C++: A Dialog: Programming with the C++ Standard Library
| 2002-08-30 00:00:00 | | 1112 | C++
Simply the best way for beginners to learn standard C++.
C++: A Dialog is the easiest, most effective way for beginners to learn C++ programming.
Steve Heller teaches C++ from scratch, through a one-on-one conversation with an intelligent beginner who asks the questions you'd ask. Heller's unique dialog format is brilliantly designed to clarify the concepts you might otherwise find confusing, so you can quickly learn today's most powerful and valuable C++ development techniques.
Heller takes you from the absolute fundamentals through the construction of a complete inventory application, including a simple but effective user interface. Along the way, you won't just learn C++ features: you'll see exactly how professional programmers bring them together and put them to work.
Unlike many beginners' books, C++: A Dialog uses industry-standard C++ and the latest standard librariesgiving you skills you can use with any standard C++ toolset, in any programming environment. You even get all the example code and a standard C++ compiler on CD-ROM so you can write and compile your own standard C++ programs on any 32-bit Microsoft Windows platform.
CD-ROM INCLUDED
The accompanying CD-ROM contains the commercial-grade Borland C++ 5.5 compiler and its associated libraries, which supports the latest ANSI/ISO C++ standards, including the STL (Standard Template Library) framework and C++ templates.
User review
Horrible
I am amazed at the reviews here. This book is horrible, IMHO. It is uttlerly bloated w/ unecessary, repetitive writing.
I have no idea why the editor didn't cut about 1/3 of it (no kidding) b/c you will be wasting a lot of time wading through sentences that just add no value whatsoever.
I bought this book based on the reviews here, I am VERY SORRY that I did.
User review
C++: A Dialog, by Steve Heller
It is a very good book which explains everything from top to bottom, not only about programming but the whole process in your pc that gets involved. It is nice to read although some questions from the female are a little bit 'too much' but hence, if I get it at once doesnt mean everybody does, and backwards so. 5 Stars
User review
The best book - for a beginner
The best way for a beginner to learn a language as beautiful and as challenging as C++ is by asking questions. Steve Heller tries (and I must say, successfully) to achieve the same by adding one-on-one conversations with a beginner. And by having these conversations, Steve has got a chance to answer even those beginner questions that a seasoned programmer would ignore as being too obvious.
One more very important element in teaching a beginner is to get him some hands on. The `Home Inventory Project` does precisely that.
Another factor that caught my eyes just when I opened the book was that this book doesn't try to spoon feed the C++ language, it tries to help the beginner see and realize 'Programming'. It helps the beginner understand the flow in which the program would run. I've seen so many `so called` C++ programmers who don't even know what a 16-bit register means.
Overall, a great book, but only for a beginner. C++ is a language that is really harsh on a beginner, and so, teaching the same to someone who might not have written a single piece of code before, is a tough task. Steve has done a great job in doing so. But this book can't be a C++ reference as some reviewer said. Stroustrup's The C++ Programming Language is still THE reference that one needs.
I sincerely think Steve should consider helping the seasoned programmers by coming up with a `C++: A Dialog++` now.
User review
A very nice Book for Beginners
I went through it, and loved every page. The approach I found was interesting specially for those who are somehow afraid of C++. Interestingly enough it give me few insights that were some-where out of my site.
Also, I recommended it for those who were offering C++ as first programming course to college students, and seasoned programmers.
User review
A Classic Reinvented
Who's Afraid of C++ was, and is, without a doubt, the single most engaging `complete beginner's` introduction to C++ and, just as importantly, high-level programming in general, that I have ever come across. Beyond the clear exposition and meaningful examples, the most inspiring element of that book, is the dialog between a teacher and his student. It is a classic.
`C++: A Dialog` is, for the most part, a sandwich-ing of `Who's Afraid of C++?` and `Who's Afraid of More C++`. The index has been cleaned up, ditto on the Table of Contents, and the same goes for the text at large. However, the exploratory and friendly spirit of the original(s) lives on, and is, indeed, emboldened by the more professional, tight layout.
This book will give the novice programmer, and the non-programmer alike, a firm grasp of what is going on inside their computers, when a program is run. That of course, is only a prelude to an engaging, thorough look at the C++ programming language, first from on high, then down low, into the nitty gritty details, and then again from a high level. And all the while being conscious of what comes next, where to go from here.
If you are thinking of picking up one of those `I guarantee I can teach you C++ while you walk your dog` or `C++ for Goofuses` books, do yourself a favor and spend a month or so, getting to know this book, and its two heroes.