On 12 December 2010 03:25, John Russell <t...@othala.us> wrote: > Last night I started working through a book (Beginning Python: Using Python > 2.6 and Python 3.1) I bought to learn Python, and there is an example in it > that doesn't make sense to me.
I have that book too, and several others thankfully. I'm just writing to share my experience, in case another perspective from another relatively new python user is helpful to anyone. I found that book is written towards a friendly beginner level, but it omits many details and is not a comprehensive reference. It does include plenty of examples on many topics. I have read the opposite criticism of other books, so it is probably impossible for one book to fit all needs. Personally I became weary of the food/fridge/kitchen theme of the early examples as it did not engage my interest at all, and there is so much of it. However I have found that book valuable for its Part III where it covers useful applications. Although I have come to expect that its examples will often need typos corrected or other small modifications to get them to run properly on Python 2.6. So while working through Parts I and II, if your experience is anything like mine where I moved away from it fairly quickly, you will definitely need other resources. Fortunately they are abundantly available. In case you are unaware, a Tutorial and Reference are integrated with Python. On my Linux box the tutorial is file:///usr/share/doc/python-docs-x.x.x/html/tutorial/index.html and the Alphabetic Index to the Reference is file:///usr/share/doc/python-docs-x.x.x/html/genindex.html I find the Tutorial easily readable, whereas the Reference can be challenging, but it is comprehensive and likely contains the answer to most questions, somewhere. As an exercise I thought I'd try to find the answer to your question using these built-in docs. The keyword is "slice" which we know from the book. I couldn't find any coverage in the 2.6 tutorial so I looked up "slice" in the Alphabetic Index, and the first link took me to a section which includes the answer: "The slicing now selects all items with index k such that i <= k < j where i and j are the specified lower and upper bounds". In case you are not aware, the web has a vast amount of great material for learning Python, see for example: http://wiki.python.org/moin/BeginnersGuide/NonProgrammers As Python is an evolving language, one needs be mindful of the differences between Python 2.x and Python 3.x when using this material. My favourite Python book of my small beginners collection is "Python 3 Object Oriented Programming" by Dusty Phillips. It claims: "If you're new to object-oriented programming techniques, or if you have basic Python skills, and wish to learn in depth how and when to correctly apply object-oriented programming in Python, this is the book for you". I endorse that completely. Having learned the syntax basics elsewhere, for me this is a book like no other. I find its topic coverage and all its short examples consistently useful, powerful, and illuminating. I find it easy to read, well matched to my level and interest, and it has made a real difference to the code I write. I use classes with confidence now. For example, it gave me the background and confidence to design a custom sortable abstract class I needed, my first personal experience of the power of OOP. Tthe python and tutorial mailing lists are a wonderul resource as you are obviously aware. Thanks to all the contributors from whom I continue to learn. _______________________________________________ Tutor maillist - Tutor@python.org To unsubscribe or change subscription options: http://mail.python.org/mailman/listinfo/tutor
