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8 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
1.0 out of 5 stars
Horrible., October 23, 2008
This review is from: Data Abstraction & Problem Solving with C++ (5th Edition) (Paperback)
\\start sarcasm
I have an idea! Lets write a book about C++ data concepts but completely forgo using examples in C++. Learning the language isn't challenging enough and putting source code in a book like this is so yesterday!
Oh wait! Even better! Lets write all the concepts in UML instead of source code. It'll be like teaching students 2 courses at the same time! Ha ha! Brilliant.
\\end sarcasm
I am completely dumb-founded as to why the author would explain abstract data types, as if the reader was learning it for the first time, but then not show simple working code examples. All you get is pseudo-code and UML.
The concepts explained in this book are not hard to understand once you get past the UML. It is when you try to do exercises and assignments to ACTUALLY LEARN the implementation (and pass the course) that you find the book has abandoned you.
Oh and there is in fact source code. If you are a registered instructor you get to download it. If not I guess you can buy a book that actually shows you some simple solutions that you can compile. Good luck with that.
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4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Beginners take note..., November 17, 2007
This review is from: Data Abstraction & Problem Solving with C++ (5th Edition) (Paperback)
This book is not for beginners, and I'm a beginner. Sigh...
This book was chosen by my instructor for our required c++ course. Needless to say, everybody in my class without c++ experience is severely struggling in this class. Those that have had a real Intro to c++ are doing ok.
I don't think it's fair for me to pan a book because I don't have the capacity(yet) to comprehend it's finer points. My frustration level would give this a 1 star rating. Instead, I gave this book 4 stars because:
1) The writer (maddeningly) leaves the best code, the stuff I REALLY want to see, as, (I quote)"The resolution of this particular difficulty is left to you as an exercise." ARGH! Not once, but over and over again, you will read statements like this.
2) There are no answers for any of the coding exercises. None.
How much educating does this do?
If you (like me) had to get this book because your professor decided on this as a good "Intro to c++" book. Help yourself out and buy "C++ Primer Plus" by Stephen Prata as a supplement. That book will give you the foundation that this book will build on.
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Fair book, why a fifth edition?, November 20, 2011
This review is from: Data Abstraction & Problem Solving with C++ (5th Edition) (Paperback)
I am a mathematician who is picking up some computer science coursework. I have been programming in C++ for approximately seven years. Although some of the data structures and algorithms are new to me, I cannot take the viewpoint of a student seeing all of this material for the first time. I will nitpick at some of the author's choices. The issue that bothered me the most was the author's choice to include exception specifications with function declarations. Many professional programmers, including Herb Sutter, have made excellent cases for the complete avoidance of exception specifications. It's perfectly fine and even useful to put them within a /*comment*/ for documentation purposes, but no one should EVER use them in actual code. I also found it interesting that Carrano went to great lengths in the chapter on Stacks to talk about the implementation of recursive function calls using stacks. He is very specific in talking about RECURSIVE function calls. I am certainly not an expert, but it is my understanding that ALL function calls can be implemented using stacks, and I think it is a disservice to the reader if they believe recursive function calls are a special case. My wife has a copy of the second edition of this book from her college days, when the authorship was shared with Helman and Veroff. A side-by-side comparison shows very little, if any, difference. The text is basically cut-and-pasted from one edition to the next. Perhaps some of the exercises are different. Authors who do this are taking advantage of cash-strapped students, because university instructors rightly feel the need to use the latest edition of a textbook. The book does have some interesting segments. I particularly enjoyed the solutions to some of the applied problems, such as the chessboard problem, Mr. Spock's problem, and the event-driven simulation involving the bank queue.
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