The Reality ColdFusion Series

The "Reality ColdFusion" Series

There are lots of computer books out there on all sorts of subjects, and some of them are very good. That's fortunate readers should indeed have options when learning about products and technologies, and should be able to find titles that best suit them and their learning style.

But this actually has not been happening. While the number of titles on any given subject continues to grow, more often than not these additional titles are simply more of the same. In fact, the majority of product-based computer books on the market fall into one of two categories: how-to books and reference books (or a combination thereof).

Macromedia ColdFusion is no exception the number of books on ColdFusion has mushroomed over the past few years, a testament to the success and popularity of ColdFusion itself. But most of these books are merely more of the same. And so you have lots of ways to learn ColdFusion, but then what?

With each new version of ColdFusion the product has grown more complex. Once upon a time (not that long ago, actually), mastering ColdFusion was easy: You learned some SQL, mastered basic flow control, and picked up HTML and you were all set. Much ColdFusion development still occurs in just that way, but over the years ColdFusion has matured, and now it can do so much more. Suddenly, knowing syntax and tags is not enough new ColdFusion features require an understanding of how product integration works, how real-world applications are designed and built, and what processes are used to get there.

Existing ColdFusion books the tutorial and how-to books cannot cover these topics. ColdFusion has gotten so big and powerful that most tutorial books just can't do justice to topics like Flash integration, leveraging J2EE, implementing content management, and managing shared and hosted environments. These topics need their own books not how-to and tutorial books, but books full of real-world experience.

And thus was born the Reality ColdFusion series a collection of highly focused and concentrated titles on specific topics. These books will not teach you syntax, they won't teach you how to install software, they won't teach you SQL, and they won't teach you CFML tags and functions. In fact, you won't find a single set of step-by-step instructions anywhere within these titles.

So what exactly will you find in Reality ColdFusion books? Simply put, you'll find real problems addressed with real development culminating in real solutions. Reality ColdFusion titles are collections of case studies problems and their solutions, along with the chronological sequence of events and processes that make up application development in the real world. When all is said and done, you'll be left with complete applications you can use, and the knowledge and experience that went into building them.

Reality ColdFusion is your invitation to join real development teams these are real applications (or adaptations of real applications) that solve real problems, and you're invited to come along for the ride.

NOTE Names have been changed to protect the innocent (or the guilty, as the case may be).