Head First Python: A Brain-Friendly Guide

I have, over the 20+ years of my I.T. career, used several different varieties of instructional books on computer languages. Head First is, hands down, the best out there in my opinion. As to why: 1. I don't have a degree in Computer Science. So programming and languages are quite a bit extra effort for me. I like it that way, to be honest, as anything of value requires effort and patience. I've studied heavily technical resources and have done ok with them, but the process of the Head First series are fun, clearly written, and surprisingly retentive. Above all, they are perfect for a beginner or novice. 2. Learning Java, C, C++, or C# is not easy. So, I took a step back and dove into Python (we are a Python shop where I work) as several of the senior devs all told me the best language to start with is Python because it is so easy to learn. Couple that with Head First... and you have a no-brainer can't lose. 3. Instaneous Gratification. In the first hours you'll be writing your first programs. Drawbacks: I am on Python 2.7 and these are written for Python 3. Some of the exercises are not as clear cut as the book, but with help from Google I was easily able to find the appropriate commands and re-work the scripts to my configuration. As a result, the drawbacks become a win... and that, in of itself, puts the 5th star on my rating. Dig in, and enjoy what you learn! UPDATE: 1/2/14 Still love these course! However, there is an exercise that requires you to set up a dev app for running Twitter OAuth. The book was written for a much older version and it is quite a bit more complicated (and with that secure) than the example exercise in the book. Be sure to check that the most recent edition you are about to purchase, contains updated info on how to set up your developer OAuth, or else you'll hit a brick wall so hard, you're great-great-grandchildren will yell "Ouch!"

The O'Reilly Head First Python is very well done and a valuable guide to get started with one of the hottest software development languages for taking advantage of the new forms of computing on the web. I had already completed the Head First Programming book (which is also excellent) and wanted to learn more about Python programming. What I enjoyed about both books is the highly interactive nature of the learning. There are lots of examples that you build upon early in the book. The examples quickly get into the more exciting areas of the web such as linking to social media platforms, accessing web content, and developing applications on cutting edge platforms like the Google App Engine (GAE). The examples are fun and each one helps you build context to tackle more complicated problems. I highly recommend this and Head First Programming as a way to get started with web and cloud based computing. The book is excellent for a novice and also very useful for someone like me who has not programmed for 25 years and is just curious about this as a hobby. O'Reilly publishing has continued to innovate in making technology accessible to the masses.

While I have worked a bit with basic PHP and also with Max MSP, for creative/school things, I am basically a newb to programming in unguided contexts. I first borrowed John Zelle's Python Programming from a friend and began working with it, which was okay, but really quite dry. (And for example the basic/beginner stuff was explained in a way that was not relevant to me -- which I understand, because it's an "introduction to computer science," but I already understand many of those principles ...) Headfirst Python is very engaging. So the fact that it doesn't take you extremely far (according to the other reviews) disappoints slightly (just given that I only have so much money for books) but I don't feel cheated at all, in the meantime. I was hoping for a plunge into fluency in the fundamentals, and that's what I got from this!

Parts of this book are good and give a great intro/overview of whats great about python. However there are a number of exercises that will require background knowledge in web, android, google app engine, django. By the time you get the book a number of the steps they ask you to take will have been deprecated or changed in newer versions (django, android, GAE). If the author wanted to future proof the exercises in this book they should have listed the version used in each exercise, or possible provide lab addendum's on the website. If you are a true Python newb then parts of this book may frustrate/overwhelm you.

I own a lot of Head First books. My first one left me exicted and this book is leaving me excited too. If you want to learn something so that you'll never forget it, this is the way to go. Material is introduced slowly carefully, and is backed up with puzzles, pictures, games, all you need to really make Python your own. I'm still using information in my software-development life that I learned from my first book and this book will leave me with the same. I'm certainly recommending this book to all but before you buy your first Head First book, be aware that the format is totally different from anything you have ever studied before. It might be a good idea to go online and get a taste of their format. If you have owned Head First books before, this one will NOT disappoint.

I've been worrying a bit about pigeonholed into the JEE slot, so I bought this to get a bit of experience to leverage into Jython, and thereby keep my professional career alive until I can start sucking the life out of younger social security contributors. What? Oh, right, internal monologue. As to the book, the chapters build, there are lots of good examples, and there's an especial emphasis on how to do things "The Python Way", as opposed to, oh, coding up brute force iterative algorithms. You really can't ask any more from a book. In fact, I'd like to audit one of the author's classes - it's that well done. I like this book very much. I think it's very well done. Oh, the rest of y'all Americans, learn about Fiach McHugh O'Byrne. And Irish rebel songs. It's almost 3/17, for God's sake.

Not for anyone who is keen to pick up Python as a programming language. This book does not cover enough Python content/concepts for a reader to feel like he/she has learnt Python. Sure, it was easy to understand what was written, but only the first half was dedicated to actually learning Python, and even then it was just skimming through. Second half of the book is more for the things you would wanna do after learning the language. So the combination is really strange, imho. In conclusion, I would recommend that you look somewhere else if you wanna learn and really be familiar with Python.

I stumbled across this title several times before I decided to buy it as I have a huge collection of books I haven't finished reading. But this has been a different experience altogether. It's actually hard to put down. Like a great novel. The "Head First" approach is very conversational which I have found really engaging. It does jump straight in, so would possibly be a big challenge for the first time programmer. I'm coming to Python from several other scripting and web oriented languages. I'm finding Python definitely meets my needs - being cross-platform, and extremely fast to get working code up and running. I highly recommend this book and will look out for "Head First" in the future as I love the approach.

Das Buch ist für Pythoneinsteiger, die schon programmieren können, wirklich gut geeignet. Mit seiner Comic ähnlichen Aufmachung ist es angenehm zu lesen und ist somit ein wenig mehr als nur ein Nachschlagewerk.

For people like me, who suffer with "OMG book learning" this was excellent. It broke down things into less complicated, so yes i'd highly recommend.

Worth to get one!

Estos libros son perfectos para iniciación el cualquier temática. Explican las cosas de forma muy sencilla y con ejemplos muy comprensibles. Tienen una forma de mantenerte atento con el estilo de cada página.

Python言語全般に関して、知りたい方向けではないように思います。 他のHead Firstの本に比べると、「らしさ」に欠ける様に思いました。