Customer Reviews

Programming Abstractions in C: A Second Course in Computer Science

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

Haven't worked through the whole book yet, but I will say that I have other C or imperative-paradigm data structures book.
The topics are very meaningful: thorough emphasis on recursion (usually misunderstood by C programmers), backtracking (in games - yes, fun!), graphs, trees, that is, the standard gammut of topics, but all written amidst a very interesting text that makes a person who loves programming to never let the book down, because of all the /usefull/ stuff that's in it. For instance, he uses an editor as the common thread to discuss buffers, then implents it using arrays, stack, and linked lists. You end up having a /practical/ introduction to those issues and the implications therein. This is not "practical" in the sense that it's "dumb". This is "real" as in "real GOOD, USEFUL, WELL WRITTEN, WELL DESIGNED" code. C hacking as it should be done.
The code is written in crystal clear style (which is amazing for a C book), the author is keen on abstraction and library reuse. The excercises are great, and not dumb and mechanic.
There isn't any book like this one for C out of the several that I've seen.
If you want to learn C, after you learn the basics, this is THE book. I guess the other reviewer is right when he says that this must be the "SICP for C." And if you know anything about programming, you know that this is a big compliment.
The author is an Applied Mathematics graduate from Harvard and a professor at Stanford.
An excellent, excellent text! Addictive reading!

I have read through many books on data structures and algorithms (including the famous one from O'Reiley publishers), however I have no doubt that this is probably the best book on this subject. The author has put tremendous effort to generate amazing libraries for all the basic Data Structures. The exercise questions are very good as well. Also there is plenty of REAL programing examples, like implementation of editors, etc.. I just wish that Eric Roberts decides to write a similar book for java.

I found this book extremely valuable for developing basic programming skills. The concepts are neccesary for any programmer. This book goes beyond the first book by showing you how to use the language and starts to make you think like a programmer, getting you into problem solving. Roberts has an easy-to-follow writing style and presents many different algorithms for solving the same problem. He clearly shows the positives and negatives of each. A very well-written book.

Having taken Dr. Roberts' course for the last two quarters, I can say without a doubt that his book is the best available for learning how to think like a programmer and how to actually code. In the course of four months with his two books, I have learned more about computers than I thought possible.

These books are the best way to begin learning about the exciting field of computer science.

This is the best book I can recommend on abstract data types to beginners and refreshers alike. Written from somewhat academic perspective, it does a great job in instilling the concepts of abstraction and encapsulation. These are the basic principles behind Object Oriented programming. The author uses C, its a remarkable text on how to write "Object Oriented" like programs in C, but without relying on OO features of C++. Unless you know the underlying principles as explained in this book, it is just as "easy" to write bad OO programs in C++ as it is in C. Personally, I found the chapter on recursion the best. Explanations on recursion are simply the best I have yet seen. Now, I can do magic myself with recursion! Great job. I wish I could sit in his class. Is he planning to write more books for us ordinary mortals?

I'd like to disagree sharply with the person who posted his/her review on November 23rd. I am really excited that a clearly written, accessible, down-to-earth about the programming process book is on the market. In my opinion, Eric Roberts has done a marvelous job of concentrating on essential concepts, such as using recursion, abstraction, using functions as data, etc. I hope one day this book will become for C what SICP is for Scheme/Lisp.

I was really disappointed by the purchased item. I expected a regularly printed book and I got something that looked like a photocopied version of the original. Quality if paper is marginal, designs are in black and white instead of the very nice green-blue of the introductory book by the same author.

In any case, Amazon's website should reflect the quality of the interior, and clearly state what you buy for your money: $91.20 is way too much for what I got (i.e., not a real book). I really need the book, otherwise I would have returned it.

haven't gone through all the material yet- but have browsed through the book and related syllabus.

For starters- this is a book that was [and may still be] used at Stanford. You can even get course videos and handouts etc... from Stanford Engineering Everywhere web site-

[...]

This book is for the CS106B class- and at a quick glance- it looks like there are a set of libraries that are used [similar to the intro CS106a java class] that provide the amateur student with a framework to make simple gui programs- stuff that looks more intuitive than the traditional intro CS class while delving into some pretty meaty topics.

The main reason to get this book is because the corresponding lectures are available online from a respected university along with applicable lecture notes and assignments.

Clear and logical explanation to some conceptually complex tools in C. It helps me master the real-world usage of C. The organization of the book is uniquely easy to follow. And the publisher provides useful libraries for readers to download.

hello. i have no idea who wrote the review above but back off!! i am the real jonb@stanford.edu, and I am also an ex-TA for eric roberts (i worked in the cs106 program at stanford for 2 years). I think this is a fabulously written book, very insightful and well-written by one of the greatest computer science educators in the country. eric has a very accessible writing style, and this book is a must for those interested in extending their understanding of the C programming language with recursion, data structures, complexity and even a bit of object-oriented programming.