Read a book (Beyond Java, by that kayaker)

This weekend I had some wonderful spare time, and I spent some of it reading [Beyond Java](http://www.oreilly.com/catalog/beyondjava/), a book about the Next Language. (Spoiler: It is [Ruby](http://www.ruby-lang.org/en/), or some cool continuations-based project – read: [Seaside](http://seaside.st/) with Smalltalk. But you knew that.) The book is chock-full of kayaking metaphors, which got so irritating they became funny.

Java’s rise to power, that was the best story in the book, for me. A history of how Java captured a whole segment of disgruntled C++ programmers, and kept them. And, how Microsoft uses a the copycat C# to capture the Java-folks to their platform. The author says the problems that Java developers have in their environment are just the same shape and size if the move to .NET. He wants a dynamic language for his next tool.

([Sam Ruby tells it best](http://www.intertwingly.net/blog/2005/11/01/Beyond-Java), so read his commentary on how the languages fare in Tate’s book.)

What I’d like to tell you about is my experience in the bookshop, [Gad, at Nørreport](http://www.gad.dk/om/her/gadkbh.asp) (address and opening hours at the link). I complimented the clerk on their well-stockedness, especially on the fact that I was able to waltz in and buy a book I had heard buzz about. I added that I am one of those customers who buy computer books on a whim. The clerk then got a genuine smile on her face. My fiancée gave me a compliment, a thumbs-up, a well-done gesture. (All my make-the-world-a-better-place I have learnt from others. And my fiancée’s taught me a lot these last years. Thanks!)

Copenhageners, where do you buy these kinds of books on an impulse?

PS: When I registered the book at O’Reilly’s website, I was granted the possibility to copy and paste as many kayaking metaphors as I wanted, via their e-book thing, [Safari Bookshelf](http://safari.oreilly.com/). I might never exercise that right.