SICP Prequel Textbook

http://mauricioroman.com/mrblog/

by mroman • 17 years ago

9 14 17 years ago

mauricioroman.com

mroman2• 17 years ago

I really am surprised not to have ever seen this mentioned here at HN, and I really am glad I found it.

kqr2• 17 years ago

The reviews at Amazon for this book are a bit mixed:

http://www.amazon.com/Simply-Scheme-Introducing-Computer-Sci...

Shooter3• 17 years ago

Yes, there are better books. The authors are very nice guys, but I regret most of the time I spend reading Simply Scheme. There are some online lectures by Brian Harvey that are worth seeing, though.

You could read HTDP AND The Little Schemer in the time it takes to read Simply Scheme and you would most certainly get more out of them. Scheme is a simple language...you don't need a 600+ page book with special constructs from the authors in order to grok it. The Dybvig book is also a better way to spend your time if you're just wanting a (shorter and cheaper) introduction to Scheme.

I'd also recommend most of the free online Scheme tutorials...schemers.org might be a good starting point.

mroman2• 17 years ago

What caught my attention about this book is the Preface by Hal Abelson:

“Julie and Gerry Sussman and I are flattered that Harvey and Wright characterize their revolutionary introduction to computer science as a “prequel” to our text Structure and Interpretation of Computer Programs.”

This is next on my reading list, along with both texts you mentioned.

sctb• 17 years ago

`The Little Schemer' is also a reasonable introduction covering a subset of Scheme and recursive programming. It is quite light-hearted and entertaining to read.

sundeep2• 17 years ago

Is there an online version of 'The Little Schemer" , like SICP?

silentbicycle• 17 years ago

I don't think so, though there's a sample chapter here: http://www.ccs.neu.edu/home/matthias/BTLS/ . I checked this weekend - I'm waiting for the sequel in the mail...

The way the books are formatted, having the text online would probably reduce sales -- they aren't reference books, but rather relatively thin books of exercises and commentary, all designed to introduce you to several deep ideas. (Also, some people are really turned off by the style or find the writing overly cute.)

The Little MLer is excellent for learning how to think in types (as in OCaml and Haskell), btw. Highly recommended.

nx• 17 years ago

How about "How to Design Programs"?

Shooter3• 17 years ago

It is excellent. You would learn more (useful things) from it than from Simply Scheme.

speek• 17 years ago

HtDP removes the romanticism from programming. Stick to SICP.

tjr• 17 years ago

Yes, but (arguably) a better book than Simply Scheme, if you are needing something more introductory than SICP.

kaens• 17 years ago

Interesting. I had been pointing people at HTDP if they had trouble with SICP, I'll have to check this out.

SICP Prequel Textbook

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