Product Description

Microsoft has finally answered the prayers of system administrators and developers everywhere through the introduction of Windows PowerShell, a new scripting technology that enables the automation of system management tasks and the creation of system management tools. PowerShell runs on Windows XP, 2003, and Vista. Exchange Server 2007 and System Center Operations Manager 2007 will be built on Windows PowerShell. Unlike traditional Windows shell scripting, PowerShell scripting is object based and is designed to work with the .NET framework. Microsoft Windows PowerShell Programming for the Absolute Beginner teaches readers how to program using Microsoft's new PowerShell scripting language through the creation of computer games. No prior knowledge of programming in any language is required. Topics covered include the Windows PowerShell Command Line, object based scripting with .NET, writing PowerShell Scripts, working with variables, arrays and hashes, implementing conditional logic, using loops to process data, organizing scripts using functions, basic system administration, and much more.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #50768 in Books
• Published on: 2006-12-19
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 376 pages

About the Author
Jerry Lee Ford, Jr. is an author, educator, and an IT professional with more than 18 years of experience in information technology, including roles as an automation analyst, technical manager, technical support analyst, automation engineer, and security analyst. Jerry has a master’s degree in business administration from Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond, Virginia. He is the author of 22 other books and co-author of 2 additional books. His published works include AppleScript Studio Programming for the Absolute Beginner, Microsoft Windows Shell Scripting for the Absolute Beginner, Perl Programming for the Absolute Beginner, Beginning REALbasic, Microsoft Windows Shell Scripting and WSH Administrator’s Guide, VBScript Professional Projects, and Microsoft Visual Basic 2005 Express Edition Programming for the Absolute Beginner. He has more than five years of experience as an adjunct instructor teaching networking courses in information technology. Jerry lives in Richmond, Virginia, with his wife, Mary, and their children, William, Alexander,and Molly.

Customer Reviews

Excellent Beginner's Book
I am a server administrator who is responsible for managing a group of servers running a wide range of operating systems including Windows, Linux, and (unfortunately) SCO UNIX. I just received my copy of this new book in the mail yesterday evening and began working with it today on our Windows 2003 development server. In my opinion, the book serves the PowerShell beginner very well by providing many simplified, but logically constructed examples that illustrate how basic cmdlets are used. From the material I have covered thus far, I believe the information is very straightforward in its approach to using the PowerShell. Overall, the book is well organized with each chapter covering a specific logical topic along with examples to that end that are easy for the beginner to understand and apply. The use of developing games to teach the concepts is also a novell idea, although some of the examples are a bit lengthy. In conclusion, while I have not yet completed this book I can already say that I am very satisfied with my purchase and would highly recommend it to any PowerShell beginner out there.

Excellent beginner's book
This is an excellent beginner's book for someone new to PowerShell. I had been playing with PowerShell for a few months before starting this book. Up to and including chapter 7 was mostly a review for me of things I already knew, but chapters 8, 9, 10 had some additional information and insight into things that I found valuable. I'm glad I purchased this book, and find definitly like the layout of the book for someone new to PowerShell.

Ok...
I have been looking forward to diving into PowerShell, as it takes advantage of the .NET framework and object-based scripting...exposing much more to a Microsoft systems engineer/Windows administrator than is available using VBScript.

I found myself zipping and/or skipping through the majority of this book. I guess I was expecting more references to actual administrative scripting, rather than simple game examples that just seemed to take up too many pages and was a real filler.

Bottom line: This is truely for the beginner. If you have experience in VBScript, and you know the scope of your scripting task and what to "google" for, save your money for a more advanced book.