Making a better textbook (was Re: The Deitel book)

[Ben Wiedermann]

"Chris Gonnerman" <chris.gonnerman at newcenturycomputers.net> wrote in message news:<mailman.1036590550.21817.python-list at python.org>...

> Textbooks aren't designed to be entertaining, true; but frankly
> I found it painful to read in the final form.  The content isn't
> the first thing one notices about a book; rather it's the 
> presentation (cover, art, paper, etc.)

I was one of the authors of the Deitel book; but just to be clear: I
am speaking as a Python evangelist. I am not speaking for any of my
coauthors or for my employer. That being said...

One of the major goals for the book was to try to push Python down
into CS1 courses, where I believe it deserves far more consideration
than it currently receives. Our hope was that the book would
demonstrate to professors how well suited Python is as a first
programming language *and* how easy it is for novice programmers to
create more complex applications (e.g., GUI, multimedia, etc.).

However, I've noticed that most of the post-publication criticism of
the book has focused on issues like presentation, art, etc. It's not
my job to dispute these claims. I personally believe that an author
should stay out of subjective discussions of his book, once that book
has been published. But I still very much believe in the promise of
Python in the university. And because the Deitel book is the only
college textbook of which I am aware, I wanted to get some feedback on
what would make a more successful Python textbook. How high does
presentation rank when considering a book? Are there examples of other
college textbooks that people think do an excellent job in the
presentation department? What kinds of materials can we (as a
community) produce to get schools to consider and adopt Python as a
first programming language? Any other thoughts on Python in the
university?