You can realize your goal to become a computer programmer quickly and have fun too with this step by step guide. With practical examples and a sense of humor, Carl Gundel will teach you from soup to nuts. If you know nothing about programming you will have everything you need. If you've ever programmed in BASIC or dabbled in programming you will quickly master the Liberty BASIC programming language for creating custom Windows applications, utilities, games and more.
You will learn the essentials of programming and you will also learn good practices so that you'll be ready to take on other popular programming languages.
If you're a complete programming novice, this is one of the best books you can buy for one of the best languages to learn on. Liberty BASIC is a simple, yet extremely powerful programming tool. Skills you will learn in this book include basic input and output, branching, looping, arrays, sequential files, window design, and graphics. You will even receive two chapters' worth of training in the fundamentals of database programming and one chapter dedicated entirely to software engineering principles that will serve you well in both crafting your own projects and learning other languages. Carl has a talent for explaining complicated programming concepts in simple ways by drawing parallels to real-life situations, making this book a perfect introduction to programming for the layman. Each chapter in Beginning Programming with Liberty BASIC ends with a Quiz and an Exercise to test and solidify your understanding of the concepts. The exercises are challenging, but not impossible. You will... More > be made to think in such a way that will mold you into a better programmer as you work your way through the book. Perhaps the best feature of Liberty BASIC is the amazingly kind and helpful community that backs it. The Liberty BASIC Conforum is a wonderful online resource filled with hundreds of individuals more than happy to help you out and answer your questions. Liberty BASIC is a labor of love for all of those who enjoy it. In the short time I have been involved with Liberty BASIC, a little over a month, I have had nothing but positive interaction with the online community. After completing the book, you will have countless options to delve into. You will be in a good position to study game design, database programming, Windows API calls, and other topics in more detail. The book does have one significant technical error on page 43; the book indicates that strings are compared alphanumerically in Liberty BASIC when in fact they are compared alphabetically. If you do not know what this means, you will learn soon enough in Chapter 3. Note: You do not need the commercial version of Liberty BASIC to use this book effectively. Every topic in this book can be easily studied using the free version of Liberty BASIC, JustBASIC. This has been a candid review by a new and satisfied customer, -Evan Williams< Less
This is an excellent beginning programming book. It meshes well with the tutorials in Liberty Basic and adds to them. It is written in an easy to read, fun style and is easily accessible for a complete novice. Well worth the money.
Written with a sense of humor and with real life examples of programs you can write, this book takes you through all the basics of the Liberty BASIC programming language. Exercises challenge you and chapter end quizzes help to reinforce what you have learned. The book is clearly written and everything is well explained. Information is presented in plain language so you are not overwhelmed with technical jargon. I use the book as a reference as I continue to develop my programming skills. Helpful, entertaining and friendly reading.
I have been dabbling in programming for more than 20 years, but never got beyond a certain basic level, no pun intended :) Every time I have bought a new computer I have bought a version of basic for it, GFA (ST/Amiga), Blitz, Dark Basic, Visual Basic etc etc, and Liberty Basic harkens back to the good old days of a clear, powerful, easy to use and useful implementation. This book is a great introduction to programming for those who are new to programming generally, with clear and entertaining text and examples. Carl obviously loves what he does, is a little bit of a nerd and revels in it, and his love of the subject shows in the book. For someone who has a little familiarity with programming already (like me) the book is an excellent way to get a refresher course and learn about LB itself. For an experienced programmer I suspect there is little of value here as they would probably get by on the help file etc. (This is just my opinion, so don't let me put you off if you fall into this... More > category!) Quality wise this is well produced and should stand up to the rigors of regular handling, and represents truely excellent value. There is the odd blank page, but no text is missing, it is just a production thing. Steve< Less
A useful book. I am a novice at programming but found this a really good introduction. It's well paced, uses clear examples throughout and has a quiz at the end of each chapter. I certainly found it easier to follow than 'Beginning Programming - by Wallace Wang." if only because there are fewer distractions and the examples and explanations make more sense. As far as the quality goes, it is well printed (although page 39 is blank in my book) and seems pretty robust. Definitely worth a shot if you're looking for a good clear tutorial.
