Introduction to PLCs, Second Edition,   ISBN:9781594603310

Customer Rating: 

Honestly, I've never read anything as poorly organized or written. I have been in IT for 25+ years and have a degree in Mechanical Engineering. I've recently had the opportunity to get into process control at the plant where I work. Knowing nothing about PLCs, I decided to purchase an introductory book. Unfortunately I chose this piece of garbage. The text is full of grammatical, spelling, printing, and logic errors. It's like it was written by a redneck child of about 15 who didn't care a bit about clarity and organization. I've just returned from an instructor led class on maintaining and troubleshooting PLCs and I can say, without hesitation, that this book is an absolute waste of money. And it will, if anything, confuse you and send you down the wrong path. Stay away from this waste of words.

Customer Rating: 

This could be an excellent text for training electricians and even engineers to use ladder logic. It is well-written and the author has taken the time to present examples as he gradually immerses the student in the complex world of the PLC logic diagram. There are problem sets in the appendices and answers but the problem sets are not sufficient by themselves. Thin is the word I would use to describe this text. There's only one problem and example per chapter.
Were I to recommend improvements for this book, I would add an additional example where required and at least two or three more problems.
In the final review, I would recommend this textbook as a basis for a course or self-study. However, I would include an additional textbook for a reference.
If this review was helpful, please add your vote. Note: sometimes I add comments later that may be useful.

Customer Rating: 

Warning: This book does not seem to have been checked by an editor.

Pros: This book has a lot of good information. The diagrams and symbols are great. Seems to have been written for the Electrical professional, so the style isn't bland. Keep this as a quick reference for symbols, ladder logic and diagrams.

Cons: The writing is non-linear and dis-organized, so expect to read passages over again. Information required to understand a specific passage is contained later in the book with no indicator. The excercises should be eliminated. There were a lot of trite redundancies and unnecessary verbage.

Conclusion: Read this book if you want to learn about PLCs. Kick back, pop a cold one and tackle 3-5 pages at a time in order to avoid serious brain freeze. Hint: Read the Wikipedia passage on PLCs before you read this book.

Customer Rating: 

This is probably hands down the best book on PLC's that I have ever read. This book takes you from the beginning of understanding to the most complex problems helping you understand every step of the way. I addition it explains all the functions and functionality of PLC's. A Great Read