Java 5 included in HFJ 2nd?

[Vedhas Pitkar]

Are the new features of Java 5 included in HFJ 2nd ed??

[Bert Bates]

Vedhas -

HF Java 2nd edition has been updated to include the new Tiger features that are appropriate for coverage in an intro to Java book. Because a lot of the new Tiger features are pretty advanced, this book does not provide complete coverage of Tiger.

- Bert

[Nicholas Cheung]

Bert,

Will you consider to write a book, say, HF Advanced Java (Tiger), to cover all new feautres in Tiger?

Nick

[Bert Bates]

Hey Nicholas -

Advanced Java topics is a title we think about sometimes... I'd call it a medium priority

[Vedhas Pitkar]

Hi Bert,
Does this mean that HFJ 2nd ed is just an introduction to Java 5?How would you compare it with say Complete reference or Just Java ??

[Bert Bates]

Hi Vedhas -

I'd say those books are more focused towards being reference books (and therefore they will cover more of the Tiger features), and our book is really NOT meant to be a reference book, it's really meant to be a learning book.

I think we're a little bit radical on this point. We think a LOT (or almost all!), technical books attempt to be both reference books AND learning books, and that typically the learning experience suffers. For instance, one of my favorite Java books is the "Java Almanac" - it's reference through and through, and it's great! On the other hand (I hope O'Reilly doesn't kill me), I think that now that Java is fairly mature, a book like "Java in a Nutshell", which clearly tries to teach Java AND be a reference book, doesn't do a great job of either. In the early days of Java when there weren't 2500 Java books to choose from, it made a bit more sense to try to do everything in one book, but that's no longer necessary.

hth,

Bert

[Nicholas Cheung]

I read HFJ 1st edition and used Complete Reference to prepare SCJP Tiger, I believe HFJ covers the most important features of Tiger, while Complete Refeence covers a bit more. But both books do not go into too details, as I still need to refer to JLS when preparing some topics for SCJP.

HFJ is an easy-to-read book for beginner, while Complete Reference focus on both beginner and immediates. The most attractive point for HFJ is the use of "cartoons" to make the story more funny, and easy to understand.

Nick

[Ko Ko Naing]

I'm just curious... Is there no advanced Java book in the market at this moment? I think Deitel's got one from Prentice Hall... Does that book cover most of the advanced topics? But I don't think that book covers Tiger... I've ever seen that book in the university library before...

[Nicholas Cheung]

There is one Java book talks about Advanced Tiger features: Core Java Volume 2, 7th edition.

But it does not cover all new features, and thus, I just wanna see whether Kathy and Bert have any plans on HF Advanced Java.

Nick

[Alex Prawira]

Head First Java is very cool, man !

K & B, why don't u come with Head First Advance Java ?

We're all waiting for this.

Thank's for writing such a good book.

[Eusebio Floriano]

Originally posted by Nicholas Cheung:
There is one Java book talks about Advanced Tiger features: Core Java Volume 2, 7th edition.
Nick

Nicholas,
Did you glance Core Java Volume 2, 7th edition ?
Does it covers the topics of Tiger for SCJP ?
What about HFJ second edition ?

Regards,

[Nicholas Cheung]

Did you glance Core Java Volume 2, 7th edition ?

My workmates used that series to prepare for SCJP Tiger beta, I heard that the books are quite good, but the feeling is that the audiance seems to be C/C++ programmers. For me, I used the Java 2 Complete Reference 6th edition.

Does it covers the topics of Tiger for SCJP ?

Yes. All objectives are covered.

What about HFJ second edition ?

As said by others previously, HFJ is NOT a book that designed for SCJP.

Nick