Thinking about buying this book

infidel · November 23rd, 2009, 06:44 PM

But I have a question first.

Where exactly does this book fall in the Wrox book hierarchy? I know that it goes Beginning Visual C# 2008 > Professional C# etc but where would I go after Introduction to OOP? Does it entirely replace Beginning Visual C# or will I have to still get that book after completing Introduction to OOP?

I'll just add that I'm learning C# because I want to eventually use the XNA engine to make games.

Thank you

beszpilman · November 23rd, 2009, 06:54 PM

Hi,

I have bought this book only a couple weeks ago and I'm working through it. I don't think any other introduction to Visual C# will be needed after this book, it goes from complete novice and is very thorough. But then the author would be the best person to answer that.

I'm actually replying to ask a complementary question: Where does this book fit regarding ASP.NET and VWD? I know it doesn't cover it, but I want to know which book I should buy for ASP.NET and when to start the book (right away or after finishing this one).

The one I have in mind is Beginning ASP.NET 3.5 : in C# and VB, can I buy and start reading it alongside this book? Or would it be better that I first finish this one and then pickup one for ASP.NET, maybe more advanced, then which should it be?

DrPurdum · November 25th, 2009, 01:01 PM

Hi Guys:
Obviously, I feel that my book is a great choice for anyone who wants to learn Object Orient Programming. Teaching OOP is the real goal of the book. I selected C# as the vehicle because Visual Studio provide a very nice environment in which to learn OOP. Also, I like C# because of its closeness to C and Java. Indeed, if you know C#, it will take just a long weekend to learn enough Java to use it. This was important when I was teaching introductory courses at Purdue, as I didn't want to waste too much time teaching the IDE rather than the programming concepts at hand.

I didn't do anything with web programming because that's a book all by itself. I think that anyone who has read my intro book can go to just about any ASP.Net book and make sense of it. As to which book to choose, I think that's a decision you need to make for yourself. There are enough titles out there that you can probably find one that exactly fits your needs (e.g., games on the web, server apps for business, etc.) Amazon makes it easy to read the Table of Contents of a book and that should be able to tell you enough about whether it meets your needs or not. If you're still in doubt, a quick trip to a good bookstore (call and ask if they have the book first!) to thumb through the book is invaluable.

I hope this helps...

infidel · November 25th, 2009, 10:46 PM

Unfortunatly, being a beginner, I'm not sure what I need to know, so I don't feel qualified to make a judgment from a perusal of the book or the table of contents. The only thing that I saw that I know I need are the exercises at the end of the chapters and the answer keys at the very end. Those are very big pluses, but the rest, I'm still in the dark.

DrPurdum · November 29th, 2009, 07:28 AM

My guess is that you won't feel as lost as you may right now after you've finished the book. If you do, still go to Amazon and read the reviews on the books. (Be careful, as some people give misleading reviews. One of my reviews is a "2 star", but if you read it, he admits it's a good book. Conclusion: Read multiple reviews on a book.) Once you find a book or two that seems to suit your needs, Google the title of the book, adding the word "review" at the end of the search string. This will give you sources of book reviews other than those found on Amazon. After reading those, you should be able to make your decision.

Will · November 29th, 2009, 09:47 AM

So far I am only on chapter 4 but after giving Beginning Visual C# a go I definitely think this is the better choice for me.

I just seem to get on with the examples much better, the analogies make sense to me and already just using the five programming steps I feel that I am a more competant programmer.

Before I just didn't know how to go about solving a problem even though I felt I ought to be able to do it. After working through a couple of chapters I now feel I have a more complete understanding of why things happen as opposed to they just do which I feel is important.

The book is definitly worth it's salt in my opinion and I would recommend it. I haven't finished it yet but even so I feel the content so far is worth what I have paid for it.

DrPurdum · November 29th, 2009, 08:32 PM

Thanks for the kind words and taking the time to send them to me...