Rating:  Summary: Another poorly written programming book Review: ... The author only discusses syntax, and then throws in a few [poor] snippits of code to show you how the syntax works. Well, programming is much more then syntax. To become a successful programmer in any language, one must know and understand how to develope structured programs, and how to develope useful algorithms and implement them in a useful and coherant way to solve a particular program at hand. This author doesnt even mention anything about this at all. By the time you are done reading this book, you will be able to write a few [poor] programs that dont do anything interesting at all. ...
Rating:  Summary: Another poorly written programming book Review: ... The author only discusses syntax, and then throws in a few [poor] snippits of code to show you how the syntax works. Well, programming is much more then syntax. To become a successful programmer in any language, one must know and understand how to develope structured programs, and how to develope useful algorithms and implement them in a useful and coherant way to solve a particular program at hand. This author doesnt even mention anything about this at all. By the time you are done reading this book, you will be able to write a few [poor] programs that dont do anything interesting at all. ...
Rating:  Summary: Excellent Book for Getting into C Review: Despite all the hype for C# and C++, if you know and understand C, you could probably write those other languages. C can get very complex (as far as numerous functions and libraries) but the basics are covered pretty well in this book. I haven't read the latest edition (mind has no edition # on the outside and has a mail order form to get the source code on floppies, heh) but the authors are solid writers and this was the first book I read to learn C. It covers the essentials, but does skip (at least in the edition I read) the more extraneous things that most authors skip, such as function pointers and sometimes unions. It also does not explain the common programming ideas, like hash tables and linked lists, however, I would highly recommend this book if you're just starting out. You might wanna grab a book on more advanced programming or a C algorithms book and then maybe a special interest book like SDL or OpenGL, but this is a great introduction to the language itself.
Rating:  Summary: A Great Introduction To C#! Review: Focus of this book is on the language itself - It doesn't get side-tracked talking about Visual Studio and .NET in general, like many C# books. It is written in a clear, friendly tone and the concepts and definitions are easy to understand. The organization is also well thought-out. Like all 21 Days books, it is divided into 3 weeks of 7 days (chapters) each. In this book, Week 1 covers language basics, like using the compiler, variables, operators, control statements and an introduction to classes and methods. Week 2 goes into more intermediate language topics like enumerators, arrays, exception handling, inheritance, interfaces and delegates. Finally, Week 3 introduces a some advanced C# topics like operator overloading and reflection as well as demonstrating how C# fits with the rest of the .NET world, specifically, the .NET Framework, Windows Forms, Web Services and Web Forms.One caveat: If you don't have a lot of programming experience, the first couple of days cover conceptual topics that may be a little confusing. Don't let that trip you up. Just skim over them ignoring anything you don't understand and head to Day 3. That where the real meat of the programming topics begin and from there it starts at the beginning and builds on itself, as you'd expect. I particularly liked the Week In Review sections that provided extended examples (often several hundred lines of code) that demonstrate the concepts covered in the previous week. Cross-references make it easy to look up anything that is unfamiliar. This really helps pull together the concepts and helps you understand how to apply them to real-world code. Overall a great tutorial that doesn't skip around or backtrack like so many computer books do. The organization also makes it a good reference for looking things up after you learn C#.
Rating:  Summary: One of the worst (of the many) I have read Review: Good programmers (in any programming language) should master, at least: The language, algorithms to solve the problem, and coding style - to create dependable programs. Good programming books should teach, at least, these techniques. Good authors of programming books should be masters in these techniques. Too many C/C++ books available in the market are very bad, and, in my opinion, this is one of the worst. The author knowledge of C, as exemplified in this book, is so poor that most of their examples will either not compile on a good compiler or will run incorrectly. Their algorithms are primitive in the worst possible sense, and they advocate a bad, and dangerous, coding style. In short, most of my students write better code. If you are interested in mastering C/C++, consult the 2000 book reviews at the Internet site of ACCU (Association for C and C++ Users). I have seen that one of the reviewers of this book, here at amazon site, said this book should have come with a CD-ROM: No, this book should have come with a paper shredder.
Rating:  Summary: Great book, for beginners or professional codeslingers Review: GREAT BOOK! When I first started to learn C two years ago I had no idea where to begin. Then I bought this book. It covers everything the beginner needs to know on data types, pointers, structures, bitwise operations and the commonly used ANSI C functions. A great text for beginners and a very good reference for the rest of us. My copy is rarely closed, I use it that much, even now. I definitely recommend this book for anyone wanting to learn the C language.
Rating:  Summary: Awsome! Review: Hi, i recommend this book to everyone. Listen, I'm 14 years old, and with this book, i can say that I now am a C programmer, really, it's a really great way to learn C... a lot of examples, step by step explanations, and everything is covered in this book, from memory management to pointers.
Rating:  Summary: Good Intoduction to C Review: I am a decent VB programmer and wanted to learn C/C++ so I started here. I've progressed quickly though the book and find it well-organized and very readable. The examples are great and the exercises at the end if each chapter are very helpful. There are a few mistakes, same as any book. This is also not a perfect book for a total beginner because it covers a lot of ground quickly, so it helps to understand fundamental programming concepts first and then translate that knowledge into C using this book. One reviewer complained that there was no explanation of why the author always uses "int main()" and "return 0;". The fact is, this is his style. It could have been done another way. In programming there's almost always another way of doing something. The reviewer was obviously a beginner. I will supplement this book with one that's more advanced once I finish it, but right now it's perfect for me.
Rating:  Summary: Indispensable Teaching Book Review: I am absolutely amazed at how Bradley and Peter pay attention to close details all through the book. Such as the careful use of jargons and watchful "Do's and Don't" Tip Boxes. Even the actual program listing is detailed and described in separate pages. As you read further the details will be much less, since most of the contents are covered in greater detail early in the book. This book has really helped me to learn C Programming from scratch. There are mistakes are the book sadly, but they are mostly down to typos and some odd grammar correction too. The code snippets and programs are in full and work fine. I really enjoy the end summaries and FAQ, especially in long chapters. The quizzes and exercises are really fun and help fresh your memory and is good programming practise to create new programs on a daily basis. It is writing in a style that can easily be digested, although it can drag in some areas. The later chapters seem to take forever to read through, but most of the stuff then becomes harder (Intermediate/Advanced) level and sometimes it becomes boring. However, if you are willing to learn and you have a passion to develop console-based applications and learn programming, then this book has it all. The book sadly takes more than 21 days to finish (average reader), but it is best to carefully read through each chapter, at your own pace and revise until you fully understand everything, since the knowledge discussed in the previous chapters will no doubt be used in programs later on. The real beauty of this book is that you are rewarded with bonus chapters that give you a taste in object oriented programming languages. C++ and Java are briefly introduced and outlined, which span across 7 separate chapters, which are independent from the main 21 chapters. This book has been a marvellous teaching book that I find it hard to let it go. My pages are starting to fray now, because of my reading and flicking of pages. Overall, the book is nicely laid out and the chapters seem to be arranged in a fairly reasonable manner. I will be starting to advance my skill and read the C Unleashed, which is an advanced level sequel, which is mega thick and will guarantee to take more than a month to read through.
Rating:  Summary: A VERY GOOD Beginning Review: I began this book with minimal prior knowledge of programming in a language like C, and found i didn't need any! This was a well planned, well thought out book. In addition, most probably any beginner to the world of programming could learn C from this book. I was very impressed, it was a good read and a great beginning to programming.
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