New edition is excellent

This new edition of " Applying Enterprise JavaBeans" is a well written look at the Enterprise JavaBeans 2.1 specification. The explanations of the various topics are in-depth and yet easy to follow. The authors provide diagrams and supporting code samples demonstrating how to write the code for each topic covered. They also provide explanations of when a particular technology is appropriate for your applications. The book even has a glossary so that if you forgot what an acronym stands for, you can look it up.

The book covers all the usual topics one would expect in a book on EJBs. It starts with a general overview and then takes a look at each of the various bean types. Session beans (stateful and stateless), message driven beans, and entity beans are each covered. An application example is discussed which includes packaging of the application for production. The following chapter covers integrating web services into your EJB applications. Subsequent chapters cover transactions and security. The authors have done a great job of explaining not just how to code EJBs but also how they work within an application server, which you need to know to use EJBs successfully.

The book is similar to the O'Reilly book in size and scope although this book has the advantage of being more current. Overall, the book is well written, easy to follow, and extremely useful. If you are new to EJBs or if you are looking for a book to bring you up to date on the new specification then this book will make a good choice.

Other Reviews

• A Solid, But Not Exceptional EJB Book
• Example-filled & highly practical
• Gerbil on a treadmill
• New edition is excellent
• Good book, but outdated.