Book Review: Google Apps Script: Web Application Development Essentials; Second Edition

There aren't many books on Google Apps Scripts. The convenience with a technical book of this sort is that they consolidate information so that you don't have to hunt for it all over the web. With an ebook, you can also search by keyword.

As a complete newbie to Google Apps Scripts I started reading the book Google Apps Script: Web Application Development Essentials with great expectations. I was disappointed though. The writing is monotonous and detached. The explanations are verbose. Sample this:

I have saved the best for last—or maybe the easiest part, depending on how you look at it. The app you have been building has all the features needed to interact with the user, but we are lacking the most important thing: a place to store the data and a way to get it there. Not to worry: Google has provided us with several data-storage options that should work for most applications. One great option is a spreadsheet, and this is typically where you would store data like this. Next, there is ScriptDB, which we will get to later in the book. Another option for very important or very large sets of data is Cloud SQL. This is an excellent service and requires payment, but the cost is small given all the features.

I would have liked this information presented more directly with bullet points, thus:
Google provides 3 (not "several") data-storage options:

• Spreadsheet
• ScriptDB
• Cloud SQL

This didn't seem like a book for beginners. There were not enough illustrations and screenshots making it difficult to follow along.

I received an ebook copy of this book via the O'Reilly Blogger Review Program.