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"The Perl CD Bookshelf, Version 4.0": The Indispensable Perl Library

February 12, 2004

Sebastopol, CA--While Perl programmers are a varied crowd, they tend to have a few things in common. Many of them cut their programming teeth on a copy of Learning Perl. Then, Programming Perl took them to the next level of expertise, while the Perl Cookbook gave them ready-made Perl recipes they could creatively apply to whatever challenges they faced. So, will you find a collection of prized O'Reilly Perl books wherever there's a Perl programmer? Not at all. Because--as any Perl programmer will tell you--there's more than one way to do it. Many of them will opt instead for the latest version of The Perl CD Bookshelf (O'Reilly, Version 4.0, US $99.95).

The Perl CD Bookshelf keeps all the books Perl programmers have come to rely on right at their fingertips, wherever they may go. Version 4.0 gives them convenient access to their favorite books, straight from their CD-ROM drive. This valuable collection has been updated with electronic versions of six popular books, including the second editions of Perl in a Nutshell and Mastering Regular Expressions, the third editions of Learning Perl and Programming Perl, and two new titles: Learning Perl Objects, References, and Modules, and the long-awaited second edition of Perl Cookbook. A paperback version of Perl in a Nutshell rounds out the package. Also, for the first time, the CD bookshelf includes valuable content straight from the O'Reilly Network.

Formatted in HTML, The Perl CD Bookshelf, Version 4.0, can be accessed with any web browser. In addition to individual indexes for each book, there is a master index for the entire library. With this CD Bookshelf, programmers get a complete Perl library they can easily carry anywhere.

The six books included on the CD--more than 3,800 pages of useful O'Reilly reference and tutorials--if purchased separately, would cost more than $240 (US), but The Perl CD Bookshelf, Version 4.0 retails for only $99.95.

Praise for the previous edition:

"One advantage of this format is immediately apparent: a tremendous amount of shelf space is saved by using CDs. Being able to search all the books at the same time is really handy if, like me, you often remember that there was a description of something you need, but you can't remember what book you saw it in...As a supreme test of portability, I loaded two CD Bookshelf CDs onto the compact flash module in my Sharp Zaurus PDA...Being able to carry a complete 14-book technical reference library in your pocket, and use it with ease, is a real winner."
--David Katz, "New York Stringer," October 2003
http://www.nystringer.com/html/cdbook.HTM

"An indispensable bookshelf. If there is one book you really need to keep handy--if you use Perl for a living--it's The Perl CD Bookshelf. O'Reilly has a made a specialty out of Perl documentation...and this is a compendium of seven key texts on the language...its hard to exaggerate the value of this book too highly--Perl in a Nutshell is itself vital to a jobbing Perl programmer, and the combination with six other core books provides a level of coverage that can't easily be equaled."
--Charlie Stross, "Linux Format," February 2003

Read further reviews at:
http://www.oreilly.com/catalog/perlcdbs3/reviews.html

Additional Resources:

The Perl CD Bookshelf, Version 4.0
ISBN 0-596-00622-5, $99.95 US, $144.95 CA
order@oreilly.com
1-800-998-9938; 1-707-827-7000

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