hanging on to it
> and
> > > > intend to get back to it
> > > >
> > > > Microsoft .Net Compact Framework Kick Start, Erik Rubin, Ronnie
Yates
> > > > This book helped me out tremendously, not only with the CF, but on
how
> > to
> > > > work with the datagrid and datatables. I do not claim to being there
> > > > completely, but using some pieces of this book in conjunction with
> > answers
> > > > from the afore-mentioned William Ryan in the forums, I can at least
> > > > visualize most of the concepts I need to pull things together.
> > > >
> > > > Microsoft .Net Compact Framework, Andy Wigley, Stephen Wheelwright
> > > > I have not finished this book. Examples all in C#, and highly
> technical
> > > > (these guys might be wound a little too tight, and might want to
check
> > out
> > > > www.moosehead.com). I'm counting on this to fill in the holes in my
> > > > technical knowledge once I have the nuts and bolts down.
> > > >
> > > > C# Text Manipulation Handbook, Francois Liger, et. al.
> > > > I found this book also at the half-price book store and oh I love it
> as
> > a
> > > > reference! This little gem has helped me tremendously with casts,
> > parsing,
> > > > math manipulations, numbers to strings, strings to date, you name
it.
> > Even
> > > > if you write only in VB.Net, the examples are easy to read/convert.
> This
> > > > book will save you hours and hours of frustration with casting
issues.
> > Buy
> > > > it.
> > > >
> > > > Professional SQL Server 2000 Database Design, Louis Davidson
> > > > How did books about SQL Server land on the .Net list? Frankly, you
> will
> > > miss
> > > > more than half the journey if you try to learn.Net in a vacuum
without
> > > some
> > > > knowledge of SQL Server. This book is so language-agnostic, it is an
> > > > excellent resource. Written in a very user-friendly conversational
> tone,
> > I
> > > > have been enjoying it tremendously -- while learning much along the
> way.
> > > >
> > > > Troubleshooting SQL, Forrest Houlette
> > > > I found this book totally by accident. It deals exclusively with
> > > > troubleshooting SQL statements. Heck, while I realized the depth of
> SQL,
> > I
> > > > never envisioned that someone could write such a "troubleshooting"
> book
> > > that
> > > > was language-independent. Using this book in conjunction with "The
> > > Practical
> > > > SQL Handbook", "SQL Queries for Mere Mortals" and "Database Design
for
> > > Mere
> > > > Mortals" will make you much more confident in your SQL abilities.
> > > >
> > > > SQL Server Black Book, Patrick Dalton, Paul Whitehead
> > > > I really appreciate the "black book" series of books. They helped me
> > > > tremendously with VB and got me started with understanding C++. But
> for
> > > some
> > > > reasons, this particular black book has not been as helpful. Its
just
> as
> > > > big, has just as many examples in it, but for some reason, I feel
> > > > disconnected and the descriptive material feels lightweight. This
book
> > > will
> > > > remain a reference for me, but I'm somewhat scratching my head about
> > some
> > > > topics in the book.
> > > >
> > > > ADO.Net Step-by-Step, Rebecca Riordin
> > > > Of all the tech books I've bought over the last 4 years, this is the
> onl
> > y
> > > > one I've ever returned and I did that last night. Because I consider
> > books
> > > I
> > > > buy to be such a repository of reference material, I struggled with
> even
> > > > returning it, but something about the book just did not fit my way
of
> > > > thinking (which cannot be considered a knock on the author at all!).
> > I've
> > > > read some reviews about the book that it has errors and buggy code,
> but
> > I
> > > > did not get past the 2nd chapter nor even crack the CD, so I'll not
> lay
> > > that
> > > > out as an issue either. I think that maybe part of the problem was
> that
> > I
> > > > had some knowledge already and clunking around with a "step-by-step"
> > > manual
> > > > was like having someone eager to drive a racecar but their
instructor
> > > wants
> > > > to show them how to use the shifter. This book probably has a target
> > > > audience that I didn't fit in.
> > > >
> > > > Visual Basic.Net, Richard Bowman
> > > > One of my bargain purchases that was a dog. If the author's name is
> not
> > on
> > > > the cover of the book, that should be some sort of warning right
> there.
> > > > Actually, there is some good material in the book, but its so
covered
> up
> > > > with screens on every page, you have to spend a lot of time digging
> for
> > > what
> > > > you need. An excellent example of how NOT to design pages for tech
> > books.
> > > > Save your money.
> > > >
> > > > If you were only allowed 3 books to learn how to write both desktop
> and
> > > > Compact Framework database apps, my choices would be:
> > > >
> > > > Microsoft ADO.Net, David Sceppa
> > > > Professional SQL Server 2000 Database Design, Louis Davidson
> > > > Microsoft .Net Compact Framework Kick Start, Erik Rubin, Ronnie
Yates
> > > >
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