This is the 3rd installment of a dialogue about 30 Java books that are selling well (seemingly) in bookstores, and discussing the current status of Java books and technical books from the standpoint of the writer and creator. This time, which is the final time, we will finally cut into "How to choose the strongest Java introductory book for yourself". What did the roundtable members see beyond the current Java introductory book?
President of Yazawa Co., Ltd., advisory staff of Grape City Co., Ltd. He is a self-proclaimed "software entertainer" who is engaged in the development and sales of packaged software, while also actively writing and giving lectures.
Representative Director of Tatsujin Publishing Co., Ltd., Representative Director of Japan Ruby Society. At university, he belongs to the mystery novel study group, the science fiction study group, and the astronomy club. My favorite author is Motoko Arai.
Representative Director of Lambda Note Co., Ltd. TechBooster CEO (Chief Editing Officer). Work to help make books on computers, networks and mathematics with Haskell, Scheme and LaTeX.
Kadokawa ASCII Research Institute, Director Chief Researcher. After working as a programmer, he joined ASCII and was editor-in-chief of "Monthly ASCII" from '90 to '02. Once a month, we open a curry bar for one day only in Jimbocho and Shinjuku Golden Gai.
Kano: At the beginning of this discussion, the representative of the current Java introductory book market was "Clear Java Primer". , "Yasashii Java" and "Java Language Programming Lesson". All of the introductory books after "Yasashii Java" are designed to make you feel like you can read them all by yourself.
Takahashi: Yes. The first two books I tried to do that were "Yasashii Java" and Mr. Yuki's "Java Language Programming Lesson". Around the year 2000, there were various ideas for these books, and I feel that they were actually successful.
Endo: Until around 2000, this kind of introductory book didn't exist, at least for Java books.
Kano: In the application guidebook, there was a "can do" series editor's note 1. Perhaps it was the introductory books of the 2000s that incorporated the ideas of the "can do" series into programming language books.
Yazawa: Looking at it this way, the history of changes in introductory books is surprisingly new.
Takahashi: Even though it's new, it already has a history of more than 15 years since Yasashii Java.
Endo: For people who aren't very motivated to study, but still have the energy to read, it feels like an introductory book after 2000. Come to think of it, stupid FlashEditor Note 2 was popular around 2000, and the introductory Flash Action Script that everyone who created it read had a great idea. Maybe that was something that came out of that flow.
Kano: Oh, that's probably Mr. Ueno's "Flash Action Script Bible" from Ohmsha editor's note 3. The one with strange illustrations here and there.
Yazawa: Recently, Recruit has a web manga for getting started with Java, and Aviva has a Java class, right? I wonder what kind of people actually use Aviva's Java classroom. Perhaps there are some people who need this kind of introductory book, or even more introductory teaching materials.
Kano: I can relate to what Mr. Endo said at the beginning of this round-table discussion about "programmers who don't read books."
Endo: You say you can't trust programmers who don't read books. It was a story of a person who was able to work as a programmer. Learning from manga or Aviva may be an alternative to reading books, and it may be possible to get out of the situation where you don't understand anything about Java.
Yazawa: I wonder if it's used as a test measure.
Endo: There may be something like the "Dummies" series editor's note 4, which is an introduction to the English-speaking world. The translation didn't sell well in Japan though.
Yazawa/Takahashi/Kano: Oh.
Endo: You once planned and released Windows for "Dummies". In that book, ``Shrink wrap editorial note 5 , first bite the corner and stick your thumb open from there,'' and ``The five licenses for Windows can be summarized.'' The content was for Dummy (meaning stupid or doshirouto in Japanese).
Takahashi: Impress's "can do" series is exactly that. There is also a feeling that a book that uses abundant captures is a Japanese invention.
Kano: Returning to Java introductory books, the introductory books that represent the 2000s are ``Yasashii Java'' and ``Java Even if it was a "language programming lesson", in the 2010s, "Clear Java Primer" is selling more. In particular, Mr. Takahashi, what do you think about why the landslide phenomenon occurred from "Yasashii Java", which had been rock solid until then?
