Will Iverson
1 It should have been titled "Mac OS X for Java Beginners"
This book was misleading with the title, it seemed as though a large portion of the book was dedicated to covering basic Java concepts (definition of EJB, JMX, JSP, etc., JVM layout).
The information on cross-platform development was somewhat useful, but as a Java geek you probably were already aware of these items (path separators, new lines, etc.).
The book does have its useful moments, hence the three stars, but it wasn't worth the $39.95 price tag. Chapters 5 (Finder integration), 7 (Standalone Applications), and 11 (OS X Spelling Framework) were interesting. Finally, the author's writing style was friendly and easy to read.
2 Mac OS X for Java Geeks is a solid...
I'll start with my grade, a C-, generously given. The author, Will Iverson, did a good job of briefly touching on all aspects of Java and Java development. He gave a chapter to the Java topics: Apple's JVM, Java tools/IDEs, Java GUIs, stand-alone Java apps, Servlets, JSPs, Tomcat, and EJBs. And a few other chapters on more Mac OS X stuff like databases, Apple extensions, and some Apple specific Java APIs.
The chapters cover their stated topics well giving just enough info that the reader understands the topic but doesn't give enough info to make the reader "dangerous". I was hoping for more Mac OS X stuff and less Java. I didn't need the history of Tomcat. If you are a Java Geek you know that. But, being new to Mac OS X more OS X stuff would have been more relevant in this book.
I really can't complain because I got this book free, but in my opinion it's definitely not worth the $39.95 O'Reilly is looking for. I think the $9.95 O'Reilly gets for their "Pocket" books would be more appropiate.
3 I like
* This book has provided preliminary introduction to the platform with exploring
the technical underpinnings of the Mac OS X Java implementation.
* This booke is good for new java developer for Mac OS X platform, someone can explore the
pragmatics of Java development, including how to set up your development environment.
* And makes you aware of Apple's various additons to the java platform and describes how
to package and deliver an application to end users that looks and behaves like a naive
Mac OS X application.
* It has covers some recent features like Web start, Speech framework, Web service and
Ejb and Jboss.
* After that this book is good start for getting hands on the Apache web server running and
supplement it with the jakarta Tomcat JSP and servlet containers.
4 Fills it's niche
This is more of a set of self-contained articles than a book. Though it is not specifically written that way. I'm mixed about why this book was necessary. The topics are a hodge-podge. Which leads me to the 'set of articles' notion.
That being said, overall the writing is good and the topics are fairly well covered. Chapter three, on tools, is a standout. There are some problems, the code isn't well annotated, and some chapters, like chapter 9 on Speech, feel out of place altogether.
For those looking to make use of some OS X specific features with Java, you will like this book. It's pretty specific though, so for the casual reader I would recommend against it.
5 MacOSX for Java newbies
O'Reilly thinks that anyone with a Mac must be low on the learning curve. This book is so superficial in its coverage of techniques. I bought it when i browsed through it in the bookstore, only to be disappointed with the shallow explanations and quick tricks to cover all the buzzwords with a minimum of effort. It is for newbies, not for Java Geeks. It should have been more thorough.
6 Something for Everyone
I had been playing around with my PowerBook G4 as a webserver (using Apache), building some PHP-based applications, and serving them up locally during development. PHP is great for quick deployment of server-side web pages, but I had wanted to try my hand at developing Java-based web apps. I didn't really know where to start, but then I found Mac OS X for Java Geeks.
Using this book as my guide, I was able to:
* Install and configure Apache Tomcat
* Write and deploy my first "Hello World" JSP
* Write and deploy my first Servlet
* Deploy a working JSP that accesses a MySQL database
For me, this book has been invaluable... and I've only used two chapters! Will Iverson has created a volume that has something for everyone-- but most people will only use a part of the book.
Everyone can benefit from his overview of the JVM on Mac OS X, as well as the chapter on Java development tools.
If you want to develop web-based Java applications, there are chapters on Applets, JSPs and Servlets, Web services such as SOAP, and even using JBoss to serve EJBs.
If you hope to develop applications for the Mac platform, there are chapters on creating Mac applications, and interfacing with Mac OS gems such as Quicktime , Mac OS speech, and the Mac OS spelling framework.
The book is filled with great figures and examples, and readers looking to get their feet wet can build a swing application called SimpleEdit, which is used throughout the book as something to build on with newly acquired knowledge.
If you are planning to do any work in Java and the Mac is your development (or deployment) platform, you gotta get this book. I know I'll be coming back to it over and over.
