Rating:  - great book with a unique approach to teaching the language
After having read this book I very much regret coming to C++ from a self-taught Pascal and C background - it could have been so much easier. Many introductory texts on C++ assume a background in one of the procedural languages and consequently start teaching the C subset of C++ first. This is, according to the authors' experience, counterproductive to understanding 'proper' C++ and programming true to it's paradigms and design. Thus they follow the radically new approach of discussing whatever (sometimes advanced) facilities C++ offers to solve a particular problem instead of going from one isolated language feature to the next. This leads to the somewhat unorthodox chapter sequence, which teaches the design of user types (classes) after introducing template functions (a feature many seasoned C++ programmers still don't know how to use effectively) or even stranger: the explanation of pointers and arrays (chapter 10) in terms of the standard library iterators and containers, which have been introduced as early as chapter 3. What I particularly liked are the useful and real world examples, although the book does cover the omni-present 'hello world' program, it otherwise fully delivers on it's promise of teaching 'practical programming by example' (subtitle). Due to this approach and the well constructed exercises at the end of each chapter the book gets the student writing non-trivial, useful programs taking full advantage of advanced C++ library features almost from day one. The authors also lead by example and show proper commenting and programming for flexibility techniques even in the smallest code fragments. This is in refreshing contrast to many an author's crime of showing the 'quick and easy' way first and the 'proper' way later.
If you read The Design and Evolution of C++ you'll soon notice the repeated mentioning of Koenig and Moo as two of the key players in the development of the language. Their in-depth knowledge and experience really shows in this work. Although the book is mainly aimed at beginners, veteran C++ programmers can still profit from it, even if only by loosing some more bad old C habits.
Rating:  - Didn't work for me
This is the "case study" approach to programming. It starts immediately with examples and shows you the solution. I bought this book on the basis of the many favorable reviews. Unfortunately, this approach doesn't work for me. I find the book to be disorganized and scattered. Also, because of the approach, it is almost useless as a reference, since items are not organized as in a typical text. I also feel that the appendixes are weak; functions are supplied without good explanation of which containers they work on, or which headers you need to include to use them.
Rating: - This is THE BOOK to learn C++!
I have bought a copy of "Accelerated C++" and read through it without stopping. In my opinion, it is the best book on C++ that I have read. In reading this book, I feel like there is a teacher in front of me. The style of this book is step by step and the way of starting with using this language rather than learning this language is no doubt why it is a best-seller in the world of C++.
And especially I like the introduction of the use of some data structures (such as vectors and maps) and some generic algorithms. It would be very helpful when we write our programms.
And I like the ONE-EXAMPLE-IN-DEPTH style of the book. The Student_info problem runs through the whole book and give us insight into C++ step by step. I believe this is much better than many different examples' style.
After reading this book, I remember the old saying:
Programme == Data Structure + Algorithm.
This is especially true in C++. Sometimes a good data structure will help you solve a problem in a trivial way. And sometimes you may find a library algorithm which can greatly simplify your code. In most problems we deal with, programming is a balance between Data Structures and Algorithms. I got this impression from this great book. Before reading it. this famous saying has no effect on me. :)
IMHO, this book is much better than the so-called "Bible of C++" -- "The C++ Programming Language" by Bjarne Stroustrup.
This book is a MUST-HAVE for every1 who is studying or using C++ programming.
The only "flaw" I think is that this book hasn't an electronic version. Hopefully, I would like to see "Accelerated C++ CD" in the near future.
I recommend this book without any reservation!
Rating: - Absolutely THE BEST C++ book for beginners.
This is absolutely the BEST C++ book for beginners. Why? Because it starts by teaching you the standard library BEFORE teaching you how to create your own classes, templates, etc. What's so great about that? Two things: First of all, as the title implies, beginner C++ programmers can write fairly complex and useful programs much FASTER than otherwise. And second, and most important in my opinion, beginners learn how to structure classes, methods, inheritance etc FROM THE PRO's! The standard library was developed after years of experience by some of the best C++ minds around. Using the teaching approach of this book the programmer learns the style of the standard library first - not a bad style to emulate - before learning how to write their own classes. It helps programmers to understand really how great classes are and what excellent things you can do with them (and especially how to do these things "right") before the programmer goes off writing classes on his/her own. And for this reason alone this is the best C++ book for beginners that I have seen or read. Aside from this, the book is very well written, clear, and concise (all very important from my perspective).
Rating: - typedef awesome book MUSTBUY;
Not only a great book on C++ but one of the best books on programming I've read on any subject. It's a beginner's tome and there are other books to buy if you're looking for more in depth work on OO design or arcane C++ practices. But it's the quality of writing, the density of the material, the relevancy and good practices within the examples and the truly accelerated path to learning that distinguish this book -- with an otherwise dull cover -- from the rest of the pack.
I could go on, but nothing I could say would be better than a simple recommendation. If you're learning C++, and you have more than half a brain, then you're giving yourself some of the love by getting this book and using it over other, less important choices.
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