Working as a
Java programmer for large distributed systems, I anxiously awaited the opportunity to read the Fields and Kolb's "Web development with Java Server Pages" and I was certainly not disappointed. Assuming a firm grounding in both basic HTML and Java skills (since, thankfully, "intro to�" chapters are not included), the book maintains a concise focus on presenting
JSP technology to both presentation-layer developers and server-side programmers.
This is not a book littered with examples in the early going (plenty in the latter chapters, though), but rather it focuses on discussions of the 'how and why' for many aspects of the technology. An added bonus is the underlying current of JSP as an aide to the development process itself through structural and logical separation (particularly the inspiring discussions in the opening chapters).
One complaint I have is that there is not accompanying CD containing the source for the examples. Though it is available on-line, there is some to be said for the immediacy and permanence of having it on disc.
All in all, this offering from Fields and Kolb serves very well as introduction to web development using JSP for both experienced professionals and beginners alike.
(Sean MacLean - Bartender, August 2001)
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