Customer Reviews

C++ How to Program (3rd Edition)

5 star:		(128)
4 star:		(31)
3 star:		(20)
2 star:		(22)
1 star:		(46)

 

 

This book is the standard text for the introductory C++ programming course at my university, and I additionally teach out of it for the beginning of our data structures course. I find that the strengths of this book are the examples as well as the tips and common errors that the authors mention. They obviously went through great pains to be comprehensive. There are two main weaknesses to the book, however. First, a few of the examples show output that is incorrect -- these are fairly obvious. Second, and this is a major obstacle with any introductory C++ text, true object-oriented programming is not really conveyed to the reader until Chapter 6. Until then, the reader is essentially taught how to program in the imperative sense. Thus, the reader first learns how to solve a problem algorithmically by breaking down a problem into parts and building up a solution. The reader then learns that the new approach is to consider the types of information needed and to create classes and objects that promote structure and reusability. However, old habits die hard and I've seen more students get confused by writing OO code while thinking in the pure imperative sense than I'd care to remember. This, however, is a problem with ALL introductory C++ textbooks (and reflects the fact that C++ is a pseudo-OO language), and not just Deitel and Deitel. Also, since objects aren't introduced until Chapter 6, the authors get in the position of using things that haven't been defined yet. There are a few areas where some object or method is used and it's actually covered about ten chapters down the road. All things considered though, this book is an excellent text -- just watch for the paradigm shift and don't get stuck in between them. Deitel and Deitel put out some of the best language books around, and if they came up with one that introduced C++ to the novice in the OO sense from the start, I'll be the first one in line to get it.

I wrote a review once before (back in August?), and I've had enough e-mail that I'm revisiting the Deitel Anomaly.

I teach programming at the college level. The department heads keep picking Deitel books. I think I know why; they are included in the types of people like books by the Deitels: 1. People who ALREADY understand C++ and are looking for a REFERENCE book 2. People who ALREADY understand programming and want to see how C++ compares to the last language they learned 3. Students with good teachers who digest the book FOR them, regurgitating the concepts in an easily understood manner 4. Crazy people

These types of people will curse the Deitels until they've mastered C++ (and not because of the Deitel book): 1. Beginning programmers 2. Beginners with C++ 3. Sane people

For those of you who tried to make light of the reviewers who didn't like this book: do some study on learning style.

For those of you who want to know about a GOOD C++ book for people who want to learn, NOT just as a reference: check out Tony Gaddis' book "Starting Out with C++." Amazon lists it. :)

To all you budding programmers: keep up the good work. If the Deitels work for you, fine. But know that there IS a book that can be BETTER!

I can't agree with the many people who have told me they found this to be an acceptable college text book. The index is nearly useless, containing detailed information about minor references, but nothing leading you to important information. The book starts slowly with an in-depth description of what a computer is, then rushes ahead without adequately detailing important concepts. Often the examples included show exceptions to the rules, but not the rules themself. I found much more useful information with random web searches.

The first six chapters were great. After the sixth chapter, some concepts were explained well and others did not show any explanation. I had to buy other C++ books to fill in the blanks, so to speak. This is for the advanced programmer, not the novice programmer. Their graphics and explanations had good intention; but, the details of some parts I was not impressed. I have seen better programming manuals.

I completely disagree with the comments made by some of the reviewers who gave this book a low score. Obviously, they haven't looked at enough C++ books yet. I'm a self-taught programmer and BELIEVE ME, you can learn sound programming with this book. I do agree with some of the comments made earlier by Edwin Alexander; but, you have to remember that no book is perfect.

I have many C++ program books in my house and I consider Deitel's C++ book (like others in their series) a classic. The book teaches sound-programming techniques and is complete as far as the minimum required to become a good C++ programmer. Moreover, the book has a writing style that makes learning easy. As a bonus, the book also throws in some very handy tips (portability, common errors, etc.)

I am a great fan of the Deitel book series. I'm so confident of their books that I usually buy them without even looking at the content. One of the good things their books have is that they all follow the same format. So when you read one of their books, you become familiar with the others. This makes the reading much easier and, as a result, the cross over to other languages is quicker. More importantly, and as a consequence of the similar format the books carry, you are able to identify the similarities and differences between programming languages. This is very important because it makes you aware of the common foundations in programming and the advantages that each programming language has over the others for specific applications. This is a BIG PLUS.

This is the best C++ programming book that I have ever read. Its strong points are:

1. comprehensive and detailed

2. well thought out code examples to illustrate language features (clear and concise)

3. good explanation on why certain features are designed in a certain way (to reduce code, improve efficiency, improve readability etc)

4. focus on common programming errors

This is a beginner's C++ book for people who is already adept in other "simpler" programming languages.

It is NOT

1. a beginner's book for learning programming as C++ is a relatively complex language.

