I think this is one of those books that you read because you want to think rather than because you want to be told.
I suspect that those that buy this book sight unseen will experience a big surprise. You might think that this book would contain a collection of Java applets. You would be mistaken. This book is a collection of 21 articles that originally appeared in Java Report. A lot of Java enthusiasts might benefit from taking time to read them. To quote a single sentence, the last one in the item titled 'Assessing the Java Security Layers.'
It will become very important to ensure that desktops are correctly configured with regards to trust and permissions, because a mistake could open access to the wild things waiting in the wings.
In the very last item David Moskowitz writing some time in early '97 refers to Java as being less than two years old. In the very first item, Arthur van Hoff writes of a meeting in 1995 when Java was only three years old. I am used to these inconsistencies.
It would be a mistake to get this book in the belief that it will load you up with ammunition in the battle between Java lovers and haters. It takes far too balanced a view for that. I think that reading this book thoughtfully might benefit many programmers dabbling with Java (nothing will save those who are in love with it).
Reading the article by Rex Jaeschke (Chair of J11) on internationalisation and Java left me once again examining the claim 'write once run anywhere.' How does a Chinese applet run on my machine?
I think this is one of those books that you read because you want to think rather than because you want to be told.
