Evil will always triumph because good is dumb, and less profitable apperently.

If you're an experienced programmer, you can't do better that "Just Java". http://www.amazon.com/Just-Java-6th-Microsystems-Press/dp/0131482114 I wrote it when I was working with Java at Sun Microsystems, and it is intended to help busy professionals pick up Java. It covers not just the language, but the whole ecosystem of tools, releases, certification, SDKs etc etc. Peter

civilengineer (669209) said: Did you watch "the matrix"?

Valid start for a counter argument, but it doesn't go far enough. The matrix series is scifi, but I don't think anyone would call it literature. The idea that the machines will rule us has been around since Fritz Lang's Metropolis, and possibly before, so we aren't exacly breaking any new ground here.

That said, the Matrix was borrowed from ideas in Japanese Manga. I think you'd find that is one area where ideas of starships & BFGs still reigns.