Programming Language Pragmatics, Third Edition [Paperback]

Michael L. Scott (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 6, 2009 | ISBN-10: 0123745144 | ISBN-13: 978-0123745149 | Edition: 3

Programming Language Pragmatics is the most comprehensive programming language textbook available today. Taking the perspective that language design and language implementation are tightly interconnected, and that neither can be fully understood in isolation, this critically acclaimed and bestselling book has been thoroughly updated to cover the most recent developments in programming language design. With a new chapter on run-time program management and expanded coverage of concurrency, this new edition provides both students and professionals alike with a solid understanding of the most important issues driving software development today.

• Classic programming foundations text now updated to familiarize students with the languages they are most likely to encounter in the workforce, including including Java 7, C++, C# 3.0, F#, Fortran 2008, Ada 2005, Scheme R6RS, and Perl 6.
• New and expanded coverage of concurrency and run-time systems ensures students and professionals understand the most important advances driving software today.
• Includes over 800 numbered examples to help the reader quickly cross-reference and access content.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"This book is a key resource for any computer science student and is certainly faithful to its title - Programming Language Pragmatics.. The updated third edition of this popular book delivers the key concepts of programming languages and their implementation in a concise and intuitive way, illustrated with clear explanations and examples.. In addition to the coverage of traditional language topics, Scott's book delves into the sometimes obscure, but essential, details of programming artifacts. The descriptions of language theory, along with concrete implementations of how to realise them, are invariably presented in a language-agnostic fashion. And therein lies the strength of this book: whilst the main examples have been updated (with C and Intel x86 replacing Pascal and MIPS), it provides an organisational framework for learning new languages, irrespective of the paradigm.. Programming Language Pragmatics provides a more accessible introduction to many of the key topics than the classic Compilers: Principles, Techniques and Tools by Aho et al. (a.k.a. the 'Dragon Book') and provides a deep appreciation of the design and implementation issues of modern languages.. The material is aimed at an undergraduate computer science level, but is also suitable for self-study. Topics are often independent of previously presented material, making it easier to pick and choose areas for study. This is also supported by additional in-depth material and advanced discussion topics on the companion CD.. In summary, this new edition provides both students and professionals alike a solid understanding of the most important issues driving software development today - an essential purchase for any serious programmer or computer scientist!"--BCS.com

From the Back Cover

Programming Language Pragmatics is the most comprehensive programming language book available today. Taking the perspective that language design and language implementation are tightly interconnected and that neither can be fully understood in isolation, this critically acclaimed and bestselling book has been thoroughly updated to cover the most recent developments in programming language design. With a new chapter on run-time program management and expanded coverage of concurrency, this new edition provides both students and professionals alike with a solid understanding of the most important issues driving software development today.

THIRD EDITION FEATURES

• Covers the most recent developments in programming language design, including Java 6 and 7, C++0X, C# 3.0, F#, Fortran 2003 and 2008, Ada 2005, and Scheme R6RS.

• Includes a new chapter on run-time program management, covering virtual machines, managed code, just-in-time and dynamic compilation, reflection, binary translation and rewriting, mobile code, sandboxing, and debugging and program analysis tools.

• Updates the concurrency chapter to address the latest developments in computer architecture and parallel language design, with major new sections on multicore and supercomputer machines, nonblocking synchronization, event-driven programming, memory consistency models, and transactional memory, plus new or updated coverage of OpenMP, Erlang, the pthreads library, and the concurrency features of Java and C#.

• Improves pedagogy throughout the book, with extensive changes to the introductory chapter and the coverage of scanning and parsing, modules and scoping, macros and in-lining, polymorphism, monads, iteration and enumeration, array management, and object and subroutine closures.

• Provides additional resources on a companion CD, with advanced/optional content, hundreds of working examples, an active search facility, and live links to manuals, tutorials, compilers, and interpreters on the World Wide Web. CD content is also available on a "companion" site at elsevierdirect dot com / 9780123745149

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 944 pages
• Publisher: Morgan Kaufmann; 3 edition (April 6, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0123745144
• ISBN-13: 978-0123745149
• Product Dimensions: 7.5 x 1.6 x 9.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.5 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #249,969 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful

1.0 out of 5 stars Poor quality kindle version. November 25, 2011

By gracamac

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is on the kindle version of the book, and the rating reflects the quality of that particular version. Despite that, the book content is great, and i would recommend getting the hard-copy.

