Python books, literature etc

[J]

On Wed, Jan 6, 2010 at 09:35, Shawn Milochik <shawn at milochik.com> wrote:
> Search Google. You'll find it all.
>
> Search this list's archives. This kind of thing has been discussed a thousand times.
>
> It also wouldn't hurt to brush up on this:
> http://catb.org/~esr/faqs/smart-questions.html

Heh... I've seen that link mentioned many many times on some other
lists I belong to :)  But I agree.  HOWEVER, that is a valid question.

BUT, the answer is really up to the person asking it.

For example, I too am a relative beginner with Python.  Luckily I DO
have at least an educational background in OOP, and at least a
professional background in basic coding (some perl, BASH, etc).  So I
do tend to rely a lot on google when I run into a snag, THEN if that
doesn't work, I come here with specific questions.

FWIW, my Google searches always look something like "python <what I'm
searching for>" and 99% of the time, that gives me the answers I seek.

That being said, however, I also am somewhat old school and prefer to
have hard copy at hand too.  Sometimes, it's just that much more
satisfying to have a physical book handy to look things up in.  Maybe
it's a comfort thing, I don't know...

So in that vein, while I can't suggest any specific books, I can say
this... right now, I have a copy of O'Reilly's Learning Python that I
use as a reference, as well as a much older copy of the Python 2.1
Bible that I picked up almost a decade ago now the first time I messed
around with Python.

My personal preference, while searching Google and asking on lists
like this is quick and invaluable for the "real world" knowledge that
is shared, is to also have A: something along the lines of the
Learning Foo books from O'Reilly because they tend to have lengthy
explanations that I usually can understand on my own, and B: some sort
of Cookbook on the topic at hand.  I haven't found a Python cookbook
that I like enough to buy yet, but I'm still looking.  Those come in
handy for simple snippets and examples when doing specific tasks.

So yeah, Google and this list are certainly invaluable, but some of us
actually like having the heft of a lofty tome to peruse for the
answers to the mysteries of the universe.

Cheers
Jeff



-- 

Charles de Gaulle  - "The better I get to know men, the more I find
myself loving dogs." -
http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/authors/c/charles_de_gaulle.html