Good Java Book

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I know this is like opening Pandora's box, but can someone recommend a good resource for learning Java? If you could include reasons why you recommend the book, it would be extremely helpful. Also, any resources I should avoid like the plague? (Again, can you include some reasons why?)

Thanx!

16 comments

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Dominick said...: yes, it's a tough question but if your beginning Java I recommend "Head First Java". The nice thing is that you won't lose interest as quickly as if you were reading a reference type book. The book won't teach you the entire language, but then again no book does that. Once you are familiar with the concepts, you can go deeper into the language and check out subjects that interest you. Elliotte Rusty Harold for instance is one of my favorite authors. However his books usually target a specific subtopic of the language such as java io, xml etc... Also, you should always pick up 2 or three good java books when starting off, cause you will cross reference like crazy when starting out. Good luck!; 3/12/07 2:22 PM
Scott Stroz said...: Thanx Dominick! You are the second person to suggest Head First (The other was a good friend). I tried reading head First Design Patterns a while ago and found the format maddening. maybe I need to give it another try.; 3/12/07 2:30 PM
Oğuz Demirkapı said...: Hey Scott,

I would like to suggest "On to Java" (ISBN-10: 0201725932) which is a great resource.

Have fun! :); 3/12/07 2:54 PM
pan69 said...: There is only one book you need when it comes to learning the Java programming language:
http://www.amazon.com/Thinking-Java-4th-Bruce-Ecke...
(Gets four stars on 289 reviews!!!)
Also checkout the auhtors website were you can download previous editions of the book:
http://www.mindview.net/; 3/12/07 4:58 PM
Sammy Larbi said...: Joshua Bloch wrote a book called "Effective Java" that comes highly recommended to be by someone whose opinion I value as one of the top teachers I've ever had.

I've yet to read it, but I'd go with his opinion any day. I don't know how much of the basics it covers either, but you can read up about it at http://www.amazon.com/Effective-Java-Programming-L...; 3/12/07 5:13 PM
Doug Hughes said...: Head First Java all the way.; 3/12/07 6:01 PM
Phil Duba said...: I'll throw my vote in for Head First also. Simple to get you up to speed before diving into further readings/books on more advanced topics.; 3/12/07 6:29 PM
Nat Papovich said...: I recommend you steer clear of Bloch's "Effective Java" until you're quite far along in Java. It describes strategies and ways to overcome common mistakes. It's not a learning book by any means.

I agree with the Head First Java, but I also recommend Head First Servlets & JSP, by the same people. If you're going to be primarily doing server-side web applications with Java, much of the Head First Java book will be irrelevant while nearly ALL of Head First Servlets will be relevant.; 3/12/07 7:05 PM
Spike said...: I don't have a book to recommend because I don't think books generally do a good job of teaching how to program, so I don't use them for that. I do use them for reference from time to time though.

FWIW When I was learning java, the primary resource I used was http://www.mindprod.com/jgloss/jgloss.html. It's a veritable treasure trove of information about the language.

I also learned an awful lot when I started working on the CFEclipse project. The nice part about that was I could trace through the code to try to understand it and fix small niggling bugs. The CFEclipse developers are more than happy to give anybody a leg up if they're trying to get to grips with the code.

The final thing I would suggest is looking into some of the embedded things people have done with Java in ColdFusion. It's almost always easier to learn something new when it's presented in the context of something you already understand.

HTH; 3/12/07 7:27 PM
Rick Mason said...: I am suprised no one has recommended Eben
Hewitt's book, Java for Coldfusion developers.
It's an excellent introduction to java and would
help you get us to speed on the other books; 3/12/07 9:58 PM
kola said...: I Would agree with most of the other people Head First is a great place to start. Avoid effective Java it is a great book but not for beginners as Nat pointed out. Thinking in Java is also really good and one I use more as a reference. For websites checkout www.javaranch.com it has some really good articles and is run by the creator of the HF books so it has quite a few articles in a similar 'easy to get your head around' vein as the books.; 3/13/07 9:00 AM
jonathan rowny said...: I have a java book that is pretty good for teaching just the basics. You can have it, I'll never touch it again.; 3/15/07 11:52 AM
Jared Rypka-Hauer said...: Another vote for Head First Java... it's quirky and unusual, but written by Java programmers and organized/formatted by learning technology experts.

It's a good read and a great way to learn Java, especially if you do the excercises and stuff.; 3/18/07 2:23 PM
Tracy Logan said...: The whole Head First series seem to be terrific, so I'll cast another vote for HFJ. Java for ColdFusion Developers is a great idea, but unfortunately, far too many of the examples won't even compile as printed. Most of the problems are typographical in nature (case differences, misspellings, etc.), but some are more conceptual, and thus harder to troubleshoot. I'd sent a list of such problems to Eben, but he never followed through on setting up an errata site; if anyone would like a copy of that list, I'll be happy to dig it up . . . .; 3/19/07 1:02 PM
julien said...: Head First Java, Head First Design Patterns
& Thinking in Java

Think that's pretty much it :p; 5/11/07 8:13 AM
yellowpages said...: I recommend Head First Java too, my personal reference in java things.; 9/28/07 10:15 PM

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Good Java Book

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