Takahashi: I think it's probably because "Introduction to Java that can be understood easily" is so great Guillaumee.
Endo: What is Guillaumee?
Takahashi: It's for people who program as a business. Until then, the introductory books didn't feel like "a book for people who use Java for work".
Endo: However, "Sukkiri Java Introduction" uses a game as an example, and the content is not business-like.
Yazawa: It's just a sample of an RPG-like story. Since there is no talk about algorithms, you can't make a game just by reading this book.
Endo: I'm not making an RPG in a book.
Yazawa: The story is made like a scene. The story is that a newcomer enters the company and is assigned in the second half. So, for those who have no choice but to start programming, and those who like IT stories to some extent, there are corresponding characters, and you can read while projecting yourself as the reader. Really well done.
Kano: In the sense that the flow of the book is good, of course, "Easy Java" and "Java Language Programming Lesson" are also well done, but according to Mr. Takahashi's hypothesis, "Introduction to Java" It means that it sold as a result of all swinging to Guillaumee. In the introductory book market, which had been aimed at a wide range of people who somehow wanted to start programming (in Java), he released an introductory book focused on those who write programs for business, and as a result, it sold well.
Endo: Our younger generation liked the book, "Sukkiri tsu ru Java Introductory", because it was easy to understand because it was carefully explained from the beginning to the end. Another feature of this book is that you can try out samples on the web.
Yazawa: Yes. In the first half of "Sukkiri Java Primer", explanations are given using a mechanism called dokojava. Since there are probably few people who can install the environment from the beginning, we have published a mechanism that allows you to run the sample as a trial called dokojava on the web.
Takahashi: There is a problem of what to do with the IDE in a programming language introductory book. In the case of Java, it seems that Eclipse or NetBeans are often used in the current manuals, but it would be nice to see an introductory book that uses IntelliJ for explanations soon.
Yazawa: I think it's fine to say, "Use whatever IDE you like," but I guess Eclipse is still used for training and such.
Takahashi: Editor Note 6 Editor's Note 6, I wonder what will happen in the future since Eclipse has become a shambles in the Android area.
Kano: You didn't assume your book or IDE in the first place. The stance is to consider using the IDE after reading.
Takahashi: It seems that dokojava also has an aspect of IDE countermeasures. However, I don't think that the reason why "Clear Java Primer" sells so well is because dokojava is highly rated. It's a positive factor, but it doesn't seem to be a decisive factor.
Yazawa: There's the fact that the whole book is made with care.
Takahashi: There are some parts that seem a bit surprising at first glance, such as the inclusion of Appendix A between chapters 5 and 6.
Kano: Ah, there was an appendix in the middle. I was wondering how they managed to get the project through. But I think about it properly and it's structured like this. The appendix in the middle is based on the premise of using dokojava, so it is designed so that you can understand it just by reading it without having to go through the trouble of compiling it on your own machine. I thought it was a good idea to read that far and feel like I've finished reading a Java book.
Yazawa: Yes. You're going out for an introductory introductory course.
Kano: Just from the part up to the appendix in the middle, you can somehow understand the feeling of "Oh, this is what happens when you write a program in Java." If you've read this far, you should be able to declare that you've done Java before. So it might be good to feel like you've finished reading the introductory book once.
Yazawa: I think the author has packed a lot of know-how into the book as a training instructor. Appendix C at the end of the book summarizes what students often make mistakes. For example, when Eclipse sometimes crashes, delete this file and restart to work.
Takahashi: In addition to the content, the timing may also be important. The year 2011, when "Sukkiri Understanding Java Primer" was published, was just around the time when the version of Java was upgraded for the first time in five years after the legal battle and the acquisition of Sun by Oracle. Due to such external factors, "Yasashii Java" looked old at the time.
Kano: The price has also been completely adjusted to Yasashii Java. This price for this number of pages, it's a pricing that requires a lot of courage when you put it out for the first time. I'm really curious how the planner did his best.
