Essential Windows Workflow Foundation

Authors: Dharma Shukla, Bob Schmidt
Publisher: Addison-Wesley
ISBN: 0321399838
Retail Price: $49.99 US, $61.99 CDN
Publication Date: October 2006
Softcover: 449 pages
Online information: Table of Contents, Sample chapter
URL: http://www.awprofessional.com/bookstore/product.asp?isbn=0321399838&rl=1

I was very excited when I saw that Addison-Wesley would publish a Windows Workflow Foundation (WF) book written by two WF lead architects. Although the first attempt at writing a WF book by the WF team was a failure (see my March 2006 review of “Presenting Windows Workflow Foundation Beta Edition”), the title of this new book looked promising: Essential Windows Workflow Foundation.

For those who don’t know what WF is: Microsoft is giving away a free workflow engine that is part ot the .NET Framework 3.0. This is a bold move from Microsoft since 3rd party workflow engines usually cost around $50,000.

Essential Windows Workflow Foundation is a book targeted at experienced WF developers. Beginners should stay away from this book since it doesn’t teach any of the fundamental steps needed to learn WF. You should have developed at least one WF project before attempting learning anything from this book. Why? Because the authors go under-the-hood with code only examples. Yep, although one of the biggest benefits of workflows is the graphic representation of the business logic, you won’t find how to develop workflows using the designer with this book. Don’t get me wrong, I’m certainly not saying that it is a bad thing; I’m saying that it is an advanced book and that maybe its title should be Advanced Windows Workflow Foundation instead of Essential. This book will prove invaluable for any WF developer wanting to go deeper with this technology.