AnyBook4Less.com	Find the Best Price on the Web Order from a Major Online Bookstore
Home  |  Store List  |  FAQ  |  Contact Us  |
Ultimate Book Price Comparison Engine Save Your Time And Money Keyword AuthorISBN

Title: Computer Science: A Structured Programming Approach Using C++ by Behrouz A. Forouzan ISBN: 0-534-37480-8 Publisher: Thomson Brooks/Cole Pub. Date: 01 July, 2003 Format: Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $73.95

Your Country USA Canada United Kingdom Australia Austria Belgium France Germany Italy Netherlands Switzerland Currency AutoUSD CAD GBP EUR AUD CHF Delivery Only cheapest delivery All delivery options Include Used Books Are you a club member of: Barnes and Noble Books A Million Chapters.Indigo.ca

Average Customer Rating: 2.75 (4 reviews)

Rating: 1
Summary: I'd be even madder if I'd bought it new
Comment: This is the text for my C++ class, so I did not buy it by choice. It's terrible! The people in class who are new to programming are having a hard time. Often the authors use imprecise language. There are many errors of omission: sometimes there is backpedaling or an explanation later. It says a lot that the non-programmers in the class can almost always tell when a statement in the book isn't quite right, even if they don't know why it isn't right. You have to wonder if there was a technical review of this text. And I can't figure out how it got chosen as a text for any class anywhere.

One, the authors did not mention which compiler they used to compile their program examples. Many of the programs do not compile in MS Visual C++ 6.0 as written in the text. The authors fail to mention you might have to modify the code to get it run on your compiler. For instance,
cout << fixed;
may have to be replaced with
cout.setf(ios::fixed);
or
cout.setf(ios::fixed, ios::adjustfield);
to run right in your compiler.
They do finally talk about cout.setf in chapter 7 (out of 15). The program example downloads from the website compile; they contain preprocessor directives to make the programs more portable. I guess it never occurred to the authors, while adding those preprocessor directives (which DO NOT appear in the text), that some words about compiler compatibility might be helpful. Fortunately, I have C++ Primer Plus by Mitchell Waite; he addresses the compatibility issues as he teaches the syntax.

Two, I often disagree with the authors' definitions. My favorite example: the statement
x = 5;
changes the value of the variable x to 5. The authors call this a "side effect." Huh? Seems like that's exactly what the programmer intends to do. Usually, I think of side effects as being more subtle than that. More like a function changing the value of a variable parameter to the function because the variable was passed by reference instead of by value (this could catch an unsuspecting programmer by surprise if he/she didn't check the prototype carefully).

Three, some of the "good programming" tips would cause me to fail code inspections at work. This is a good thing, because they would make verification and maintenance a nightmare. Like not initializing variables when they are declared. I guess the authors have never seen weird things happen as an executing program tries to deal with the garbage in an uninitialized variable. Or maybe they just figure this is a good way for you to discover you forgot to initialize a variable before first use. It just might take a while to figure out that's what's going on since the results can be unpredictable and/or bizarre.

I could continue, but I think I've more than made my point. I won't be standing in line to get the second edition when it comes out next year.

Rating: 4
Summary: easy to read
Comment: easy to read, helpful excercises, a good book for those who want to learn C++ programing

Rating: 5
Summary: Excellent for beginning students!
Comment: Great choice for new students to programming.

Similar Books:

Title: Calculus (with CD-ROM) by James Stewart ISBN: 053439339X Publisher: Wadsworth Publishing Pub. Date: 20 December, 2002 List Price(USD): $135.95