Endo: Actually, the person in charge of this book is Yagurata-kun, and it's not like I don't know him either. Inside the company, "The book will never be published. Is it possible for an author who is new to writing a book to sell? If the number of illustrations is over 200, it will not be possible in terms of cost. Who hired him?" It seems that the upper management decided that it could not be helped because it was about as much as it was.
Yazawa/Takahashi/Kano: Huh!
Endo: However, as everyone pointed out before, it seems that they had a clear goal of creating an introductory Java book that properly covered object orientation.
Kano: I feel that the editor's mentality may be one of the reasons why this book was able to be established. It's a lot of stress when you have to sell a lot of copies or it takes a long time.
Takahashi: The relationship between the editor and the author, and the feeling of Java, may have gone in a good direction.
Yazawa: Yes, I feel like the personality of the editor, who likes people, is reflected in the book.
Endo: But you quit after publishing the first edition of this book. It seems that I am busy in another industry now. Therefore, the name does not appear in the second edition. Oh, but maybe the names of the editors other than ASCII and Impress don't appear in the books.
Takahashi: I feel like Softbank (SB) also had things that weren't listed in the past, but the editor's name was also listed in the 10's book.
Kano: The name of the editor is firmly in the colophon of the technical review book. On the other hand, the publisher I used to work for had a policy of not including the editor's name in the book at all.
Endo: The editor is also responsible, so I think it's a good idea to name it.
Kano: In terms of the relationship between authors and editors, I heard that SB, which publishes "Yasashii Java", has the know-how to create and maintain introductory programming books. I've been there before.
Takahashi: Maybe the know-how is in the editorial department rather than the publisher.
Endo: It seems that the way manga is made varies considerably depending on the publisher or editorial department. A friend of mine used to work as an editor for Weekly Shonen Jump, and it was a product-like idea. On the other hand, isn't modern light novel-like manga more authoritarian? Of course, Jump is also a writer, but that's the difference.
Kano: Even computer books can certainly be divided into writer-oriented books and commercial-oriented books. Mr. Yuki's book is also SB, but I think the characters and settings are quite author-driven, so in that sense it can be said to be an author-oriented book.
Yazawa: Yuki's book always starts with "Hello. I'm Hiroshi Yuki." He was impressed that he was someone who put himself out there and wrote a book. So for a while, I also imitated it by serializing it in magazines.
Kano: As far as looking at the book, I get the impression that the editors of "Sukkiri-Kuruwaku Introductory Java" must have put in a lot of effort.
Yazawa: I don't know if it's the work of the editorial department when the characters appear.
Endo: I think it would be good to make an introductory book on Java in a jump format. Thoroughly do marketing.
Kano: "Sukkiri Java Primer" might be thoroughly marketing. In that sense, I wonder if it can be said that it is a product-oriented book.
Takahashi: However, I asked a bookstore clerk at Junkudo about this, and he said that "Sukkiri Understanding Java Primer" didn't sell very well at first, but it's steadily growing.
Endo: I was also interested in that, so I asked the editor, and it's true. I guess we are in that era.
Takahashi: You're an author who doesn't write any other series.
Kano: The direction of the talk is becoming something like "How to make a book that sells by learning from 'Introduction to Java'".
Endo: In the end, it's boring to conclude that the best-selling book is the best. Please turn it over. Is there any flaw in "Sukkiri Java Primer"?
Kano: Is it thick? There are two volumes of "Yasashii Java" and "Java Language Programming Lesson". You may hesitate to buy any of them.
Takahashi: In the first place, I don't think anyone will pick it up.
Kano: Yes. I think these three titles are too heavy for people who want to start programming somehow. I think my first impression was, "I can't seem to read all of them."
Yazawa: Isn't there a lot of books with titles like "Understand in 3 days"? "A book where you can just make a game or something without explaining the syntax." That's why some people want to know so much just on weekends.
