Learn Python 3 the Hard Way: A Very Simple Introduction to the Terrifyingly Beautiful World of Computers and Code (Zed Shaw's Hard Way Series) 4th Edition

While I have been a programmer of Fortran IV, Assembly Language, C, and some BASH script writing, I could not follow Python which is a "Structured" programing language. I tried a few online courses but I like books, so I ordered this book and I read it first, then I started over but this time started to write a few of the examples. The examples are pretty good and I started to understand the syntax and how to read Python. While this book is not all encompassing, it allowed me to make sense of commands I could look up on the internet. There was one area I thought was lacking, the explanation of 'classes'. It was a topic covered in the book but for myself, I couldn't comprehend was was being said. This is where having an in-person instruction would have helped me out.Overall this is a very good book and I feel it was worth the $30 bucks I spent on it.

If you are learning Python 3, THIS IS THE BOOK TO GET FIRST."Learn Python 3 the Hard Way" is THE book to get first if you are learning Python. It is organized into exercise chapters that take you through a hands-on experience in learning Python (one of the fastest growing programming languages at the moment). This is not a book that you will read. it is a book you will work through. Zed Shaw takes you through 52 exercises that will teach you everything from writing your first program (the classic "Hello, World!" program) up through lists, dictionaries, loops, and so on. By the time you finish the 52 exercises, you will have a solid foundation for learning more about Python.Of all of my books that I am asked to lend in my Python Meet-up group, this is the most popular by far.

Before buying this book I heard about LPTHW and the "controversy" around...but obviously this is the internet and everyone is entitled say whatever they want so I didnt took them seriously.Before reading this book, I've read some C++ concepts in the past (couples of years before) but they were simple as: types, functions, statements.. so nothing complicated, but I went thru this book with a tiny bit of knowledge..At the beginning of the book I was amazed at how much fun I has having and how much better I was starting to understand those concepts (that I was already familiar with).The way the book is structured its extremely good: making your hands dirty immediately it's really the right thing to do for a beginner.It may be obvious for some one but wasn't for me, the fact that you should type everything you see and make it work on your own, and then read and check what is happening. Then type again and again and eventually, even if you don't REALLY understand the DEEPER MEANING of everything, you are still a step further to getting closer.So everything was going fine and I was eager to go to the next lesson...Till chapter 43 when he introduces the Class/Object..I honestly went back on it a couple of times but every time I felt that there was something different... somethings has changed from before... there was no more fun, no more understanding.. but just: DO IT AS I DO AND SHUT UP.There was little room for exploration as he presented a semi-empty script with empty classes that you should fill as he would... oh and yea he just introduced you to what a class is like.. so good luck with that.You pass from ITS A, HAS A type of explanation to complete an already started script of several different classes with subclasses and inherits.. wtf? I've felt like I jumped 2 chapters...It was challenging? absolutely but it wasn't fun... it wasn't discovering new things... it was desperation of trying to solve this exercises because you know that classes are an important topic...And from there, it just got worst...At chapter 47 you are introduced to an another fundamental topic: TESTS.So as usual you start typing and typing and installing modules, you will get excited of all of this new stuff you will learn about... but you will be WRONG... because as soon as you finish he says:GO ON INTERNET AND FIND OUT HOW TO USE AND INSTALL EVERYTHING YOU JUST DID.....W.T.F... it took me a day to find out in the nose manual that their syntax was the same as unittest but just spelled with the format snake_case...As a beginner, and as I have never seen what an test/assert_equal is, I WOULD HAVE APPRECIATED A BIT OF EXPLANATION before sending me online..I had to go online and search for OTHER people tutorial about something that I was suppose to learn in this book... WTF AGAIN...And from here honestly I just lost interest... he doesn't show anymore the "what you should" see section so you are left on your own... If you don't understand: too bad... If you do understand but misunderstand also too bad... For me was harder trying to understand what HE will have me to do rather than the code itself...At the end of the book you will do automatic tests of his text game and deploy it online so he introduces some HTML concepts but honestly I just didn't care anymore and never finished.. and here brings me the major flaw about zed in my opinion.He states at the beginning that he doesn't want you to teach everything, but he wants you to be autonomous and be able to understand what to search bla bla... Ok! its a good mentality! But there is a problem.. programming concepts are so deep and so many (even for a subject alone).. that you NEED at least something information to start and only then LEAVE THE REST TO YOU if you want more info...Again: if I have to leave the beginner's book to search other tutorials for beginners to understand what has written in my beginner's book... I think that the book failed to do part of his job...I then IMMEDIATELY went to PYTHON CRASH COURSE and things just pop out like flowers in spring... and it was because of how zed open my view of how to take a programming book..So I recommend this book even despite the BIG disappointment of the last chapters, because I truly think that this book teaches you the discipline that you will absolutely need to start every other book.. but be aware you will not become a expert programmer after just this book... buy this together with PYTHON CRASH COURSE and think of them as one lesson.. typing (LPTHW) and understanding (PCC)

I've tried multiple tutorials from multiple sources (Udemy, Lynda, Tuts+, Codecademy, YouTube, etc.), but none of them compare to the LP3THW method. You'll get your hands dirty right away by diving straight into the exercises from the very beginning. You're not bogged down with a ton of theory up front. Instead the theory is gradually revealed as you progress through each exercise. Unfortunately there is one down side, if you want the accompanying videos, you will still need to purchase directly from his website. The Kindle version doesn't provide access to any of the online videos. I know many reviewers wrote negative reviews because of this, but it's how Zed has things set up. When you purchase LP3THW directly from Zed's website, you will be able to get any and all updates related to that purchase, including any new videos. And for those who seem to think Zed has a bad attitude when it comes to teaching, they fail to understand that he clearly states in one of his lessons, it's his goal to ensure that his students can move forward into a PROGRAMMING environment without the need of his ongoing help. I mean, that is the whole point of learning to program, isn't it?

I've been a software developer for over 40 years and this is the best how-to learn programming book I've come upon. Over the years I've taught myself COBOL. IBM 360/370 BAL, C, Pascal, C++, SQL, Java, and JavaScript. Mr. Shaw clearly shows that he understands how programmers learn. I liked the book so much, I'm using it to teach 2 of my grandsons how to code with Python 3. I'd recommend this book to anyone, novice or experienced, who wished to learn Python.