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Learn Lisp the Hard Way

learnlispthehardway.org

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Re: Learn Lisp the Hard Way

#3
"Programming MotherFucker - Do you speak it?" -Zed Shaw

Couldn't resist the above quote from Zed Shaw; the guy who started the Learn X The Hard Way series. Overall I think these tend to be a very good approach to learn, especially for someone just starting out.

Re: Learn Lisp the Hard Way

#4
I'm about to learn Lisp and/or Clojure(Script). How does this book differ from for e.g Land of Lisp? I was planning to get my fingers dirty with some more light material before digging in the recommendations (PAIP, PCL, SICP).

Re: Learn Lisp the Hard Way

#5
I don't want to be too mean, but it looks like very little has changed since the six months or so when this last popped up on HN. The book still has none of the exercises that the exposition places so much weight on. Meanwhile, the introduction still mostly tells rather than shows—for all the discussion about how LISP is an elite hacker language, there are no actual examples backing up that statement (IS it in fact widely used by hackers?). Telling me how great LISP is and rambling on about Heinlenian mysticism is not going to work if theres no real substantive material.

Re: Learn Lisp the Hard Way

#6

"Programming MotherFucker - Do you speak it?" -Zed Shaw Couldn't resist the above quote from Zed Shaw; the guy who started the Learn X The Hard Way series. Overall I think these tend to be a very good approach to learn, especially for someone just starting out.

Zed didn't write this... it's some knockoff "hacker" using the same title and format.

Re: Learn Lisp the Hard Way

#8

I don't want to be too mean, but it looks like very little has changed since the six months or so when this last popped up on HN. The book still has none of the exercises that the exposition places so much weight on. Meanwhile, the introduction still mostly tells rather than shows—for all the discussion about how LISP is an elite hacker language, there are no actual examples backing up that statement (IS it in fact w…

Agreed. I bookmarked LLTHW a few months ago when I decided I "need" to learn a Lisp (if, indeed, one can ever be said to truly know a Lisp), but found the extreme WIP-nature off-putting. I think it will be a good resource in a few more years, though.

In the meantime, I've had GigaMonkeys.com open in a separate tab ever since and plan on purchasing the silly "Learn Lisp Through Games!" book.

Edit: But I did find the author's nouveau mysticism/occultism quite interesting. I tend to forget that those belief systems are still around.

Re: Learn Lisp the Hard Way

#9
post #6

"Programming MotherFucker - Do you speak it?" -Zed Shaw Couldn't resist the above quote from Zed Shaw; the guy who started the Learn X The Hard Way series. Overall I think these tend to be a very good approach to learn, especially for someone just starting out.

Zed didn't write this... it's some knockoff "hacker" using the same title and format.

Yeah; I got that. He used Zed's Learn X The Hard Way Latex starter kit.

Re: Learn Lisp the Hard Way

#10
post #4

I'm about to learn Lisp and/or Clojure(Script). How does this book differ from for e.g Land of Lisp? I was planning to get my fingers dirty with some more light material before digging in the recommendations (PAIP, PCL, SICP).

Looks like this one isn't totally finished, at the moment. You're probably better off starting with Land of Lisp.
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