The kindle version is very poorly created. My main issues with it are:
- The index contains no numbers. It is just a list of terms without definitions.
- The example titles (i.e. Example 1.1:....) do not line up with the actual examples. You have to scroll up and down to find them.
- On kindle for PC, the quick contents (available from the left menu) only shows the sections, not the contents. If you want to quickly go to another chapter in the book, you have to go go to the contents section at the start of the book. This is not an issue with kindle software as other books have managed to have better contents.
- Some text as not copied across properly, I see some broken words and formatting issues.
- You cannot copy and paste from this book if you are outside the US. This is a limitation placed on us by the publisher.
- This may be an issue with kindle for PC, or the indexing of the book, but the search feature does not allow for partial matches of words. i.e. a search for scope will not match scopes.
- This is an issue with kindle for PC, and is not factored in my judgement of the book, but I should warn buyers that kindle for PC has a character limit on search (3 characters minimum). This prevents you for searching for uses of operators in programming books.

I don't really have anything positive to say for the kindle version of this book. Because of the above issues I always fall back on a PDF version of an earlier edition of this book that i have. It is essentially a waste of money for me.

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars If you buy the Kindle Edition, you can obtain the missing portions of the book online. December 10, 2010

By tom

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

UPDATED 3/2011: I had originally posted the review below, complaining that the Kindle version of Programming Language Pragmatics was a rip-off, because (1) you didn't get the CD that accompanies the print version, and (2) that missing CD includes large portions of the book. In March 2011, the publisher posted a responsive comment providing a link to an on-line copy of the material on the CD. Currently, the url is [...] . Given that the missing parts of the book are now available even if one buys the Kindle version, my original complaints about the book are no longer valid. I've kept the original review below just for context, but please note that I now have only good things to say about the book, which is worth reading in its entirety.

ORIGINAL REVIEW from 12/2010 (NOW SUPERSEDED - see above): Michael L. Scott's Programming Language Pragmatics is an excellent book about programming languages, language design, and compilers. Unfortunately, the Kindle edition simply omits large portions of the book. It's a rip-off. If you want the complete book, stick with the print edition. Here's the problem. Starting with the second edition, and continuing with the third edition, parts of the print edition were moved to a companion CD - for example, parts of chapters 2, 3, and 4, and all of chapter 5, are on the companion CD that accompanies the print edition - in order to keep the print edition from being too thick. Unfortunately, in the Kindle edition, they have neither integrated the companion CD into the text, nor provided you with the CD (or its contents) - you simply don't get those portions of the book at all. This is a rip-off - you are paying just as much for the Kindle edition as you would for the print edition, but not getting the entire book.... I was looking forward to reading this on my Kindle, having read prior editions in hardcopy, but once I realized that I didn't get the entire book, I had Amazon refund my money and ordered the print edition. Read more ›

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars For the seasoned developer December 13, 2011

By Deborah Mccain

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

I would highly recommend this book for the seasoned developer. The author has a dry sense of humor in writing (to this very dry topic), and much of the language is lost if the reader does not have a solid foundation in programming languages; which I did not.

When purchased, I started to read, and immediately thought my new career move should be abandoned. However, after purchasing books that are at the beginner level, I am thoroughly enjoying Scott's book, as with each reading, I 'get" more of what he is writing about.

Even beginners should buy this book. Put it in clear view on the bookshelf, and work towards it.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars good book February 23, 2010

By Parrish M. Myers

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

I am currently using this book for a class in programming semantics. The book is clear in its explanations and diagrams. I also like the additional content on the CD... this is the first book CD that I have used more than once! In my opinion great book.

1.0 out of 5 stars Poor formatting in Kindle version June 1, 2013

By Marcus Brito

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

The contents for this book are great, but the Kindle version is very poorly formatted. It's a shame that in this day and age publishers can still get away with such hacky conversion jobs. Some parts are almost incomprehensible, with sidebox text being intermingled with the main body of text, and you're not even sure if the next paragraph actually follows the one you just read.

5.0 out of 5 stars Programming languages exposed. July 15, 2012

By Andrew

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

If you want thoroughly understand computer science then this book is meant for you.
From it you`ll learn almost every aspect of CS that you name.

5.0 out of 5 stars Fantastic programming languages book October 16, 2011

By Ian

Format:Paperback

This was a really good textbook for a class I took not so long ago. Overall its a fantastic survey book in to programming languages. I wouldn't say its aimed at beginners but as long as you have seen a good number of languages (>5?) you should be fine. Overall well written and adds a lot of insight into general language design.