database management systems

I was thrilled when I heard that a book was being published on Business Objects! After getting a copy of Cindi Howson's book, I was even more pleased!

It is truly a very comprehensive guide on how to use Business Objects. It does a good job of explaining the concepts behind business intelligence as well the the different Business Objects products.

I think every person who uses Business Objects would benefit from owning this book! I recommend it through our local user group and to all of my clients!

As a reference guide, the book is extremely valuable. I have seen other books on this subject that are essentially a copy of the help guide. Not to mention that the pricing is 2 to 3 times what a normal book would cost.

The examples are good and the index is pretty complete. A test for a good reference book is that you can readily find the solution to a particular problem. Ms. Howson's book certainly fits the bill.

It would have been nice to have more how to descriptions and practical solutions to common business problems.

Based on the first section alone, Getting Ready for Business Objects, I would recommend this book to anyone just starting out in the Business Intelligence space! Finally someone has come out with a workable model for BI implementation. It is obvious Ms. Howson actually operates in the real world and understands that sometimes you have to OLTP before you STAR and OLAP.

In addition to this lagniappe, there are solid explanations of Universe Design and Report Creation principles. I actually prefer the WROX line of books, but this compares nicely in terms of technical depth. The book provides perspective from both the IT professional and the end user. However, it provides no explanation of how to install or tune Business Objects servers. Basically, it assumes that Business Objects is up and running.

I would say that the book is primarily for Business Objects Administrators who use Designer, Supervisor, Full Client and WebI to meet the reporting needs of their end user community. However, if you just need to learn how to create reports and talk to your IT shop it is an excellent tool as well. If you are looking for the best Business Objects book written to date...then you have found it....don't waste your money on the other books.

One downfall of the book is that no CD was included. You must download the reporting database, sample universe and reports from the web. Also, it would have been nice if the book was available in electronic format as well.