Book: Learn Python the Hard Way

[ewemoa]

Has any one here read "Learn Python the Hard Way"?

Some quotes from the site:

The book is a very beginner book for people who want to learn to code. If you can already code then the book will probably drive you insane. It's intended for people who have no coding chops to build up their skills before starting a more detailed book.

The book is also free for people to read because I love programming and want more people to love programming:

    Learn Python The Hard Way (pdf)

The book is free to read and give to anyone so long as you do not charge for it and you give them the entire book.

The book is very simple:

    52 exercises in all.
    26 cover just input/output, variables, and functions.
    26 cover logic (boolean algebra, if-statements, while-loops, etc.)

Each exercise is one or two pages and follows the exact same format. You type each one in (no copy-paste!), make it run, do the extra credit, and then move on. If you get stuck, at least type it in and skip the extra credit for later.

[Renegade]

This simple book is meant to get you started in programming. The title says it’s the hard way to learn to write code;
but it’s actually not. It’s only the “hard” way because it’s the way people used to teach things.

Old skool~!

[ewemoa]

Yes, but with recent technology

From Exercise 1:

Finally, it prints out a “SyntaxError” and tells us something about what might be the error. Usually these are very cryptic, but if you copy that text into a search engine, you will find someone else who’s had that error and you can probably figure out how to fix it.

[Carol Haynes]

Alternative method which is much more fun: http://tinyurl.com/5bzs2j

[Jibz]

I find it odd that a new guide teaches people python 2, I would have imagined it would make more sense to get new programmers to adopt python 3?

[ewemoa]

Regarding Python 3 vs Python 2, I came across the following in the book:

A programmer may try to get you to install Python 3 and learn that. You should tell them, “When all of the python code on your computer is Python 3, then I’ll try to learn it.” That should keep them busy for about 10 years.

...and that, my liege, is how we know the Earth to be banana shaped.

[daddydave]

I've carried around a note of my all-time pet peeves in technical writing, and kept them to myself at least since 2008. One of them is, to quote myself:

Write for the target reader who doesn't know anything, so you can reuse the same first ten know-nothing chapters in all your books.

So I cringed when I read in Exercise 4:

Note: The _ in space_in_a_car is called an underscore character. Find out how to type it if you do not.
already know.

Patrick: I'll never learn Python, I can't find the underscore key!
Spongebob: Why don't you find out on Google, Patrick?
Squidward (derisively): That's spelled G-O-O-G-L-E!
(one hour later)
Patrick: I can't find the G key!

[40hz]

If you're a rank beginner to Python (and programming) look no further than this free  course offered through Udacity.com.

Intro to Computer Science (cs101)
Building a Search Engine
with Professor David Evans - University of Virginia

Class Summary

In this course you will learn key concepts in computer science and learn how to write your own computer programs in the context of building a web crawler.

What do I need to know?

There is no prior programming knowledge needed for this course. Beginners welcome!

What will I learn?

At the end of this course you will have a rock solid foundation for programming in Python and built a working web crawler. This course will prepare you to take many of Udacity's more advanced courses.

Really quite a step up from many free 'university level' online courses in that they offer an interactive web-based programming environment (no need to install Python so you can use any PC when you want to work on the course); graded exams, live people to ask questions of - and a certificate when you successfully complete the course.

Some other good courses available there as well. Check it out.