Learning RSLogix 5000 Programming Paperback – Big Book, 31 August 2015

I bought this book with a view to improving my programming skills - the title seemed to suggest that it could help with this. Unfortunately, Chapter 5 is the only chapter that focuses on ladder logic, so I returned the book as it doesn't meet my remit. Other reviews of the book suggest that it doesn't do what the title suggests - I should have paid them more regard. I'm not entirely sure who this book is aimed at; more advanced prgrammers perhaps? But if you are someone who works with PLCs on a day-to-day basis for fault finding, but wish to broaden your skills into writing logic, then I would suggest you look elsewhere, sorry.

More than i was spected, ready to apply these skills in the work, with good value-price relation , good training support .

Having programmed both Siemens and WAGO controllers I needed an introdution to Rockwell controllers. Since there aren't many books available, this was one of the three I bought.Unfortunately, the title of the book can be misinterpreted: In this book you do not learn how to program, but you do learn how to transfer your existing (plc-)programming skills to the Rockwell plc family. Indeed, the part of the blurb says "This book is for PLC programers, electricians, instrumentation technicians, and automation professionals with basic PLC programming knowledge, but no knowledge of RSLogix 5000. [...]". This intendet readership can also be found above in the (mainly hidden) text "About this book".As to the content, the book touches upon the following topics (one chaper each): History of Rockwell and of their controllers, industrial network communication, modules (I/O, special feature modules) and their configuration, and an introduction to SoftLogix. After this, there are chapters spelling out in more or less detail how to produce simple programs using ladder diagram, function block diagram, structured text and sequential function charts (instruction list, which is is more or less machine code, and which is the fifth language specified in the norm 61131-3 is missing). These chapters also include material on some Rockwell specifics like buffering I/O data. The final two chapters deal with task organisation and troubleshooting.The core text fits on 190 pages with a lot of screen shots, so one should not expect too much. But, then again, it is definitely a good starting point for setting up and programming a Rockwell controller.Conclusion: A fine book giving a solid introduction to Rockwell programming logic controllers and the programming and configuration tool RSLogix. It is not the place to learn programming according to the norm 61131-3, but this has never been claimed.

No value for money

The book is a great read for those both new to Industrial Controllers as well as seasoned practitioners. The information is presented in a pragmatic fashion - giving real life reason why you might want/not want to do something - not just a theoretical book. I appreciated all of the side note information: there is a good deal of ancillary information in there. I also appreciated the quality and quantity of illustrations in the book - it keeps the read interesting and not dry. The author definitely has a great breadth and depth of knowledge which is apparent while the various topics of networking and Industrial Control Systems are discussed.