DN582232970

Subject: Book Review - Python Essential Reference - DN [1]

danny@cs.usyd.edu.au (Danny Yee) - 06 Feb 2000 - rec.arts.books.reviews,rec.arts.books,alt.books.reviews,aus.books,misc.books.technical,alt.books.technical,comp.lang.python

 An HTML version of this book review can be found at
 http://www.anatomy.usyd.edu.au/danny/book-reviews/h/Python_Reference.html
 along with five hundred other reviews

      title: Python Essential Reference
         by: David M. Beazley
  publisher: New Riders 2000
   subjects: computing
      other: 319 pages

 The _Python Essential Reference_ contains an 85 page survey of the
 core Python programming language, 160 pages describing the more widely
 used modules in the Python library ("Appendix A"), and 30 pages on
 extending and embedding Python ("Appendix B").  The first section has
 some examples and explanation, but tends to the concise rather than the
 discursive and is not suitable for learning Python from (except perhaps
 for experienced programmers).  The second covers much the same material
 as the online Library Reference that comes with Python, generally trading
 completeness for usability.  So the explanation of the rfc822 module,
 to take a random example, is clearer than that in the Library Reference
 but doesn't mention some of the overrides, public instance variables, and
 more obscure methods; it also adds a brief example and cross-references
 to related modules.

 Some will appreciate having a choice of explanations, or the extra
 examples and explanations the _Python Essential Reference_ provides.
 Given that the online documentation is functionally very similar, however,
 I suspect that only those with a preference for printed documentation
 will end up using it as a reference.  The volume is attractively laid out,
 with the only possible problem for some being the small font.

 --

 %T    Python Essential Reference
 %A    David M. Beazley
 %I    New Riders
 %C    Indianopolis
 %D    2000
 %O    paperback
 %G    ISBN 0-7357-0901-7
 %P    319pp
 %U    http://www.newriders.com/cfm/prod_book.cfm?RecordID=210
 %K    computing

 6 February 2000

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         Copyright (c) 2000 Danny Yee (danny@cs.usyd.edu.au)
         http://www.anatomy.usyd.edu.au/danny/book-reviews/
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