vinay_solanki said
This book as the name suggest gives you complete overview for learning and understanding Java. It clearly points out the differences between Java 1.4 and Java 1.5 (J2SE 5.0). It highlights the important points and gives introduction to Swings, Servlets and a good financial application using java.

Good for any beginner !!

duvernais101 said
If you're a beginner, this book can help you... However, if you intend to learn data structures and algorithms such as sorting and searching, then you'll be out of luck with this book. You'll definitely need another reference bcos you'll only learn about the java util methods which would most likely not be accepted if you're learning java formally. You can get some useful information from this book though. It's very good with the basics.

Anonymous said
This book is a decent reference and a semi-fair tutorial, even though it only claims to be a reference. What it is not is complete, the basics of the language and a small amount of the available classes in v1.5.x is listed. A complete reference would take at least 2 volumes, but would be just that, complete.

IMO, a huge problem is in the Collections section. Simply learning the basics of more advanced Data Structures does not come close to making a complete programmer. A programmer has to know exactly how a hashtable or an AVL-tree works, not just learn how to sort-of use the versions in the API. If you can't write your own version of the class you are going to use, you shouldn't be using it, until you learn how that class really operates. This doesn't really apply to simpler Classes, but especially applies to more advanced topics like Data Structures and Networking. Java abstacts them to a point where you do not really have to learn them. Abstracting is a good thing, and so is the simplicity of the SE API, but it makes it hard for people learing on their own how to be real programmers. Any monkey can use an API, it takes a bit more to take the next step and learn how they work and how to write them. In the long run, that will make you a more efficient and professional programmer.

The basic classes are covered, but not even all the methods in those classes are covered. There are too many classes missing from this book to be able to call it a complete reference. If you think it is complete, you don't know the language well enough. I really like how he points out similarities to C++ and most importantly differences. Too many people treat Java like a subset of C++ and end up writing poor Java code. It is a completely different languages and pointing out the differences, especially on new features that, on the surface, look like C++(enumerations and generics).

It is written fairly well, and the explainations are always at least good. Mr. Schildt has finally learned how to write and is a decent author. Not bad considering he was considered a complete joke 5 years ago.

I would probably give it four stars, except for two reasons.

1) Like I said before, it is not complete.

2) I also have a serious issue with the self-appointed "leading authority on C,C++, Java and C#". What a stupid and outlandish claim. Dennis Ritchie, Bjarne Stroustrup, James Gosling, Andrew Keonig could all be called leading authorities, but only in a single language. Not coincendently, they are all far better authors then Mr. Schildt is. No one, and I mean no one, could be a master of all four, to the extent of being able to claim 'leading authority' status in each one. Arrogance.

Anonymous said
I have read many programming books. My opinion about them is that those book lack theory and concepts, those books are practical books. Practical teaching is a "mechanical" teaching and not a logicaly teaching. People with an IQ above the average needs theorically (logically) teaching, and those who are above the average are the best programmers. Practically methods are not for real world programmers, but for dummies. So, I think that : If someone gives to you a fish, he feeds you for a day, if someone teaches you how to catch fish he feeds you for all the life, and Schildt do this. Schildt use a high level language, which means that he uses the exact words and give the exact mean of what he wants to explain, others write a page to explain something and don't give the exact idea, of what Schildt uses only a paragraph to explain clearly that.

Anonymous said
If you have a some background in Java then this book is a must. It has all the commands and functions listed out and what they do. I wouldn't recommend this book for beginners.