My Books Page

This page contains pointers to some books that I like. Most italicized links are to amazon.com, which is where I bought most of these books.

Java books

The Java books contain links and prices for Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Fatbrain. "A:" is Amazon, "BN:" is Barnes and Noble, "FB:" is Fatbrain.

The three stores seem to have nearly identical prices. When there is a difference, however, I marked the cheapest one with two red exclamation marks, like this!!

I looked up these prices on 11 September, 1999.

The Java Developers Almanac 1999 A: $15.96 BN: $15.96 FB: $15.95
Every Java programmer needs this at his side while coding. It is split up into three sections: package descriptions with examples, class descriptions with member listings, and index/cross-reference. The package descriptions section is the only place any descriptive text appears. The middle section is a list, alphabetized by class, of every single class, field, and method in the Java standard libraries. The index allows you to find classes & members, and tells you for each class which classes extend it, for each interface, which classes implement it, for each class or interface, which methods return it, and for each method, which classes include it. This book won't tell you how to use the Java libraries, but it will let you find anything you've read about before or can guess the name of.

The Java Class Libraries
Volume 1 A: $55.95 BN: $55.95 FB: $55.95
1.2 Supplement A: $34.95 BN: $34.95 FB: $24.45!!
Volume 2 A: $53.95 BN: $53.95 FB: $53.95
These are the definitive reference works to the details of the standard java libraries. They are alphabetized by class, with complete descriptions and examples for each class. You need all three. Unfortunately, not all of the Java packages are covered. Sorely missing are java.sql and javax.swing.

O'Reilly Java series

I've taken a liking to the O'Reilly series of Java books. When I want to learn about some new part of Java, I look first for an O'Reilly book. O'Reilly's Java Center contains descriptions of all of their Java books. Each book description page contains downloadable copies of the book's example code.

Java in a Nutshell A: $19.96 BN: $19.96 FB: $19.95
This was my first Java book. It is a good introduction to the language for people who already have some experience with programming. It compares Java syntax to C, and gives a short overview of some of the library classes.

Database Programming with JDBC and JAVA A: $23.96 BN: $23.96 FB: $23.95
Tells you how to use the classes in the java.sql package to talk to relational databases.

Developing JAVA Beans
 A: $23.96 BN: $23.96 FB: $23.95
Tells you what a Java bean is, how to create well-behaved beans, and how to make them operate nicely inside of bean builder development systems.

JAVA Threads A: $26.36 BN: $26.36 FB: $26.35
Everything you ever wanted to know about Java's multi-processing mechanism. Lots of good examples of practical use of Java's synchronization mechanisms.

JAVA Swing A: $35.96 BN: $35.96 FB: $35.95
A tome telling how to use the new user interface classes (the javax.swing package). I don't like this book as much as the other O'Reilly books, but it DID get me over the hump into programming in Swing. I really, really hope that Sun adds a Swing volume to the Java Class Libraries series.

Political books

Ain't Nobody's Business If You Do
This is the book that got me started on libertarianism. I found a pointer to one of its drug-related pages at suck.com. I immediately downloaded it, one page at a time. All of Peter's books are available online here including this one. Peter is currently awaiting trial for using marijuana to keep himself from dying of AIDS. Another California proposition 215 casualty.

Citizens Rule Book
The link is to one of the many places on the web containing a copy of this "jury handbook". Belongs in every juror's pocket. Reminds us that we are in charge here (or ought to be; see FIJA's site for more). One juror can hang a jury and effectively veto any law. The Citizens Rule Book also contains copies of the constitution, bill of rights, ten commandments, communist manifesto (so you can see what NOT to do), etc., etc. You can order copies of the pamphlet from Whitten Printers, (602) 258-6406, 1001 S 5th St., Phoenix, AZ 85004. They cost about a dollar apiece for small volumes, less for more. This one's not at amazon.com.

101 Things to Do 'Til the Revolution
Begins, "America is at that awkward stage. It's too late to work within the system, but too early to shoot the bastards." I like Claire's writings. Her collection at Wolfe's Lodge is something to behold! She stays light-hearted while talking about real important stuff. Her other books are also worth getting: I Am Not a Number and the sequel to 101 Things to Do 'Til the Revolution, Don't Shoot the Bastards (Yet). Every Thursday, Claire writes a column for WorldNetDaily.

Unintended Consequences
John Ross' novel about the possible future consequences of the growing police state. It took me about 3 days to devour its 863 pages, whooping and hollering all the way. Besides its shocking conclusion, there is some good history here. He describes the turning of the American military on its World War I heroes when they came to Washington to peacefully protest (this event has a name, but I've forgotten it). He also tells the story of the Jews who finally fought back against the nazis in Poland near the end of World War II. Amazing what a small band of determined freedom fighters can do with a few weapons. A reminder of why the right to keep and bear arms must never be infringed.

Go home.
Last updated: 11 September, 1999.