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Roberto Ierusalimschy

Programming In Lua Paperback – January 1, 2003

by Roberto Ierusalimschy (Author)

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Lua is becoming the language of choice for anyone who needs a scripting language that is simple, efficient, extensible, portable, and free. Currently, Lua is being used in areas ranging from embedded systems to Web development and is widely spread in the game industry, where knowledge of Lua is an indisputable asset.

Programming in Lua is the official book about the language, giving a solid base for any programmer who wants to use Lua. Authored by Roberto Ierusalimschy, the chief architect of the language, it covers all aspects of Lua 5.0---from the basics to its API with C---explaining how to make good use of its features and giving numerous code examples. Programming in Lua is targeted at people with some programming background, but does not assume any prior knowledge about Lua or other scripting languages.

Print length

267 pages
Language

English
Publisher

Roberto Ierusalimschy
Publication date

January 1, 2003
Dimensions

7.25 x 0.75 x 8.75 inches
ISBN-10

8590379817
ISBN-13

978-8590379812
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Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Roberto Ierusalimschy is an Associate Professor at the Catholic University in Rio de Janeiro. He is the leading architect of Lua.

Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Roberto Ierusalimschy (January 1, 2003)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 267 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 8590379817
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-8590379812
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.1 pounds
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 7.25 x 0.75 x 8.75 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #3,211,851 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #11,471 in Programming Languages (Books)
- #12,774 in Computer Software (Books)

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Roberto Ierusalimschy

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Roberto Ierusalimschy is the leading architect of the Lua programming language, driving its development since its inception in 1993. He is a full professor of Computer Science at PUC-Rio (the Pontifical Catholic University of Rio de Janeiro), where he works with programming-language design and implementation.

Roberto has a M.Sc. Degree and a D.Sc. Degree in Computer Science, both from PUC-Rio. He was a visiting researcher at the University of Waterloo, ICSI, GMD, and UIUC, and a Tinker Professor at Stanford. As a professor at PUC-Rio, Roberto was the advisor of several students that later became influential members of the Lua community. Roberto is also a member of the IFIP Working Group on Language Design.

Customer reviews

4.6 out of 5

80 global ratings

5 star		74%
4 star		18%
3 star		5%
2 star 0% (0%)		0%
1 star		4%

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Top reviews from the United States

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Brandon Wall

Knowledge is power

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on May 20, 2011

Verified Purchase

So i got an email to write a review for this book, this is the first review I've ever written for Amazon so here it goes.

I am currently on chapter 5 of this book which goes into functions in detail. So far I've loved the book, it has given me a lot of information that I've been searching for. I also have the reference manual for version 5.1 of Lua in book format and using the two books together is indispensable. You can find the reference manual for free at lua.org. I jumped at the chance to buy the reference manual because Lua is an open source project, I prefer books over computer screens, and the guys that have worked tirelessly developing this language deserve a little help to keep it going.

I am a beginning programmer, I have done a little bit of C++ programming but that was years ago at the age of 14, I'm 19 now, almost 20. I work in the field of I.T. and currently do web design and page maintenance for California Pacific Medical Center. This book is easy to read, I don't mind the typesetting I think it's fine. It's teaching me everything I want to know. I'm finally starting to write scripts that are actually useful and when I read books on programming I like to buy a new mini-notebook and take copious amounts of notes so that I end up creating my own reference manual in my own words. This book has been enjoyable to read and take notes on, I'm learning a lot, I hope that eventually I'll be starting some interesting projects and writing World of Warcraft add-ons.

2 people found this helpful

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Mike Owens

An Elegant Book for an Elegant Language

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on May 23, 2006

Verified Purchase

I am new to Lua. While a C++ developer, having used Perl, Python and Ruby, I was suprised by how much you can do with this compact scripting language.

The second edition is as eloquently written as the first (which is available online), but with new material and even more examples. In little time it introduced me to all aspects of the latest version of Lua -- 5.1 -- which includes a number of new features such as the new package system. Being a newcomer, it was nice to have a recent book covering all aspects of this latest version.

