Customer Reviews

The Tomes of Delphi: Algorithms and Data Structures

5 star:		(20)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This is a book that I've been waiting for for a long time (according to the acknowledgements, Julian has worked on it from April 1999 until February 2001, probably even longer). But it has been worth it, because it's an excellent book about algorithms and data structures implemented in Delphi (and Kylix) - usually version independent.

The book consists of 12 chapters. But even before the first chapter Julian takes on the question of "why a book on Delphi algorithms?" in the introduction. He explains that a number of Computer Science algorithms books are hardly practical, and the practical books are mainly for C, C++, or Java. This is a book about algorithms and data structures using Delphi (for Windows, but also Kylix for Linux), with a lot of focus on practical and useful techniques that make sense.

A great plus is that the code in the book works for every version of Delphi and Kylix (and probably also in C++Builder), and I'm fairly confident it will remain working in the next version(s) of Delphi and Kylix to come. A bonus point is the syntax high-lighting in the source code listings. A small effort for the author/publisher, but a great help for the reader who sees the source code for the first time.

This book is packed full of gems of wisdom that transcend Delphi. It's not just about algorithms, data structures and Delphi - it's about the science of computing and it's about being a good programmer. As a C++ developer (primarily) with an eye on Delphi I found that this book really made me think about how I program and how I solve problems. I have read dozens of books on C++, Pascal, Delphi, COM, DCOM, C# and .NET, many of them very good. But this is one of those rare books that goes beyond teaching you a particular technology. It will help you become a better problem solver and it will help you write better code. You will not be disappointed in adding this book to your personal library. Ten spring cleanings from now, when you're developing in whatever the current technology flavor of the month is at the time, this book will still be on your shelf - and it won't have any dust on it.

I just received this morning the book "Algorithms and Data Structures" and could not take my eyes out of it! I skipped lunch and did not take any break today until now! This is the book on algorithms I have been looking for since my university days! Julian Bucknall is an extraordinary writer, one who knows how to turn complicated concepts into beautiful simplicity! I wish more authors would have published texts of that quality on Delphi topics; it would have dismissed the improper idea that Delphi is not a serious language and that it cannot be used in serious programming... A must for any serious Delphi programmer!

Julian Bucknall writes the Algorithms Alfresco column in The Delphi Magazine. He is also one of the chief programmers at TurboPower, an award winning Delphi programming tools company. He is an expert on algorithms and data structures, and writes very clearly, explaining each algorithm/data structure in a stepwise manner in tandem with the source code. Julian also demonstrates an in-depth knowledge of os kernel routines (low-level memory allocation and such), enabling him to write highly optimized versions of classic algorithms and data structures: this book is NOT just pascal translations of material you learned in college. I strongly recommend that all Delphi/Kylix developers buy it. I would say, however, that intermediate to advanced programmers will benefit more from it, because they will be able to apply principles from the material to other areas of their programming, while less experienced programmers will be happy to black box the tools. And they should be! This book is replete with usable tools.

Traditional Pascal and Cobol have enjoyed this type of book for some time as well as C but Delphi has yet to be widely accepted in the academic community as a means to teach complex algorithms and data structures. In graduate school I had a course by the same name as the title of this book and was required to suffer Cobol. How I wish Delphi had been the language of choice.

Mr. Buchnall proves, as I have emphasized, that Delphi is as excellent language to teach underlying programming principles. His clarity and fast pace make this book a valuable tool in my knowledge repository. I found myself racing through complex structures with ease. I truly believe Julian is elevating himself among giants such as Knuth, Graham, Meyer and others who struggle to articulate the processes that many of us have stumbled upon but were seldom smart enough to remember where. The pages are already dog-eared as I jump back and forth, implementing things I had been taught a long time ago yet failed to utilize.

I would like to see a graduate level text using Delphi along the same lines. It is time for Latin and Cobol to step aside. Delphi has come of age and proven itself an excellent teaching tool. Mr. Bucknall has made a significant contribution towards that end.

"Algorithms and Data Structures" is an absolute must have for all advanced Delphi programmers. It's sitting on my bookshelf right next to my first edition, "Oh! PASCAL!." Why?

It's the best book out there to cover all the fundamental aspects of low-level Object Pascal programming. The book covers, Arrays, Linked Lists, Stacks & Queues, Searching, Sorting, Randomized Algorithms, Hashing and Hash Tables, Binary Trees, Priority Queues and Heapsort, State Machines and Regular Expressions, Data Compression and Advanced Topics.

I consistently reference this book. I've found Bucknall's discussion and insight into the TList, covered in the Arrays chapter, very informative. Bucknall's review of State Machines is also very good reading.

If you want to write great code, or want a great review of Algorithms and Data Structures in Object PASCAL, buy this book.

This wonderful book is now again available for purchase from lulu dot com. The known errors have been fixed and its got a new smarter look and feel.

I still think of myself as being a beginning programmer, although that's not totally true, having messed around for about ten years with CAD macro's and dbase add-ons and turned them into full-blown applications that finally became fairly complex. However, I never had a decent IT training beyond some basics in Fortran and Algol, and know next to nothing about OOP.

I first thought Bucknall's book would not be for me, as I was afraid of landing into high level topics and getting lost in jargon.

On the contrary, I hardly can stop reading the book, which finally provides a very practical approach to Delphi/Kylix programming, giving light to many abstract topics you will not find in most books : the trade-off between speed and memory efficiency, how data structures and the mix you make of them in your application affect your program's speed and reliability, easy steps that make debugging and testing more efficient,...

Once you've got the hang of using the VCL within Delphi and know how to place controls on a form, you can immensely benefit from this book, that can be used as a reference into many algorithms and their Delphi implementation, or can be read chapter by chapter as an introduction to analyse the merits of several ways to sort/search/hash or use various data structures to solve a problem you face as a programmer.

Julian Bucknall's text is very understandable, even to non english native speakers, stays close to the topic while providing you with a wide scope of insights into related subjects. He's also keen on giving you all the tips he can coming from his personal practice as a programmer that make you understand why some theoretical topics matter to your program's quality. It's nearly like having him looking over your shoulder and helping you making the best choices. The book provides you with a real simple alternative to searching the web multiple times or trying to translate C coded algorithms into a Delphi equivalent, hence it will be a time saver to many Delphi user's, even a casual one like me.

This book is a must have, as a complement to a good Delphi / Pascal reference.

If you program in Delphi, and you do not own this book,
you are wrong!!!

This is not just a re-hash of the same old, sorting, searching,
sparse array, linked-lists, qeues, hashes, etc. While the author does cover these, he does two things which make this book a must buy. 1. He impliments them using classes, not just procedural code. and 2. He provides invaluable insights in to Random numbers, state machines, data compression and more. If he added a section on compiler design this could be a B.S. in Computer Science in a single book.

Wow. Bucknall has raised the bar on advanced Delphi books. This books coverage of Algorithms and Data Structures is suburb. This book should be required reading for all Delphi developers. No one can call themselves an expert level Delphi developer with out understanding the concepts taught in this book. Bucknall's knowledge of Algorithms and related concepts places him in a category with Knuth & Sedgewick.