At 04:32 PM 12/23/2001 +0000, you wrote: >If you get time then try a visit to Dillions bookshop ... I have found >this in the past to be a treasure of all the latest in computer related >texts.
Latest does not necessarily mean good. I find that most modern computer books fall into two categories: 1 - Good thought out volumes on a particular computer program, language, or technology. 2 - Worthless 500 page tome with the nutritional value of sugary breakfast cereal. Most O'Reilly books fall in the first category. They are full of good technical information that is aimed at the programmer or System Administrator. They cover topics like Perl, Apache, DNS, Cisco routers, etc. Most are about an inch thick. I've been buying O'Reilly books for about 11 years and have about 30 so far. The others are these "Java in 24 hours" tomes put out by publishers like Que, that are 3-4 inches think and are pretty much worthless. They are aimed at the new guy to computers and are glitzy enough to catch the attention of the new guy. They seem to think that the greater the word count, the better the book must be. There are probably a few books on the last 10 years that might eventually become classics. There is a web page called "Joel of software" where this guy talks about books and such, but he is mostly talking about User-Interface books. You might fine some good programming books at the local bookstore, but I would aim for a computer speciality book store or an on-line bookstore where the selection will be better. I still say, stick with the classics, they have proven themselves over the years. "Elements of Programming Style" has not change since it's second edition in 1978. Current prices are probably in the $20-$30 range (if not more). I was able to find an older copy at a used bookstore for 80 cents. I did the same with two of three Knuth books. Another way to find out what might be a current classic is to read current programming magazines, like Dr. Dobb's Journal, and see what books they keep refering too. I have not read DDJ is a number of hears (after having a subscription from '88 to '95). Tim Swenson
