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Groovy in Action
Dierk Koenig, Andrew Glover, ...

Manning Publications, 2007 - 696 pages

average customer review:based on 24 reviews
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   highly recommended  highly recommended



Excellent Primer and More

I am a Java developer who wanted to learn how to program in Groovy. Since Groovy is the second official JVM language (Java being the first), it is becoming more common to find Groovy in many frameworks and applications. The speed at which Groovy developers can crank out code is also widely known. I was somewhat familiar with other scripting languages such as Perl and Python, so I felt confident I would be able to hit the ground running with the help of this book. I certainly was not disappointed!

This book is composed of three main sections. The first section could be considered a primer for the Groovy language and compiler. The second section deals with Groovy libraries that are part of the Groovy framework. This section would make an excellent desktop reference for already experienced Groovy programmers. The third section deals with how to solve problems with Groovy. This section reminds me of some cookbook programming books I've read in the past.

From language primer to library reference, to cookbook; this book delivers a wide array of information through concise explanations and robust content. The authors do a great job of revealing new topics as the book progresses. I am still reading the book, but I am confident that this book is destined to be my one-stop reference for Groovy even after I finish it.


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The K&R of Groovy programming books

Groovy brings advanced language features such as closures, dynamic typing, and the meta object protocol to the Java platform, and at the same time makes your codebase smaller and more concise. By concise I don't mean so compact that nobody can understand it. Groovy builds on your existing experience and familiarity with the Java platform and allows you to pick and choose when to use particular tools and when to combine Groovy and Java.

The book begins by introducing you to what you will need to compile and run Groovy as far as jar files and tools. Part one of the book is entirely dedicated to the language basics: syntax, grammar, and typical idioms. The language is presented via a combination of examples and discussion. The descriptions are detailed but are not overly academic. Chapter two is most important here, because that is where many of the examples lie that you will need to come back to later in the book.

Part 2, "Around the Groovy Library", explores how Groovy extends the Java Runtime Environment. Part one of the book demonstrated how Groovy makes commonly performed tasks easier. The second part shows how the same principle is applied in Groovy's libraries, using many of the advanced language features available to let you do more work with less code. Chapter 8 introduces the builder concept, which is one of Groovy's distinctive capabilities, because it can only be implemented in a general library class with a truly dynamic language. There are builders that come as part of the Groovy distribution, and you are also shown how to create your own builders. Chapter 9 covers the object/method pure GDK library capabilities. Chapter 10 goes covers Groovy's library support for dealing with relational database systems, providing great flexibility when necessary, and significant shortcuts when simple solutions will do. Chapter 11 presents various methods of making Java applications more dynamic by integrating them with Groovy. I found this to be one of the book's most useful chapters, but you need the first 10 for chapter 11 to make sense.

Part 3 supplies guidance on how to best apply your new Groovy knowledge to practical tasks. Chapter 13 reveals tricks of the trade - how to avoid common errors, using snippet collections, and command-line and automation support. Chapter 14 is about unit testing. I just skimmed this part since the subject doesn't appeal to me. Chapter 15 takes Java and Groovy to the Windows platform. It shows how to put Groovy's expressiveness into action for the automation of Windows controls and applications. Finally, chapter 16 looks at Grails and shows how it leverages J2EE, Hibernate, Spring, and Groovy to allow rapid application development.

This book is a great introduction to Groovy, and even at its rather advanced age for a programming book it is still the best of the Groovy introductory texts. However, I am a person who needs an extreme amount of examples to really get something. For that reason I also highly recommend Groovy Recipes: Greasing the Wheels of Java (Pragmatic Programmers). What this book lacks in examples that book has. What that book lacks in detailed explanation, this book has. Thus they go hand in hand extremely well.


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Excellent resource

Highly recommend the book to those starting to learn Groovy and as a reference for those that are somewhat familiar with it.







Has staying power...

I started my career with "dynamic languages" (we called them scripting languages then). I enjoy getting things done quickly with scripting languages, the power it gives you and the freedom to concentrate on the problem domain and not fight with the platform. With all the new languages that are available on the JVM alone, I'm having a lot of fun getting back to my roots. To this point I've mostly stuck to Ruby (JRuby) as I really like the syntax of the Ruby language. I've been aware of Groovy for quite some time... hearing Scott Davis and Andy Glover singing it's praises. But have just not given it enough attention... until recently.

I've been reading the Groovy in Action book from Manning. What a great title to get started with. When I get a tech book, I want to make sure it will pass the test of time... meaning: I don't want to read through it and then have to sell it or throw it away immediately due to it's uselessness. This book has a key component to it that makes it worth the money... the logical flow and organization of the book makes it perfect to work as a reference manual later on. If you are like me, you don't exactly remember EVERYTHING you read... reference abilities are VERY important to me.

With features like "FOR THE GEEKS", the layout stays interesting (as interesting as a technical book can be anyway... :) ) I also appreciate the effort taken not to go too far into Grails. Grails is very important to the Groovy language, but not everything. It's touched on in the back of the book, but just enough to give you an idea of it's potential benefit to your arsenal.


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reviews: page 1, 2, 3, 4, 5



"... a clear and detailed exposition of what is groovy about Groovy. I'm glad to have it on my bookshelf."
--From the Foreword by James Gosling

Groovy, the brand-new language for the Java platform, brings to Java many of the features that have made Ruby popular. Groovy in Action is a comprehensive guide to Groovy programming, introducing Java developers to the new dynamic features that Groovy provides. To bring you Groovy in Action, Manning again went to the source by working with a team of expert authors including both members and the Manager of the Groovy Project team. The result is the true definitive guide to the new Groovy language.

Groovy in Action introduces Groovy by example, presenting lots of reusable code while explaining the underlying concepts. Java developers new to Groovy find a smooth transition into the dynamic programming world. Groovy experts gain a solid reference that challenges them to explore Groovy deeply and creatively.

Because Groovy is so new, most readers will be learning it from scratch. Groovy in Action quickly moves through the Groovy basics, including:

* Simple and collective Groovy data types
* Working with Closures and Groovy Control Structures
* Dynamic Object Orientation, Groovy style

Readers are presented with rich and detailed examples illustrating Groovy's enhancements to Java, including

* How to Work with Builders and the GDK
* Database programming with Groovy

Groovy in Action then demonstrates how to Integrate Groovy with XML, and provides,

* Tips and Tricks
* Unit Testing and Build Support
* Groovy on Windows

An additional bonus is a chapter dedicated to Grails, the Groovy Web Application Framework.


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