Digital Principles and Design with CD-ROM

Rating:
Summary: Impressions of Digital Principles and Design
Review: I've just completed an introductory course in Digital System Design, which requires this book. I really didn't care for this book in the least. Before I begin my explanation as to why, first let me state that I received an "A" in the course. I only mention this so that it's clear this isn't just a bitter rant due to a poor grade.

I think the main problem with this book is that it is FAR too formal. The author uses terminology from Discrete Mathematics so much that the book is really incomprehensible. The language that the author uses to describe new concepts is the sort of thing you'd expect to see in a formal proof. Doing a formal proof using Discrete Math terminology is fine, but you'd expect there to be supporting text which breaks down the concepts into more digestible language. This book doesn't do that at all. It reads like one huge, 700 page mathematical proof. I found myself reading each section over and over again trying to decipher the explanations. The sort of explanations in this book might be appropriate for a doctorate dissertation in which your audience are already experts in the field. However, this book assumes no prior knowledge from its readers and it intends to be an introduction to Digital System Design. A book like this should endeavor to convey information and introduce concepts to the reader in an easily digested manner. "Digital Principles and Design" utterly fails in this regard.

Also required for this class was a book called "Logic and Computer Design Fundamentals" by M. Morris Mano. This is a far superior book in my opinion. It is much easier to read and has clear, lucid explanations, as well as many excellent illustrations and examples. I would skip "Digital Principles and Design" and go for "Logic and Computer Design Fundamentals" instead.