CUCHO said
Jargon filled, many references to other languages; if you know what you are doing is is probably a good book.
Check out INVENT YOUR OWN COMPUTER GAMES by Al Sweigart if you want a more gentle learning curve.
William Bowers said
Python is a fast and easy to use language, though learning how to think in python, especially if coming from a more c-style language can take a while regardless of what book you're reading. This book won't help you with that. What it will do, is provide you with most (if not all) of the most-advanced features of python in a way that is really easy to digest for an intermediate/upper-beginner level python programmer. This book explains things that are not easy to find on the web or not apparent that they even exist in python (because, let's face it, python can be pretty magical at times). This book can be the catalyst that puts you well on your way to becoming an advanced python programmer. And all that from a tiny reference book!
Paolo said
After reading the excellent C++ Pocket Reference, I decided that this book was worth a try, but I was disappointed.
The last half of this book is a list of module functions, that are MUCH more easily accessed thrugh the online documentation. I wish it was more a reference about the language than about the built-in modules. I don't remember (and I can't find it in the book index!) reading explicitly how to add an attribute to a class, or other language-specific operations.
Being a pocket reference, the language should be concise, but sometimes it is so obscure to be nearly incomprehensible.
Let me also point out that it is more than three years old, so it was not updated to cover Python 2.5, and of couse the upcoming 2.6 and 3.0. Furthermore it tries to cover many versions, with even some references to the 9-year old 1.5 release. I believe the latest would have been enough.
In no way this can replace the modules online documentation, not even as a quick reference.
J. A. Rodriguez said
I read various reviews complaining about the lack of an index. Well, it does have one now and it complements perfectly what is a fantastic quick reference for many of your Python needs, from built-in modules to regular expressions. Of course, it does not include the formal grammar of the language, a complete reference of libraries available or anything other than quick pointers for someone who already knows what Python is but is not a guru yet (although anyone can forget how to open a file from time to time).
wiredweird said
This is a great book for anyone who uses Python, especially for programmers at that level of Python competence after the beginner stage but short of a master's fluency. It provides a brief but clearly organized summary of Python basics: the language, primitive data structures, printf and other control codes, and the basic, everyday subset of the support libraries. And, since the editors apparently listened to criticism of earlier editions, the third editions includes a useful index as well as table of contents.
Some readers will be disappointed that it's not the book that it never meant to be. It never meant to be a tutorial or text book, it never meant to be a full specification of the language and libraries, and it never meant to be an encyclopedic description of the many available libraries. Decide what you want: if that's a quick reminder of Python's most useful basics, then this book will meet your needs.
-- wiredweird
Comments