Thomas, I understand your point of having a book that doesn't cover
EJB, Servlet etc and calls itself Server-Based Programmnig is kind of misleading. However, I think the importance of this book is it teaches the forbidden area of Java (like those JVM books).
I came from C, C++ background, almost everyone I know who is learning Java now is complaining the lack of low-level detail books (besides JVM books). In C, and C++, almost every programmers will come face-to-face with the low-level process. Yet, in Java world, many of the programmers (without previous experience often don't understand the low-level details that they need to become a good programmer). Granted, Java is supposed to be high-level that allows programmers only worry about using the API to accomplish tasks they need.
I think this book really touches the Java programming at a low-level. I remember a conversation with my friend, who happens to be one of old developers working with WebLogic. I asked him about the servlet and
JSP, his answer is this: "Everyone can become a Java programmer without knowing the details of the language, all he needs to know is the API to become a so-called Java programmer. If this trend continues, eventually, Java language itself will suffered. As companies want to build their own systems cannot found enought programmers that understand how low-level systems work, they will just move to a different language like C, C++. Companies need to justify the ROI (Return on Investment)"
We often take it for granted about server-based programming because so many app servers are out there. Yet a lot of times, those servers are expensive, and you only need partial functions of them. If you have a good team of programmers, then you can easily create your own server, it will better, cheaper, and customize to your company's needs.
This book won't teaches you all the knowledge you need, but it will definitely help to understand just how an application server works. And maybe, just maybe, you will write the next Weblogic,
Tomcat.