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Recipes with Backbone.js

recipeswithbackbone.com

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Re: Recipes with Backbone.js

#21

Post by jayunit »

I'm one of the authors of another Backbone ebook (more Rails integration focus), and I heartily recommend Nick & Chris's book. Great content, well-written, and applicable.

One of my personal principles is that I value educational content and training very highly. It's a worthwhile investment - worth the money at over twice the price.

These guys have been thinking hard about these problems for some time. You can see a lot of what Chris has been thinking/writing about re Backbone and JS practices on his blog http://japhr.blogspot.com/

Re: Recipes with Backbone.js

#22

Post by bbased »

$2 dollars more expensive, 200+ pages and 50+ recipes lighter than my last Pragmatic Programmer ebook purchase of this type; Rails Recipes.

Also, a few of those recipes I wouldn't consider "after the tutorial" material judging off chapter title alone. Like namespacing and view templates which are covered and covered again across material from the likes of the PeepCode or BackboneScreencast tutorials. But again, that's just judging from chapter titles I haven't read it.

That said, it does seem very valuable but I think the price point is off compared to other books of that type, and other Backbone learning material.

Re: Recipes with Backbone.js

#23

Post by boyter »

Since we are discussing it here, is there anything in the book or elsewhere that discusses how you handle drag and drop events with Backbone? Specifically ones using jQuery UI? I was playing with it the other day and unable to find this.

If its in the book consider another copy sold.

Re: Recipes with Backbone.js

#24

Post by alexwolfe »

possibilistic wrote: post #13
ngauthier wrote: post #9

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Hey korny, I totally agree with you that we're outside the impulse-buy price range and we'd sell more copies if we charged less money. However, our goal from the start was not to make a tutorial for people interested in backbone. Our goal was to make a more in-depth collection of great patterns for intermediate to advanced backbone developers. Hackers are smart, they can read the docs and figure out the basics. We wa…

I'm sorry, but it's not a great price for a poor university student. I have played with backbone and spine some, but putting hacker cleverness aside, books are a great way to cut down the traversal of learning space. It saves time to read distilled knowledge from those who blazed the trail. That said, best of luck with the book. I respect that you have specific plan in mind. Edit: Seriously!? Why am I being downvoted…

I've been in school too, it is expensive (especially now).

However if my text books costed $24 I would have been insanely happy, most cost well over $100. So if the book is good perhaps its worth it.

Re: Recipes with Backbone.js

#25

Post by rimantas »

korny wrote: post #7

I'm not sure they have the right price point. Many people will impulse buy something of interest for under $10 - psychologically, that's a small amount of money. I bought Louis C.K.'s comedy show for $5, as it's an amount of money I don't mind wasting - it's a small risk. However at $24, you'll get a number of keen backbone fans - but you won't get all the folks who are interested in backbone, and spine, and ember, a…

I think books like this should not be "impulse buy". It's an investment. And it saddens me to see that authors effort is less and less valued.

Re: Recipes with Backbone.js

#26

Post by Nic0 »

bbased wrote: post #22

$2 dollars more expensive, 200+ pages and 50+ recipes lighter than my last Pragmatic Programmer ebook purchase of this type; Rails Recipes. Also, a few of those recipes I wouldn't consider "after the tutorial" material judging off chapter title alone. Like namespacing and view templates which are covered and covered again across material from the likes of the PeepCode or BackboneScreencast tutorials. But again, that'…

Rails already have much more documentation published than backbone, so it make sens that for the same amount of recipes/quality the price is higher for backbone.

Re: Recipes with Backbone.js

#27

Post by boundlessdreamz »

ngauthier wrote: post #9
korny wrote: post #7

I'm not sure they have the right price point. Many people will impulse buy something of interest for under $10 - psychologically, that's a small amount of money. I bought Louis C.K.'s comedy show for $5, as it's an amount of money I don't mind wasting - it's a small risk. However at $24, you'll get a number of keen backbone fans - but you won't get all the folks who are interested in backbone, and spine, and ember, a…

Hey korny, I totally agree with you that we're outside the impulse-buy price range and we'd sell more copies if we charged less money. However, our goal from the start was not to make a tutorial for people interested in backbone. Our goal was to make a more in-depth collection of great patterns for intermediate to advanced backbone developers. Hackers are smart, they can read the docs and figure out the basics. We wa…

I looked at the excerpt. The typesetting is terrible for a book priced at $24. See the side by shot of rails recipes and your book. Also in your book the code is not syntax highlighted making it quite difficult to read.

The code is also formatted such a way that the codeblock splits into two pages for just a closing brace (page 44 - collection view)

For $24 I expect better typesetting. Right now it looks like a pirated OCR book.

The content may be great (I haven't read it) but to me a book is difficult to read if it is typeset like this.

Re: Recipes with Backbone.js

#28

Post by danso »

I'm probably going to buy this but the site needs a few revisions.

For example, in the TOC (errors underscored): http://recipeswithbackbone.com/toc.html

> Here is our _planned_ table of contents. Since this book has _not yet been released_ the order and topics may _changed_ in the future.

Not being nitpicky here. If I hadn't read the HN thread I wouldn't have understood what the state of the book that I'm being asked to pay $24 is.

One of the chapters that should be made available is the introduction so that we can get a grasp of your philosophy of instruction and what gap you hope this book fills. I know there aren't really any backbone.js books, but hopefully there's a more specific mission statement than "There isn't yet a book about backbone" yet

Re: Recipes with Backbone.js

#29

Post by kermitthehermit »

boundlessdreamz wrote: post #27
ngauthier wrote: post #9

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Hey korny, I totally agree with you that we're outside the impulse-buy price range and we'd sell more copies if we charged less money. However, our goal from the start was not to make a tutorial for people interested in backbone. Our goal was to make a more in-depth collection of great patterns for intermediate to advanced backbone developers. Hackers are smart, they can read the docs and figure out the basics. We wa…

I looked at the excerpt. The typesetting is terrible for a book priced at $24. See the side by shot of rails recipes and your book. Also in your book the code is not syntax highlighted making it quite difficult to read. The code is also formatted such a way that the codeblock splits into two pages for just a closing brace (page 44 - collection view) For $24 I expect better typesetting. Right now it looks like a pirat…

This helped me decide not to buy the book. Thank you.

Re: Recipes with Backbone.js

#30

Post by skeptical »

Am I the only one to think that is nothing but free advertising?

Come on, a link to 'click here to buy' page? I don't understand how this got to the first page. This is not so honest because the title is totally misleading. The link does not point to recipes with backbone.js. A more honest title would be "buy recipes to backbone.js", which is what the link actually point to.

Might be a great book, but this kind of marketing totally puts me off, I will not buy a product that is advertised with such techniques.

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