Practical Programming in Tcl and Tk (4th Edition) [Paperback]

Brent Welch (Author), Ken Jones (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 20, 2003 | ISBN-10: 0130385603 | ISBN-13: 978-0130385604 | Edition: 4

Practical Programming in Tcl/Tk is described as the "bible" for Tcl programmers. It is a guide to the Tcl/Tk programming language and GUI toolkit. This revision includes substantial updates to cover the new version 8.4-giving both an overview of the features, as well as details about every command in the language. The third edition, written on version 8.2, sold over 30,000 copies. Version 8.4 of Tcl - Tool Command Language-provides substantial updates to one of the most popular UNIX scripting languages. The latest release, includes the addition of a virtual filesystem (VFS), many additional programming widgets (spinbox, panedwindow, labelframe),and improved performance of about 20% over 8.3. The book provides a guide to the best ways to use the tooklit. It not only gives accurate details, but includes extensive examples that demonstrate the best way to use the toolkit. The authors are experts that have both developed the technology and used it to solve problems, so they have many valuable insights to relate to the readers.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Despite its frequently obtuse syntax, Tcl/Tk enjoys a large and enthusiastic following. It's king of the world when it comes to building graphical user interfaces (GUIs) for C programs (particularly those running in X Windows environments), which is what the language originally was invented to do. Tcl/Tk (which is pronounced "tickle tee-kay," and which stands for "Tool Control Language/Toolkit" despite the abbreviation's unusual capitalization) is expanding its scope to encompass fields as diverse as voice scripting and molecular visualization. The latest edition of Practical Programming in Tcl and Tk, the fourth, offers an encyclopedic guide to Tcl/Tk that not only helps programmers solve problems, but enables them to conceive new applications for the language.

The new edition of Practical Programming in Tcl and Tk covers Tcl 8.4, particularly its versatile new Virtual File System (VFS) capabilities that allow you to include FTP sites and other remote directories in ordinary File Save and File Open interfaces. Further new coverage goes to Starkits, with which you can bundle Tcl/Tk programs for deployment, and some new Tk elements. Otherwise, the book is generally revised and improved with additional examples (the sample code has always been one of this book's main attractions) and intelligently laid-out keyword tables. It has a great lay-flat binding, too. This book (with John Ousterhout's Tcl and the Tk Toolkit) remains one of the two must-have Tcl/Tk books. --David Wall

Topics covered: The Tcl programming language and the Tk toolkit on which it most usually operates. Sections cover basic and advance programming techniques, specific aspects of Tk widgets, and extending the C library that defines Tcl. Copious examples make it easier to understand (and quickly employ) effective design strategies.

Review

"Brent Welch fills an important need for an introduction to Tcl/Tk with an applied focus and with coverage of many of the useful extensions available . . . I recommend this book to my new students . . . and I keep a copy handy for my own use." -- Joseph A. Konstan, Professor of Computer Science, University of Minnesota --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 960 pages
• Publisher: Prentice Hall; 4 edition (June 20, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0130385603
• ISBN-13: 978-0130385604
• Product Dimensions: 9.4 x 7 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (44 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #233,367 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

36 of 40 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars THE book for Tcl/Tk, May 14, 2000

By 

A Customer - See all my reviews

This review is from: Practical Programming in Tcl and Tk (3rd Edition) (Paperback)

A comprehensive, systematic guide to practical usage of Tcl/Tkup to version 8.2. Since we have now 8.3 already one needs to checkthe site to see the latest improvements of Tcl. This book constantly helps me to do daily tasks in Tcl. It's a tutorial and a reference. Still I like to mention the book "Effective Tcl/Tk Programming" by Harison / McLennan, which goes much further in tutoring the GUI things. And there is also a handy refernece called "Tcl/Tk, Programmer's Reference" by C.Nelson which fits better onto the desk, if that's an issue. The very old book of Ousterhout himself, which was really great, is now completely outdated.

20 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars For beginners?! Good joke..., September 15, 2006

By 

Gjorgi Varelov "avid reader" (El Pueblo, USA) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Practical Programming in Tcl and Tk (4th Edition) (Paperback)

I got interested in Tcl when a friend of mine had presented me with the Expect application and all the wonderfull things it can do for a sysadmin. Since knowledge of Tcl is required for Expect, I set off looking for a book on the topic... and having read the lines "for beginners and expirienced programmers alike" I thought I hit the target. But what a disapointment...
First of all, most books for beginners follow certain format which is not the case with this book. Nothing like "here's how to declare variables", "variables are typeless", "here's how procedures/functions are done", "here's what sets Tcl apart from other languages" or "how to do those things that other languages cannot" that other books for beginners so often cover. I had to look online for the line that starts off the freshly written Tcl script... and this is for beginners?!
From skimming over Tcl implementations on different platforms (I guess that covered the beginner's part) authors dwelve straight into the HTML processing by Tcl (as in "hey Tcl programmers, here's how to do web pages!") which only adds to confusion. It doesn't stop there though... Tcl is said to be a glue language that puts different blocks together, but how come that passing commands to the system from the Tcl script isn't covered? Yes, there are dedicated commands for cruising through the directory tree, creating/removing/deleting files, but is that all?! Linux has a rich arsenal of commannds, many of which go beyond those tasks... and you cannot pass them from a Tcl script? Where's the glue then...
Same confusing format is followed in the Tk part, except for the canonnical "Hello World" example (straightforward "type it in- here's how it works" breakdown) the rest is off the beginner's path. How to clip a Tcl procedure to a Tk button? Nope, that's not shown- but geometry managers examples plenty abound.
Examples are incomplete, explanations vague and I often caught myself reading same line several times trying to understand the point that author tries to make.
As for my reason for learning Tcl, the Expect application- it is MENTIONED on couple of paragraphs that end with a web address. Although it may be the shiniest example of Tcl's power, it is not even skimmed over...
The content offered doesn't justify the price tag for a beginner's book. If you're a beginner you'd be better off working through the online tutorial at tcl.tk page. It is not only money that you'll save...

13 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Maybe good for experienced programmers, April 14, 2006

By 

Jeremy Lunsford - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Practical Programming in Tcl and Tk (4th Edition) (Paperback)

I need to learn Tcl because Cisco is starting to use it on their network devices and I need some of the functionality that it provides. I read some on-line tutorials that helped, but thought that I could use a good book to really get up to speed.

I was excited when this book arrived.... Until I start reading it..

Long story short, this book may be good for experienced programmers, but it is not good for the novice. I have programmed before, the usual stuff, I took a C/C++ class or two and made a few small programs. Still, the first chapter "Tcl Fundamentals" had me overwhelmed within about a page and a half.

I consider myself somewhat technical and usually get through some fairly technical book, but this one is a very hard read.