Customer Reviews

Squeak: A Quick Trip to ObjectLand

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

 

 

Even though I was familiar with both the smalltalk computer language and the Squeak smalltalk environment, I bought this book because I was intrigued by its structure, which is basically an extended dialogue between a naive user named "Jim" and virtual guides called the "Objective Wizard" and the "Objective Librarian". I was hoping to see a smalltalk equivalent to Friedman and Felleisen's magnificent book "The Little Schemer", which used a similar format to introduce the scheme programming language. Well, almost any book would be a disappointment after TLS, and this book certainly isn't in the same league (but it doesn't try to be). As an introduction to object-oriented programming concepts, to the smalltalk programming language, and to the Squeak implementation of smalltalk, this book is first-rate and well worth buying, especially for those who have never programmed in smalltalk before. It is quite elementary and should be graspable by almost anyone with a basic understanding of computer concepts (including people who have never programmed before). If you're coming to this book with no experience in smalltalk but with experience in another object-oriented programming language (e.g. C++ or java), be warned: smalltalk is probably the most extreme example of an OO language in that _everything_ is an object (even simple data types like integers and booleans, and even blocks of code). This imposes a conceptual barrier that the authors do an exceptionally good job of helping the reader through (or at least so it seemed to me, but then, I already knew all this material). The book is quite limited in its scope, and you'll need to read at least another book or two before you really understand smalltalk (Mark Guzdial's books are good next choices if you're using Squeak). Also, the book has a cutesy style which is occasionally irritating, especially when the "Jim" character tries to hit on the "Objective Librarian". This is supposed to humanize the book, but goes a bit far for my taste. However, this is only a tiny blemish on an otherwise excellent book.

Smalltalk is a language that I have played with on and off over the years, but have never approached with a great deal of seriousness. This spring, I will be teaching a course in programming language concepts for the first time. Therefore, when I received this book, I was happy for the chance to refresh my knowledge of the language. Squeak is an open source implementation of Smalltalk and it is very easy to use. The CD with the book contains an implementation of Squeak and it is possible to download it from the website ...BR> Written in the style of a chat between the user and a Smalltalk objective wizard, the conversation steps you through the basics of object-oriented programming, as implemented in Smalltalk. It is not a typical book on how to program, to get up to full speed in Smalltalk, you will have to find some additional material to work through. Nevertheless, it works very well as an introduction to the structure of the Smalltalk language.
To people who are accustomed to reading traditional introductory programming books, this one may turn them off. While there is some of the traditional sequence that starts with a "Hello World" program and goes through variables, conditional expressions and loops; file I/O and user-defined data types, it lacks much of the standard structure. The authors rely on the chat method sending messages to shift the knowledge from source object to target object.
If you are interested in a basic introduction to the Smalltalk language and can tolerate a conversational approach to learning, then this book will work for you. However, if your interest is in learning more than the basics or you prefer a structured approach to learning, then this book will probably not serve your needs.

I will be subjective on this: If you are a beginner on Smalltalk/Squeak and want to wet your feet in an amicable way, this is a great book. In contrast to other more advanced books, this one includes a CD which has the Squeak 3.0 image, somewhat dated but follows exactly what the book is talking about. Anyway, you can always download the latest and greatest Squeak form http://squeak.org.

Call me lame but when I am learning something from scratch I need guidance and I like to make fun baby steps which take me in the right direction with the least bore or frustration. You will be pleasantly surprised that this book also covers a lot of ground.

I am giving this book 5 stars :-).

As an object-oriented programmer, I found this to be an excellent book despite some obvious deficiencies. As a C++ and Java programmer accustomed to using VI, I found this book helpful in that it contains a very nice introduction to the Squeak environment, in which all squeak code is written and run. The book covers Smalltalk syntax and basic OO design. It is written in an enlightened manner as a dialog between two objects (a teacher and a student) who pass messages back and forth. In this manner, the object-oriented paradigm is used even in so far as the gramatical style of the book. It is a quick and fun read but at times trite. A few obvious typographical errors exist. Unfortunately, the arrangement of topics in the book is awkward and prevents anyone from experimenting with any substantial code until they have finished 3/4 of the book. It is essential that anyone new to Smalltalk works the exercises as they appear in the text inorder to develop some experience with the environment. Anyone wishing to use Smalltalk to solve real problems must obtain further language references, as this book is only a brief introduction.

This book stands out for all the wrong reasons. I've got quite a few books in my little CS library and this is the only book I've regreted buying. Squeak is a Smalltalk-80 system with extra libraries for multimedia and communications. For the same price as this book you can learn about Smalltalk from the "Smalltalk 80 The Language" book. This book is more detailed, has extensive example code for the presented techniques, has an entire example system, and it actually challenges the reader instead of insulting his intelligence. The Squeak book falls flat on these points. I think it was Alan Perlis who said that a language which didn't change the way you thought about programming wasn't worth knowing. Smalltalk is one of those languages worth knowing. The Squeak book doesn't get this message across. This book is not about enlightenment. You will never find yourself closing this book then sitting back inorder to give yourself a chance to try to inernalise some idea which you suspect you only half understood. The reason why is not because of fantastically clear writing but because you never get past the "point the mouse at this..... now click and type the name of the class" stage.

If you want to learn about Squeak and you realise understanding requires effort, then don't buy this book.

This is great! Finally a book that is fun to read, complete, accurate, and allows me to learn in a relatively short time. Who are these guys? I love them!!!