Java 2 Enterprise Edition 1.4 (JSEE 1.4) Bible

I almost missed out on reading this book after seeing some of the negative reviews. However, I had $40 burning a hole in my pocket when browsing and decided to take the hit and just see for myself. After the first read my initial thought was "WOW!", then the next thought was "Did the negative reviewers read the same book?"This is a great text, whether or not it's entirely up to date is pretty immaterial. As many others have already said, the structure of the book is really good, leading you from one topic to the next in a natural way. It's easy to get into difficult subjects and not know about it until you're through the other end! I was really impressed with the depth of knowledge, the presentation, the worked examples, the hints, and a 1001 other things that made me glad I didn't save my money for something else.If like me you're unsure about what to do to get into J2EE 1.4 then you can't do better IMO than getting hold of this book. Grab it from a friend if you can't afford the price, or if you're still unsure, but *do* read it. You're not going to find another text this comprehensive and readily understandable in a long while. Don't save your money - the money I spent wasn't a waste, it was an investment that is already showing dividends!

I'm an independent consultant and have been doing a lot of J2EE work over the years. Now that 1.4 is on the horizon I'm getting lots of questions from my clients and requests to migrate stuff to it. I've looked at other books on the subject, but this is the one that really did it for me: it's well structured, easy to get into and just flows. The authors obviously know their stuff, and by the time I was finished I felt that I did too.This is without a doubt one of the best books on J2EE architecture I've read and certainly the best one of 1.4.Don't let the size put you off. You can structure your own way through the chapters if you really need to, leaving out those things that don't concern you immediately. There's a lot of hints and tips as one of the other reviewers mentioned and also many cross-references, so if you miss something to start with 'cause you don't think it's relevant, if the authors do they'll let you know!A great book at a pretty good price too.

Just glancing over the breadth of this book's chapter headings tells you right off the bat that you aren't going to get in-depth treatment of the subjects, since many, if not most of the subjects covered might well require one or more books dedicated to each. But you will get a good sense of where Java is going in the next release, allowing the savvy programmer or manager to catch up with the next wave of Java changes before it crashes down on his or her head.This is not a book for the expert in, say, Java Database applications to delve into the arcane depths of J2EE support for the intricacies of modern database design and techniques. It is a book for the beginning Java programmer, for programming management and architects, and for the expert Java programmer taking on new projects, anyone who wants an overview of the entirety of J2EE 1.4 before being tasked with implementing it yesterday or by tomorrow at the latest.This is the book one would want to have read through before walking into a strategy and planning meeting, or sitting down for a job interview, or planning needed classes for programming staff, or keeping one's resume current with the state of the art. With an average of thirty-three pages devoted to each topic, the information presented is usually packed solid, and it must be admitted that a few of the authors have more technical prowess than the gift to turn a dainty phrase, but technical writers being what they are, the fact that the book is clearly written in English and takes pains to be accessible to a wide range of potential readers is a strong point that far outweighs the few flaws.Buy this book. Read it. You'll spare yourself a lot of confusion and come away with a strong grounding in the fundamentals of the next edition of J2EE. Isn't that what a Bible is? Not a cookbook, but a guide.

This book was written by several members of the Java Community Process (JCP) and will have competitive advantage over books that are simply written by professional writers. It is jammed with information on the latest J2EE specifications and explains crucial concepts in a clear manner. This is the best J2EE book of the year.

I happened to read some excerpts from the book and I feel that they have taken an extra effort to make the audience understand the concepts before getting into the details unlike other books. Most chapters start off with a simple-world scenario which tends to get you interested in the topic rather than make you close the book!!! I would highly recommend this book. The concepts are precise and easy to understand. They should have included some more examples in the book. Other than that a sure BUY...