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For those who have not come across it, InfoBus provides a mechanism by which Java components in the same JVM can communicate data in a loosely coupled way. Components are either data producers, or consumers or both. I feel it has been somewhat over-hyped, a case of a solution looking for a problem: this type of architecture certainly has applications but there needs to be more flesh on the bones to provide an incentive for developers to use it.

As a relatively small, simple API, it ought to be possible to describe it in about a quarter of the space it is given here (some 400 pages). Predictably, about half the book is given over to an over-extended description of how to combine InfoBus with other technologies such as RMI, JDBC and CORBA and much of the rest of it is padded with interminable discussions of the direction of web technology.

Whatever the merits of InfoBus, this book is not the place to learn about it. The author cannot write clear, concise English, not his fault perhaps but the publishers are definitely remiss in not employing a competent editor. As mentioned, the book is cluttered with extraneous information, some of it wrong: for example he demonstrates an ignorance of the meaning of the

import

statement and more seriously gives some very bad advice about synchronised methods. There are some elementary coding errors in his examples, which I found in a cursory perusal. Apparently, he has written a number of other books: on this evidence I would steer well clear of them.

Decidedly not recommended.