C++/C# programmer learning Java 6 - should I buy Java 5 books?

I'm studying Java for the first time and have had classes in the past on C++ and a little personal C# programming experience. There seems to be a slew of Java 5 references (like Oreilly's nutshell) but my concern is if I should buy these v5 books or wait for the v6 books to be published?





I'm also trying to decide which introductory text to purchase:





Java 6 in 21 days


Core Java - vol 1 (8th ed)


Java Tutorial (4th ed)

C++/C# programmer learning Java 6 - should I buy Java 5 books?
I found Java in a Nutshell really easy to follow, I'd recommend it. I wouldn't go with introductory tutorials that waste your time teaching you general programming things that you probably already know.


The book may look thick and daunting but only the first few chapters are required reading, the rest is a function reference. I managed to read it in 3 days, and hold a 10 month Java contract without any previous experience!


I wouldn't go with a "learn x in y days" book, because you can't learn any language properly in a hurry - it takes years of practice (see link below).


Not much changes between Java versions, the 5th edition plus the release notes from version 6 should be all you need. Good luck!
Reply:if you ahve previous experience with c++ you are goin to find the many similarities with java which it will make it veyry easy for you. I would constantly use the java.sun reference or maybe java in a nutshell... but from my personal experience i use mostly online tutorials examples and maybe one book to reference the different main ideas of the language.