A couple of months ago I set out to write a book on NoSQL. It’s about time I give an update on how it’s been going, and when you can expect a book in your hands, or rather, on your screen.
After an initial burst of writing, I took somewhat of a break, so please excuse the delay in general. I spent the last weeks writing (a lot), and I’m currently trying to polish and finish up the existing content so that I can throw something out there for the world to peek at. Currently, the book covers MongoDB, Riak and Redis in varying detail, and I’m working to finish up loose ends to get into a good shape, before I’m starting work on more chapters.
A lot of people have asked me about pricing, distribution model, updates, and so on, so I’m following up with an FAQ section. In general, I’m as keen to get something out there as people have expressed their interest in reading it, believe me.
Turns out though: writing a book is hard. It takes a lot of work, a lot of discipline and creativity to come up with the right words and code examples. I’m not complaining, it’s just something you don’t realize from writing even slightly longer blog posts. It’s still an incredible learning experience too, because I (and you) get to play with pretty much all of the features the databases covered have to offer.
So bear with me, I’m on it.
The book is not built around the idea that a big application is to be built with each database. I’m not a fan of that approach myself, as it makes it too easy to lose track of details. It’s full of small examples, focused on specific features.
How many pages does it have?
As the book is still growing, and I’m still playing with layouting details, I can’t give you an exact number, but the final book is probably going to have more than 200 pages.
What’s the pricing going to be?
I haven’t decided yet. It’s not going to be in the single digits pricing range, and as the book is pretty dense with content, I don’t want to undercharge. I’ll keep you posted.
Will there be early access to the book?
Yes, there will be. You’ll be able to buy the beta of the book for a reduced price, and follow the updates. Maybe even the commits on GitHub? I don’t know. Let me know if that’s something you’re interested in.
Do you have some samples I can peek at?
Not yet. Layout is still far from final, but I’ll throw something out as soon as an early access will be available.
What databases are being covered?
To reach my goal for a final release, I’m covering Redis, MongoDB, CouchDB, Riak, and Cassandra, all in varying detail. For some it makes more sense to go deeper than for others.
Are future updates included?
Yes, as content gets added, typos get fixed, and new databases pop up, I’ll send updates to everyone buying the book. The updates are free. Consider buying the book a subscription for more chapters on other databases.
Are you extending the book with more databases over time?
Yes, I have an insatiable thirst to play with more databases, and I don’t want to deprive you of experiencing that too.
Are you covering database SomeDB? I hear it’s the next big thing!
For now, the list of databases is fixed. What’s coming after that, on the other hand, is not. I’m open to suggestions, but I’d prefer some non-exotic over a very domain-specific database you wrote for a recent project. I’ll set up some sort of voting when the final release is done.
What formats will be available?
I’m currently working on PDF and ePub, with Kindle to follow. Gotta have my priorities. A good-looking and readable PDF is my first priority, an ePub after that. Buying the book includes access to all formats.
Is there going to be a print edition?
Print is not a priority right now.
What are you using to write and generate the book?
The book is written in Markdown (I hate LaTeX), converted to HTML using Redcarpet, using Albino for syntax-highlighting, and converted to PDF using the awesome Prince XML library, I hope to eventually use DocRaptor to create the final result, as a Prince license is slightly out of budget, but DocRaptor is pretty affordable.
Where can I get updates on progress?
Mostly be following me or the handbook itself on Twitter.