a python book hint

[David Mertz]

mis6 at pitt.edu (Michele Simionato) wrote previously:
|IMO, it is especially suitable to "non-canonical" programmers, people
|without a computer science background, which still need or want to learn
|something about parsers, state machines and all the rest, without going
|trough a real CS course.  David is well qualified to understand what are
|the likely gaps of non-canonical programmers, since himself has a
|background in philosophy, not in CS and it is clear he learned what it
|is in his book through self-study (David correct me if I am wrong).

Thank you Michele for the insightful characterization of my book.  I
certainly do not disagree.  I suppose it could be called "Text
Processing for Philosophers" equally well (and have almost the same
initials).

In fact, there is a line I put in my book, playing off Larry Wall's
"virtues of programmers" (p.xi in the printed version, or within
intro.txt for the online one).  I think most readers either gloss over
it or think I am making a little joke.  But I'm actually quite esrnest
in writing:

    The goal of this book is to make its readers a little lazier, a
    smidgeon more impatient, and a whole bunch more hubristic.  Python
    just happens to be the language best suited to the study of virtue.

I tried to write a textbook in ethics.

Yours, David...

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