Regular expressions are such a powerful tool for manipulating text and data that anyone who uses a computer can benefit from them. Composed of a mixture of symbols and text, regular expressions can be an outlet for creativity, for brilliant programming, and for the elegant solution. While a command of regular expressions is an invaluable skill, all there is to know about them fills a very large volume, and you don't always have time to thumb through hundreds of pages each time a question arises. The answer is the Regular Expression Pocket Reference. Concise and easy-to-use, this little book is the portable companion to Mastering Regular Expressions. This handy guide offers programmers a complete overview of the syntax and semantics of regular expressions that are at the heart of every text-processing application. Ideal as an introduction for beginners and a quick reference for advanced programmers, Regular Expression Pocket Reference is a comprehensive guide to regular expression APIs for C, Perl, PHP,Java, .NET, Python, vi, and the POSIX regular expression libraries. O'Reilly's Pocket References have become a favorite among programmers everywhere. By providing a wealth of important details in a concise, well-organized format, these handy books deliver just what you need to complete the task at hand. When you've reached a sticking point and need to get to a solution quickly, the new Regular Expression Pocket Reference is the book you'll want to have.

Amazon.com® Reader Reviews (Ranked by Helpfulness)

Average Amazon.com® Rating:  Based on 28 Ratings

Great reference to an arcane subject - 2008-07-16
Reviewer Rating:
I'm scared of regular expressions. They vex me constantly at work whether trying to figure out someone else's Apache RewriteRules or Perl or just trying myself to do mildly clever things in vi and sed. They are a headache.

A coworker let me browse his copy of this wonderful little book and I was hooked. I actually tried to buy one that day on the way home, but they were out of stock and so I permitted Amazon to ship me one.

In addition to brief explanations of the different types of regexes in the wild (based on the comprehensive Mastering title, also from ORA), there are detailed quick references to all of the different implementations including several common languages (Perl, PHP, C#, and several others) and software packages (including sed, Apache, vi and many others). All of their various quicks and "features" are explained briefly and there are some examples.

No one hacking around in Unix or doing much programming should be without this book, unless they are already a regex wizard, and I think even they'd find it handy.

Good except more Linux/Sed/Awk examples needed - 2009-07-28
Reviewer Rating:
It is a very good guide. But I have to borrow the notes in the Vi section to use it with sed when I need to use a Regex.

A more practical guide on regex's and shell scripting would be better!

Just a mus have - 2008-07-14
Reviewer Rating:
Most developers know how to write regular expressions, almost none of them can read them. And if you are saying that you can. Well congratulations to you. You are one of the 0.1% of developers that can or you are one of those who think they can.

The books physical appearance is so compact that it has become a permanent item on my working desk. And is often used.

A good multilanguage reference - 2007-11-24
Reviewer Rating:
You know those times when you know what you want to do, but are not sure of the correct form, this is the book to grab. It has been my book to grab as a reference rather than trying to find the right language book. This is not the book to learn the language from, however. You will find your copy will be well worn if you do lots of coding.

Regular Expresions OReilly - book review - 2008-11-30
Reviewer Rating:
One of the better OReilly books. Very well written, great examples and explanations. I highly recommend.

Browse Similar Topics

Top Level Categories:
Programming

Sub-Categories:
Programming > Perl
Perl > Regular Expressions