Beginning Python: From Novice to Professional (Beginning: From...

Features

• Cover Type: Paperback with 640 pages
• Published by: Apress September 26, 2005
• Written in: English
• ISBN 10 Number: 159059519X
• ISBN 13 Number: 978-1590595190
• Book Dimensions: 9.2 x 7 x 1.3 inches
• Weighs: 2.2 pounds

Reader Reviews
I'm a little surprised to see such great reviews for this book, especially those reviews that claim this is the book you should start out with for Python. Granted, it all depends on what your background is, but I feel like if you know nothing about Python (even if you know another language), then this isn't the best book to start with. Thus far I've read two Python books: first, Learning Python; and second, Beginning Python (this book). Learning Python should, without a doubt, be the book to start with. It teaches Python from the ground up so that not only will you know how to write a function or a class, but you know what exactly is going on behind the scenes when all this is happening (but not in so much detail as to be over the heads of newcomers). Beginning Python, on the other hand, contains very cursory introductions to each element of Python. The core language is presented in the first 200 pages, each chapter being around twenty or so pages. After the first twenty pages, you are already introduced to functions and modules! Eventually these topics are covered again, but this book just moves too fast for a beginner. I suppose someone who is already a programmer will be able to pick up quickly on this fast-paced introduction, but even that person will be at a loss for how Python is working under the hood. Beginning Python doesn't even spend much time explaining how all Python 'variables' are only references to an object, and never contain the object itself. This is a fairly simple idea to grasp, but the consequences are so important that it really needs a somewhat lengthy section of its own (that's just an example of how the book moves too fast). But still, it's not a *bad* book. It was great for me because it served as a quick review of what I had already learned (more thoroughly) in Learning Python. Furthermore, later chapters discuss some of the more popular and effective third-party modules (i.e. py2exe, Beautiful Soup, wxPython) but again, not in very much detail. Each of these chapters is about ten pages. Finally, there are the ten projects at the end of the book. I've only read the first one of these so far. They seem fairly involved, and probably require a little more experimentation with the language before tackling. Overall, my opinion is this: Learning Python should be the first book anyone reads on the subject, especially newcomers to the language and hobbyist programmers, but even experienced programmers need that book. Beginning Python is a great review of the material because it moves through it quickly, but it is *not* a good introduction for exactly that same reason. The strongpoints of this book are that it exposes you to a wide variety of standard and third-party modules, so that after you have read the later chapters, you will at least know where to go for further information for just about any project you can think of. Comments (4) | | (Report this)