Hi Alvin,
No, the book is not aimed at the beginner. There were already beginner books available, we wanted to add a more advanced book for WebObjects. For beginners I would suggest Joshua Marker's excellent
Visual QuickPro Guide. This does assume you are on a Mac, but it does not take too much effort to apply it to Windows.
Our text also assumes that you are familar with
Java. If you are not familiar with Java, well you have already found the right place to hang out!
Some familiarity with databases, HTTP, HTML, XML, and web app architecture in general will serve you well.
Even for a beginner, there will be lots in the book to help you out when you run into the inevitable pitfalls as you start out. However, you will gain maximum value by reading again as you progress.
Chuck