Customer Reviews

Introduction to Programming with MATLAB for Scientists and Engineers

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If you are familiar with computers and want to learn MATLAB, then you buy Higham & Higham. If you want to learn numerical analysis, then you buy one of several good books that teach MATLAB in an appendix. But if you want to learn to program and think MATLAB would be useful in your work, then this is the best of the books that I have seen.

I'm teaching such a programming course this semester, so I'll be able to evaluate with more confidence afterward. So far, I like the author's sense of humor, comments on examples, and pithy maxims. Since one of these is that "programming is not a spectator sport", I hope that this book will help students who need a detailed introduction get it while reading and playing with MATLAB. The lectures can supplement with interesting applications that build on the material in the order that it is presented (at the rate of a chapter per each lecture).

CD-only distribution is a potentially fatal flaw. Fortunately, the price is low so even if you print from the CD, it is still cheaper than Herniter's paperback textbook, and maybe even Hahn's.

This book is indeed a basic text - however it misses the mark a bit and is a bit too basic ! For example - in several places the author describes the early development of computers in general and not the development of MATLAB (iam not to sure that such a history would be relevent anyway). Even so, the use of MATLAB glossarys is good and the inclsuion of various M-Files with the CD is a good idea. But what ever possesed the publisher to create the book solely on CD ! This is a terrible format to produce books in - i had to spend 3 days by the printer waiting for the chapers to come out - the additional expense that was incurred by me enraged me ! A collection of PDF files on CD ROM should not cost 25 dollars ! for this price i would expect a text book as well as the cd rom - if this is the trend that will be picked up by publisher then we are all in for some rough times ahead !

If you have matlabs documentation by you, you should read it carefully and avoid buying this "book", wich is nothing but the authors reprinting of it. What I really dont understand is what the subtitle "for Scientists and Engineers" is supposed to mean. If you are either a Scientist or an Engineer, so you shouldt buy this cd. If you are in highschool and are slowminded, so go for it...