2. it does not explain non-standard "windows" programming such as those found in visual C++. (read windows api books)

3. it does not explain how C++ interact with other programming languages such as visual basic. (read DCOM books)

My only complaint is that the "new" ANSI C++ features were crammed into the last few chapters without much code examples and/or explanations. These should be organized into their relevant sections at the beginning of the chapters.

I am mostly negative towards this book. I find it to be a serviceable book for teaching C++ to a programmer, but it's title and preface suggest that it is designed as textbook for a first semester college course in Computer Science, so that is how I will consider it. We used it as the textbook for our Introduction to Computer Science course and every professor who used or read it dislikes it greatly. Because of this, we have replaced it with another book for next year. Personally, I find that "C++ How to Program" violates most, if not all, the rules pedagogy.

In my opinion, a good text would: introduce one thing at a time, refer to terminology only after it has been defined, emphasize concepts as well as details, and make few references to material not covered in the text. A good C++ text would teach object oriented style, and not give examples as converted C code, and teach good general (non-C++ specific) principles of algorithm and program design. Although this book routinely violates ALL of these rules, I only have space to to give a couple of examples of each.

On page 79 in chapter 2, in a section on formulating algorithms, static casting is introduced in an example, before the students even fully understand what types are.

On page 176, enum is introduced as part of an example of random number generation. It is then used throughout the book as if it had been a topic of its own.

On p. 476, Dynamic memory is introduced by analogy to C's malloc, a technique that is at best useless to a non-C programmer. Dynamic memory is given a 1 page treatment- something most courses spend 1 to 2 weeks on.

The beginning of section 7.5 on page 471 reads, "Every object has access to its own address through a pointer called this. An object's this pointer is not part of the object itself-i.e., the this pointer is not reflected in the result of a sizeof operation on the object. Rather, the this pointer is passed into the object (by the compiler) as an implicit first argument on every non-static member function call to the object." So instead of giving a REASON for a this pointer, the book focus on a minor attribute, one opaque to a beginning student. In fact, NOWHERE in section 7.5 is there a compelling reason for having a this pointer. Furthermore, static member functions aren't discussed for another 2 sections.

On page 472, the phrase 'cascading function calls' is used but never defined. It is left to the reader to glean what this means from the examples.

On page 482 assert is introduced in the example of static class members, and then used later in the book without further discussion.

On page 486, there is a 2 paragraph section on Container classes and Iterators, which contains no useful information except that they'll be covered in chapter 20 (beginning on page 970).

The above list was made in an afternoon of flipping though the text and is not complete, but rather indicative of how the book was written. These attributes make it unsuitable for an Introduction to Computer Science textbook.

In conclusion, Here are some quotes from the course evalutions last semester from the question, "please comment on the adequacy of the textbook" (25 responses): "completely inappropriate", "terrible"(3), "awful", "inadequate"(2), "complicated", "horrible"(2), "very bad", "tough to follow"(2), "sad", "confusing", "poorly organized", "not understandable", "ridiculously bad", "too busy", "below average", "poor", and "worthless".

First of all, ignore the reviews by the pansies who are claiming that this book is too hard for them. Nobody ever said C++ was easy to understand. If you want ease of use, forget C++ and stick to basic. I will say that this book is not for the completely green beginner to programming (like I said forget C++ and start with Basic or pascal). But if you want a comprehensive and somewhat intermediate-advanced coverage of C++, read this and you will be a fairly competent C++ programmer (if you have the ability to apply the material). I use it for reference all the time (even in my 400 level programming classes). The chapter on "pointers" is an astounding coverage of a somewhat hard-to-understand topic which will leave you thinking, "why didn't I understand this stuff before." AWESOME BOOK! If you really want to understand C++ and are not easily discouraged by complexity (of the language, not the book), this is the only C++ book you need. If you are easily discouraged by complexity, find another profession... you will be eaten alive in the workplace by the "programming sharks/gurus."

I used this book for an introductory level class on C++ and I found it mostly useless. I have programmed C for a few years now, and every book I have read on C has been better than this one. The problem that I had with the book is the lack of relevant examples and explanations. I found that anytime I needed to lookup how to do something, I COULDN'T FIND IT! Having programmed in C, the main thing I wanted to read in the book was the sections on classes. The book did not help me at all on these subjects and I ended up just having to learn them from lecture. All in all, I think the book explains the basics of C++ ok, but if you want any subject with more than surface level detail, you'll have to look elsewhere to find it.

Some people seem to think this expensive book is great, and more power to them if this is what meets their needs. But as a veteran C++ instructor, I strongly dislike the organization of the book, as well as the authors' writing style. I shudder to think if I were just starting out and had to plow through this unweildly beast as a beginner. Instead I recommend "The Waite Group's C++ Primer Plus" as a first text, and then Eckel's "Thinking in C++" (wait for the upcoming next edition) and Meyers' "Effective C++ Cd : 85 Specific Ways to Improve Your Programs and Designs".