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Save 50% on all oreilly's ebooks and videos (today only)

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Re: Save 50% on all oreilly's ebooks and videos (today only)

#42

Post by salimmadjd »

eloisius wrote: post #36

I'm definitely grabbing Programming Collective Intelligence[1] and Machine Learning for Hackers[2]. Any recommendations based on those? [1] http://shop.oreilly.com/product/9780596529321.do [2] http://shop.oreilly.com/product/0636920018483.do

Here is a python conversion of machine learning for hackers, http://slendrmeans.wordpress.com/category/will-it-python/

Thanks for posting the collective book...I think I need to get it now :)

Re: Save 50% on all oreilly's ebooks and videos (today only)

#44

Post by bitops »

edu wrote: post #13

I'm having problems with the checkout. Is it working for you?

I'm getting 500s all over the place, typical for their big sale days. Once the sale hits reddit, the masses descend. Usually if you just keep trying your order will make it through. But it takes a bit of patience.

Re: Save 50% on all oreilly's ebooks and videos (today only)

#45

Post by noisebleed »

duck wrote: post #41

Has anyone read Node: Up and Running yet?

I haven't gotten far enough to give a good review, but you do know they have the whole thing online for free as an "Open Feedback Publishing System" project, right? http://ofps.oreilly.com/titles/9781449398583/

Re: Save 50% on all oreilly's ebooks and videos (today only)

#46

Post by duck »

noisebleed wrote: post #45
duck wrote: post #41

Has anyone read Node: Up and Running yet?

I haven't gotten far enough to give a good review, but you do know they have the whole thing online for free as an "Open Feedback Publishing System" project, right? http://ofps.oreilly.com/titles/9781449398583/

I did not know that, thanks!!

Re: Save 50% on all oreilly's ebooks and videos (today only)

#47

Post by philipithomas »

babarock wrote: post #8
philipithomas wrote: post #4

I love o'reilly publications, but I remain a fan of printed books. Specifically in technical texts, I like being able to scan and leaf through physical pages. If they had a special on printed books today, I would buy a couple; alas, with this special, my wallet remains closed.

As much as I agree with you, I find that the ability to run a grep (or the more commont Ctrl+F) to quickly look for what I'm looking for of very high value. I usually enjoy reading the book from front to cover, but as soon as I want to consult it again for reference, I am happy to have the computer do the search work for me. Other than that, I often read on the (crowded) subway ride to work. Carrying a 600 page book…

I have access to Safari Books through my university, so this hasn't yet been a problem, but it's a fair point.

However, when I'm searching for something precise, a google search / help documentation usually suffices. When I'm reading a book, it's generally in search of more deep understanding or just the process of learning in general - i.e. more long-form learning. For the latter I would still prefer printed.

Re: Save 50% on all oreilly's ebooks and videos (today only)

#49

Post by AlisdairO »

tomku wrote: post #38
AlisdairO wrote: post #16

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Depends on what you're into, but from the database angle: Learning SQL is a really excellent intro, and probably covers the majority of what your average developer is going to ever need to know about SQL ( http://shop.oreilly.com/product/9780596520847.do ) SQL and Relational Theory gives you more background on relational theory - basically gives a more academic background for existing practitioners of SQL. Date is pr…

Since you seem to know your database books, is there anything you can tell me about Date's latest, "Database Design and Relational Theory"[1]? [1]: http://shop.oreilly.com/product/0636920025276.do

I've not read the book so can't comment on it specifically, but I can tell you about Date, who is an eminent author in the field. His 'An Introduction to Database Systems' is perhaps the best book to read if you want to get an idea of how DBMSs work internally. Anyway:

- He really dislikes SQL (His books often use Tutorial D, which is a language Date created to represent what a good relational query language would look like).

- He really hates the use of null values.

- He's of an academic bent - dryish, but still perfectly readable.

- I would say that he tends to gloss over performance issues that get in the way of ideal database schema design, viewing them as implementation issues (which is true, but in reality, all DBMS products have weaknesses, and at some point you'll probably have to make compromises in your schema design).

With this said, I would read his book. He'll tell you the best way to do things, if you ignore performance. This puts you in a good position to start out from a pure, ideal implementation from which you can compromise when you have to. I much prefer this to a less-educated ad-hoc approach.

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