Review: SharePoint 2010 for Dummies by Vanessa L. Williams

I have just started to really sit-down and learn SharePoint Designer for the past week. Prior to this, I have just been an end-user. Unfortunately, a project has been transitioned to me which requires me to configure SharePoint. I have bought the SharePoint 2010 for Dummies by Vanessa L. Williams. So far, the book does a great job in getting me started.

For the purposes of my project, I think there were a lot more advanced 'techniques' that are not covered in the book. Google has been sufficient in those areas. Most of the time, I learn that SharePoint cannot even do whatever I need. There is also a section for forms that require InfoPath which I do not have access to, so I do not have much to comment on that part. I also do not have enterprise, so the last sections are rather useless to me.

Overall, this is a good introduction book. I was able to grasp a lot of the SharePoint terms that made it much easier to search on Google. The way they designed the architecture of SharePoint is not very intuitive for a developer. It may actually be a bit more intuitive for a non-developer, because I spent a lot of time trying to figure how to join lists and figuring the limitations to web-parts.

I should also add that this book is more useful for those who only have access to the Designer. If you are looking for a SharePoint server reference, this is not the book. There is another For Dummies series that cover that, "SharePoint 2010 All-in-One For Dummies". At least this is what appeared to be more server-related when I skimmed through it at Barnes & Nobles. I think it had both coding and admin maintenance, but more on the latter. The all-in-one version does not help at all with the Designer.