Customer Reviews

C++ Programming: From Problem Analysis to Program Design (Introduction to Programming)

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

 

 

I got this book for a Computer Science 1 class after spending a few years away from programming (C, C#, Java), and it was pleasant to learn C++ from the author. There are plenty of exercises at the end of each chapter that are actually relevant to the material presented, while still challenging. I was terrified of how I would do taking a formal programming class and actually left the class with an A+. I would recommend this book to anyone who is taking a CS class or self-studying. Wish I had this book 15 years ago when I began programming in C.

Overall, this is not a very good text-book for starting out in C++. While the book does have pretty good code examples, and is virtually typo free, the organization is kind of terrible. In many chapters, important concepts are just hastily introduced as sort of an aside just before giving a code example of a core concept. To be clear, the core concepts are supported well and with good examples, it is the important but not core concepts that suffer. Also, I found instances where paragraphs at least "feel" like they were inserted after the fact and sometimes they don't quite fit well with the paragraphs before and after them. There are many examples of the dis-organization, but one of the biggest is how the pointer concepts were treated. As most people that use C++ know, there is just something about pointers that causes beginners to struggle. In this book, the chapter that first introduces pointers is titled "Pointers, Classes, Virtual Functions, and Abstract Classes"....combining virtual functions, abstract classes, and pointers in the same chapter is borderline unfair. Another example is the chapter that deals with operator overloading also introduces templates. Just odd organization.

Personally, I had a hobbyist level familiarity with C++ before taking the two classes that utilize this book, so I was able to get through it ok, but as I got deeper into the book I just couldn't help but feel for my classmates that had no prior experience (and yes it was clear they were struggling). Even with my experience, I still found that I needed to refer to either the other C++ books I had, or online tutorials.

The bottom line is if you are using this book in the context of a classroom with a teacher that is providing good lecture material, it is probably ok. If you are using this book for either online education or just as a first book in C++ for personal use, it is not very good.

I've been programming on and off since roughly 1998. Recently I had to take a C++ course which required this book. This book is hands down the best C++ book out there. Most books will get you part way and drop you off, or show you something but not explain why to do it. This book does neither of those thankfully.

The code examples in the book all work flawlessly, the code and concepts are explained thoroughly, and the book covers a LOT of material. I recommend this book all the time to friends who want to get started.

Some people find his teaching style too technical but I disagree. Going in to programming he talks like every other programmer that you will find out there. I wish that someday he would make an OpenGL book.

I got the kindle version of this book because I previously had a Java class where I used a kindle textbook and it was very helpful for searching the text and being able to copy/paste the code examples right into the IDE was great. For the Java book it saved me so much time, not with this book, though.

This kindle version will only work on your PC, not on your KindleFire, not on your iPhone, I thought I'd be able to read my book on my iPhone when I was between meetings, but it doesn't work.

Copy/paste of code examples into an IDE isn't easy, the formatting is strange and you can only grab small code blocks, it's a little more convenient than typing it all out by hand, but not much.

Also, the answers to odd exercises in the back of the book - they don't match the exercises at the end of each chapter. I suspect they are the answers to another version of the same book. Some are fine, but some questions clearly do not apply to this text version.

Other than that, it's an average textbook, not great, I don't think anyone would choose this book if they weren't required to for a class.

As a beginner, I found this text tedious and difficult. There isn't a real beginning point. It's more like the author throws you off a cliff and expects you to be able to swim from the very beginning.

I highly recommend this book to somebody who understands programming in general but has never done any C++ before. It has slow pace, very patient and complete (sometimes too long but still necessary) explanations so that there are no ambiguities afterwards. The chapters are long but you can fly thru them or go at your own speed of learning. In this sense it is very convenient. It provides you with many simple but crucial examples and it guides you (almost by hand) thru each step. This is not some kind of a book that you simply look for a quick reference. This is a textbook to learn and become quite confident with C++. I really enjoyed it.