In this video, I explain some fundamental concepts about programming:

• What is a programming language?
• Why are there different programming languages?

Basic Programming Concepts

A collection of AJAX hacks (recipes) coupled with intelligent discussions. A good book to buy for anyone interested in AJAX and modern web application development.

The book begins with a great introduction to AJAX and then provides a useful grab-bag of commonly needed AJAX applications.

For example:

• Processing Web forms.
• Validations: credit card numbers, email addresses etc …

What are AJAX ‘hacks’?

AJAX ‘hacks’ are concise code samples that can be used as ‘components (if you will,) that you can plug into your own work.

Besides the usefulness of having a reusable collection like this, you can learn a lot from the ‘hacks’, since each one is coupled with a good discussion.

Some highlights:

• Ruby on Rails and AJAX discussions
• Examination of the open source AJAX libraries like Scriptaculous and Rico.
• The concise and clear coverage of AJAX basics.

As with all O’reilly books, the writing is clear and concise and well presented.

Note: this is not a beginners tutorial … you will need to be able to work with and understand JavaScript.

Co-written by the guy who invented PHP (Rasmus Lerdorf,) this is a must-buy book for anyone getting into PHP or web programming in general.

What can I say; this book is so well written and to the point, that I found that the information seemed to just flow from the pages.

Who is this book for?

This is not a book for someone just learning how to program; it is for everyone else though.

Both programmers new to PHP, or PHP programmers with (at least) a basic understanding of PHP, will find this book to be very handy to have around.

The book does not try to cover everything about PHP… though it does cover things like:

• graphics
• xml
• pdf
• databases

… instead it gives the best coverage of the core language I’ve ever read.

Buy the book.

A small book that takes a critical look at Java and other languages (Ruby, PHP, ) at a moment in time.

I say ‘at a moment in time’ because this book will lose relevance very quickly – even more quickly than the typical nerd book.

In a nutshell:

• You get a brief history lesson on languages and their problems.
• You get a perspective of the problems that Java developers face.
• You get perspective on the subject from interviews with several big-wig names in the field.
• You get an overview of Ruby and Rails.

My complaints:

• The author likes to introduce his chapters with kayaking stories that are suppose to reflect what he is about to talk about … I would just skip those parts because I am not into kayaking.
• Question of accuracy: he mentions (page 174) that PHP does not have enough structure. This is a silly statement given that there are SEVERAL PHP frameworks out there that provide the exact same structure as Rails – some even copy Rails.

Conclusion:

I liked the book and it was a worthwhile read. It has a few problems but it does open your eyes to things.

That said, the title of the book should have been: ‘Beyond Java and why I love Ruby’.

Ruby For Rails connects the dots between Ruby and Rails.

In a nutshell:

This book looks at how Rails uses Ruby, and in so doing, you learn a heck of a lot about Ruby programming.

Ruby For Rails goes into detail about basic Ruby, enough so that I think someone new to Ruby, could learn enough about the language to be able to build web applications. But, the book is not a comprehensive Ruby reference – there are things that are not talked about.

The thing I really liked about the book, is the way the author introduces a concept and then shows you how Ruby or Rails implements that concept in a practical application.

For example:

You are introduced to a Ruby construct called a ‘module’*.

• You learn what a module is.
• Why Ruby has modules.
• How Rails uses modules and why.

I am glad to have this book and think anyone interested in learning Ruby and /or Rails, should get it.

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* Ruby modules are programmatic constructs that are like classes (they have methods and constants,) but they are not directly instantiated like a true class.

Instead, modules are created to be inserted into to classes or objects to give the host class or object the extra functionality. Often modules are referred to as ‘mix-ins’ because modules are mixed in to classes.