7 A Must Read
This book starts out a little slow, but then it winds up and gets into the important topics. For anyone that has ever had a difficult time functioning on this platform, this book will give you all the information to make you as comfortable as you are in windows. Although it covers all the major areas, it provides plenty of examples and unlike most tech books, it drops all the filler and gets straight to the point.
8 Great info but could use tighter focus
Very timely book and nicely laid out. Well-suited to programmers new to the Mac but familiar with Java. The Java info is very up-to-date with URL references and gobs of info on compatibility. My only quibble is that the book flirts with varying degrees of background knowledge for the reader, for example, it lists many of the IDEs available on OSX but doesn't really give great reason to choose one over another. Then for the rest of the book the author stays above the IDE level and just gives instructions that are IDE-neutral. Although Project Builder may not be the best IDE out there, at least it is included in every OSX distro so I would have preferred a little more detail using it for the exercises.
9 A "must-have" for all cross-platform Java developers
This book fills a very important need. The hope of "write-once, run-anywhere" is nearly a reality in the Java world. But beyond the edges of the Java specifications are the platform-specific regions that challenge those of us who try to create portable software. And these platform-specific differences are more pronounced on the Mac than on any other popular Java platform.
I love Java, I love UNIX, and I love the Mac. They all come together in a rich symphony under Mac OS X. The Java piece is more tightly integrated with the underlying OS than it is on other platforms, which makes for a better Mac-centric experience for the user. But this also means that some aspects of Java that happen to be common across other platforms are different on the Mac. This includes such things as Java directory layout, minor GUI quirks, application packaging, etc. There are lots of books from Apple junkies about developing Mac application in Java, but this is THE book to get if you're a Java junkie and you want to develop Java applications that run everywhere, including the Mac. The author does an excellent job of succinctly explaining where/how/why from a Java perspective, enabling developers to develop products that maintain portability while being good Mac citizens.
10 Great book
Simply being able to run Java from a console window may suffice for some. Perhaps I have a lot in common with others by wanting to understand what's different about how Java is configured in the Mac environment, and how programmers need to work differently with Java. For Java developers, there are many differences between this OS and Windows. Thanks to this fine book, I now understand what I see and what to watch out for. Believe me, there are lots of things to know about. Finally, what impressed me the most about this book was how it was up-to-date in terms of JDK 1.4.x. Apple made considerable changes in this JDK update, including how the provided Java development and deployment tools are used. This book covers everything. Strongly recommended!
11 "eclectic"
Mac OS X for Java Geeks as O'Reilly puts it, is "a complete and detailed look at the Mac OS X platform, geared specifically toward Java developers." They claim to take you "beyond the basics" and teach you how to set up servers, set your class path, and develop desktop applications.
As much as I love the O'Reilly books, I found this one to be a bit disappointing. It is titled "Mac OS X for Java Geeks" but that is a bit misleading. It was more aptly described in the concluding paragraph of the book as "an eclectic overview of the Java development world" ... on Mac OS X.
The book has many good things in it such as how to install JBoss, Tomcat and an overview of Databases. I particularly was appreciative of the details on class path layout and Apple's JVM Directory Layout. There was a significant focus on Desktop Application development (Aqua using Swing, Application Bundles, cross platform development, Apple's Speech API, QuickTime API and Spelling API) which was all quite interesting, but also quite useless to me as all of my development is web-application and server based.
If you are just interested in doing geeky-type stuff on the Mac, I would recommend instead O'Reilly's "Mac OS X Hacks". It flow better, the subject matter is entertaining to read, and you put the book down because you want to try out one of the hacks. "Mac OS X for Java Geeks" seemed to be so randomly put together that I left feeling only slightly more informed than when I started. As an example, I expected the book to contain a full inventory of all Java IDE's available for use on the Mac - which seems like an important place to start for a book aimed at "Java Geeks". In the end, there was 5 pages on NetBeans, 1 page on JBuilder Personal, 4 pages on Apple's tools, a paragraph on Metrowerks CodeWarrior and 2 pages on Dreamweaver. This seems a bit unbalanced to me, and I am confused as to why Dreameweaver got such a highlight, or for that matter was even included especially considering that that IDEA IntelliJ, Eclipse, and TogetherSoft were only mentioned as a footnote on "Additional Tools". There were 3 pages about Jakarta Ant thrown right in the middle which also confused me as it is not an IDE.
Overall, I'd say the book has good details on a number of subjects Java related, and if you need some basic documentation for one of those for the Mac, then this is a book for you. Just be sure you are prepared to handle it's heavily "eclectic" style.