The book is well organized. It works as both a primer and complete course on the langauge. It covers the basic tenets and first principles, as well as the subtleties. It is written in the spirit of Lua: accomplishing much in minimal space. It does so through crisp, engaging writing and thorough, well-crafted examples. It is one of those books that feels timeless -- so well done that you mark your name on it with a Sharpie.

Lua is both a language and developer's tool. Part IV of the book, devoted to the C API, is as thorough for developers as the preceding parts are for language users. As I am using Lua in a multi-threaded environment, the second edition had the perfect example covering everything I needed to know -- from managing multiple states (interpreters) to wrapping C/C++ data structures.

I was so pleased with the book, I emailed the author. If you use Lua, and especially if you are new to Lua, you won't be disappointed with this edition.

17 people found this helpful

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T. Jensen

All C programmers should have this book

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on August 6, 2007

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Buying this book does more than support the Lua project. Having the book available will change your opinion of integrating script with C code! "Progamming in Lua" is a well-written text that makes using Lua practical. All of the best features of Lua are covered; the sample code is concise, clear and complete.

Lua is very different from C, and so allows a programmer to easily do things that are difficult in C. That makes it a perfect companion language. The only obstacle is training a C programmer to use it! That's where the book becomes useful. It's a quick read and covers all the essentials.

Even better, Lua is so well-connected to C that it is easy to switch back and forth in the course of a typical programming day, writing performance code in C and high-level logic in Lua. It is even possible to easily interact with Lua data structures in C without writing Lua code for situations where the data structures are desirable but Lua code isn't required. If you're looking for a scripting language for your next project, you need to know about Lua, and this book is the quickest way to make an informed decision.

12 people found this helpful

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Shawn Milochik

Comprehensive and well-thought-out.

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on April 8, 2010

Verified Purchase

This book is an unbeatable introduction to the Lua programming language, as might be expected considering it's written by the language's creator. However, the book is also an excellent guide to programming in general, because Roberto explains concepts which are applicable in most other languages. Maybe this is because Lua was designed primarily as a 'glue' or 'embedded' language. The author's ability to explain complex ideas is outstanding. You may have to re-read a paragraph a couple of times to fully 'get' it, but once you do everything just clicks.

Also, don't expect this book to be limited to an introduction to the language. That introduction is pretty solidly handled in the first 60 pages or so. For your money, you also get information on integrating your Lua code with your C code, techniques for coroutines and multi-threading, and advanced uses of the Lua table object (including object-oriented programming).

But wait -- there's more! There's a run-through of Lua's standard libraries which is not your standard printout of the online documents -- it's full of useful, progressive examples. I found the string library documentation particularly useful. Just by reading the table of contents you'll see that this is a very well-thought-out book, and I can vouch for its execution being excellent as well.

6 people found this helpful

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Fred Flintstone from Gateshead

concise, elegent, and classic

Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on July 25, 2005

Verified Purchase

I came across the Lua scripting language about 4 years ago and
fell in love with it. This book has the makings of a classic text that you will enjoy owning. Its so refreshing to find a well written, small book on a programming language with a huge power to weight ratio. The book covers all aspects of the language and acts as tutorial, reference and language specification. As a regular user of the AWK scripting language I would have appreciated better examples on how to acheive the AWK split() function but otherwise the book provides a large range of really useful code fragments. Congratulations to the author.

6 people found this helpful

Gordon Roger Lawrence

More of a reference book

Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on January 19, 2020

Verified Purchase

It taught me a lot but not really the things I wanted to learn. Certainly a book for someone learning Lua, but definitely not the only book.

pete3894792

Very clearly written guide to Lua 5.1

Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on December 17, 2007

Verified Purchase

A very clearly written and concise book, which is something of a rarity in these days of monster tomes full of words and little information! I'm using Lua to extend a number of applications, and am using this book to help me figure-out how to do it. Highly recommended.

5 people found this helpful

Fred Villa

Five Stars

Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on June 29, 2014

Verified Purchase

Excellent book - the author explains lua in a very easy to understand way.

Gareth Williams

Three Stars

Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on July 21, 2016

Verified Purchase

Perfect for learning

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Programming In Lua Paperback – January 1, 2003

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