Takahashi: It's the kind of thing where the difficulty suddenly increases on the third day, isn't it? I feel like there are some books that are old and haven't been revised much, but after all, I can't recommend half-finished books to those who have read this kind of dialogue on the ascii.jp site.
Endo: In the end, do you feel that the best introductory book for Java is "Clear Java Primer"?
Takahashi: Rather than deciding the best, I think it will be a story of people who don't like this book.
Kano: From now on, "Yasashii Java" will be revised and the 6th edition will be released. Naturally, it should come up with a "clear Java introduction" countermeasure, and it seems to be a promising option.
Yazawa: What will happen to the explanation of the last Java applet in "Yasashii Java"? It's not even a Java applet anymore.
Takahashi: The table of contents for the 6th edition has already been released, but the final chapter is "Graphical Applications". I don't think it's an applet anymore, but edit note 7.
Yazawa: Yuki's book is also a good first read if you think you can finish it.
Kano: I think it's an interesting point of view to choose an introductory Java book based on Mr. Yuki's book.
Takahashi: There is also the difference between people who like to explain things in writing and people who like to understand things graphically.
Endo: Isn't there a possibility of ``introduction to Java that can be understood clearly'' as a standard?
Takahashi: I think it's easier to understand whether Yuki's book is suitable for me or not.
Endo: Well then, go to a bookstore and open Yuki's book first.
Kano: That said, most bookstores have all three of them, so it's a good idea to compare at least these three and choose the one that seems to suit your taste. how is it.
Yazawa: Different readers have different tastes.
Kano: If all three of those books are thick and you feel like you can't do it yourself, there are thinner books, so I think it's a good idea to read through those books first. Among the introductory texts here, "I understand this! Java Introductory Course” seems to be the thinnest.
Yazawa: If you think a book that gives you a more general overview would be good, then this book, "Easy to Understand Java" is also quite good. This book also has parts that look like manga. I also wrote a C++ version of this series a few years ago.
Yazawa: The samples in "Easy to understand Java" are very sharp. I also like samples and examples, so if the same sample is used endlessly across chapters, the whole book will become boring for those who find it boring. In a sharp book, each sample is "don't care" code. It's like, "Hello," it's just five characters.
Kano: For Mr. Yazawa, even if it's just boring examples, it's better to have a sharp edge.
Yazawa: If the author's favorite story is used as an example and industry terms that you don't know are used as variable names, you won't want to read just that. Because of that, when choosing a book, it's better to check for yourself what the sample code is like.
Kano: If you flip through the introductory textbook and feel like you don't need a long explanation and want to learn grammar quickly, you can search for your favorite from the textbook group. It seems that the "how to choose" can be organized in a nice way, so let's put it together on a whiteboard.
There is no one best technical book for everyone. There is also a Java manual. Ultimately, you have to choose a book that suits you. However, even if you are told to choose a book that suits you, if you go to a bookstore and have dozens of books in unfamiliar fields in front of you, it will take a considerable amount of time just to compare the titles and covers. Deciding which book to read first is not an easy task.
Therefore, in this round-table discussion, first of all, Java books for beginners are roughly divided into "introductory books" and "textbooks". I proposed a method of comparing three titles that you can actually pick up and check the contents.
| Title | Author | Publisher | Publication date |
|---|---|---|---|
| "Yasashii Java 6th Edition" | Mana Takahashi | SB Creative | August 2016 |
| "Java Language Programming Lesson" | Hiroshi Yuki | SB Creative | November 2012 |
| "Clear Java Introduction" | Kiyotaka Nakayama, Daigo Kunimoto | Impress | August 2014 |
These three titles each have their own characteristics, so it would be a good idea to check the actual ones to see if you can read them. If you feel that none of these seem to suit you, actively pick up other introductory books. By comparing the three titles so far, it must have become easier to get a feel for the difference in the glue of each book and the way the samples are presented. The following two titles were introductory books at the venue on the day of the event, but there are probably many books in bookstores that were not at the venue on the day. You may include the textbook-type books that were reviewed in Part 1 as options.