: While excellent for the basics, it lacks deep dives into custom component development or highly complex database structures. Community Perspectives

“Excellent presentation of the subject. I enjoyed learning from the example programs he used... On the constructive criticism side, there were a quite a few programming errors and misprints?” Amazon.com.au

: It guides novices through major features using incremental steps and sample programs.

: Reviewers often note that the book provides actual "meat" rather than simple wiki-style explanations, making it useful for building functional Linux desktop applications. Critical Drawbacks

: Multiple readers have reported a high number of programming typos and misprints throughout the text.

by John W. Rittinghouse is widely considered the definitive starting point for learning the Gambas programming language on Linux. While praised for its hands-on approach and clear examples, it is frequently criticized for being outdated and containing numerous technical errors. Core Content & Strengths

The book serves as a comprehensive reference for the Gambas IDE and its BASIC-inspired syntax.

: The original and some revised editions focus on Gambas 2 . Modern users working with Gambas 3 may find many examples confusing or broken because the language has evolved significantly since the book's 2005 origins.