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A Recipe for Disaster
Previously, I reviewed the "Java How to Program" book and found it to be a terrible waste, sure to take all the fun and creativity out of programming. So when I saw this book on the shelf, I flipped through it, hoping that the free-wheeling nature of Python might have lead the Deitels towards a more enlightened approach to instruction. I quickly found that this book has many lessons to teach (although few that I would agree with). For example:
* Python programmers are NOT having more fun than Java (or other) programmers; all languages are equally stultifying.
* Learning a language is a tedious task, centered around learning features of the syntax in a prescribed order. (This is like learning to cook by trying ingredients one at a time in alphabetical order, without ever trying to put together something tasty.)
* The practice of programming has no underlying principles, only an endless series of tips presented in overly-garish multicolor pages. (You'd be better off with a single chapter of "Structure and Interpretation of Computer Programs" than with anything in this book.)
* Programming is inherently boring, involving endless repetitive typing; it is better for the programmer to do a lot of work than to expect the computer to. For example, consider this example from chapter 4 (Fig 4.7):
===================================
import random
frequency1 = 0
frequency2 = 0
frequency3 = 0
frequency4 = 0
frequency5 = 0
frequency6 = 0
for roll in range( 1, 6001 ): # 6000 die rolls
___face = random.randrange( 1, 7 )
___if face == 1: # frequency counted
______frequency1 += 1
___elif face == 2:
______frequency2 += 1
___elif face == 3:
______frequency3 += 1
___elif face == 4:
______frequency4 += 1
___elif face == 5:
______frequency5 += 1
___elif face == 6:
______frequency6 += 1
___else: # simple error handling
______print "should never get here!"
print "Face %13s" % "Frequency"
print " 1 %13d" % frequency1
print " 2 %13d" % frequency2
print " 3 %13d" % frequency3
print " 4 %13d" % frequency4
print " 5 %13d" % frequency5
print " 6 %13d" % frequency6
===================================
(Note I use "_" for blank because Amazon won't indent code properly.) This is 30 lines (42 if you count the copyright notice) for something that a grade-schooler could tell you (I know -- I asked one) is better done with 7 lines:
import random
def roll(n, sides=6):
____freq = [0] * sides
____for roll in range(n):
________freq[random.randrange(sides)] += 1
____return freq
print roll(6000)
Or, using a built-in class, with one line:
print(Counter(random.randrange( 1, 7 ) for _ in range(6000)))
I find it a case of student-abuse to present examples like this, but I suppose the Deitels had their reasons: perhaps they hadn't introduced lists (or functions) yet. Perhaps lists (or functions) didn't fit readily into their idea of the right order to learn concepts in BASIC (which must therefore be the best order to learn concepts in every other language). It would be ok to present this program first, but then it should be followed by a more concise version.
If you want to learn Python, or learn to Program with Python as your first language, try another book such as "Learning Python" or "Programming Python".
If you want to ensure that you won't appreciate why Python is the way it is and why it is interesting; if you want to be bored and avoid learning how to do something creative, by all means stick to this book.
