Comment Dijkstra wouldn't like the LingerieExceptions... (Score 3, Interesting) 327
Or the girl in the bathtub, or, well, about 98% of what's in a Head First book. And this was deliberate. I'm the co-perpetrator, and creator of the Head First series.
Personally, and as smart as he is...Dijkstra is just not someone I would have ever wanted to date, or even sit next to at a dinner party.
And wasn't he also the author of something to the effect of, "Anthropomorphizing is the sign of an immature mind?"
Well, we blew that one Big Time. I think half the book is anthropomorphized *things* -- objects, variables, threads, you name it, we've turned it into a living breathing (sometimes swearing) thinking *feeling* creature.
We'd like to counter Dijkstra with someone we feel certain would kick his ass in a celebrity boxing match. Roger Schank. He was chairman of the computer science dept at Yale (and director of the artificial intelligence project). Last I heard he was Distinguished Professor of Computer Science at Carnegie Mellon University. (OK, as far as the boxing thing goes, Schank does have the advantage of being alive...)
And since we know some people will be misled by the pictures into thinking that it must be a "for the lesser mind" , or that, "if it's that fun, it must not be serious." we can point to some heavy hitters who have endorsed the book (on the cover) . One is a former PARC guru and now the Director of User Sciences and Experience Research at IBM Almaden Research Center. He also teaches advanced studies in artificial intelligence at Stanford.
Another is Ken Arnold, co-author with James Gosling of "The Java Programming Language", and a co-developer of the Jini specification.
Then again, another quote inside the book is from Rick Rockwell, the original groom from "Who Wants To Marry A Millionaire" (now Darva Conger's ex.).
PARC and FOX in the same endorsement page...
That alone will stop some folks from getting it.
And if you don't like the style, it won't even be tolerable -- at best, an acquired taste, whereas a more traditional format is usually acceptable even if you don't LOVE it.
So a lot of folks (me especially) are wondering how many people out there will actually *want* to learn this way. This is a brand new concept, so we'll have to see. If you want to know how it's being received, check on Amazon from time to time, and search on Java, and sort on bestsellers, or check the O'Reilly bestseller list. The book has been out for only a few weeks; it will be up to learners/readers to decide.
I can tell you our proudest moment came when we got an email from a guy whose wife doesn't fully approve of him reading the book.
cheers,
Kathy Sierra, co-author Head First Java
Personally, and as smart as he is...Dijkstra is just not someone I would have ever wanted to date, or even sit next to at a dinner party.
And wasn't he also the author of something to the effect of, "Anthropomorphizing is the sign of an immature mind?"
Well, we blew that one Big Time. I think half the book is anthropomorphized *things* -- objects, variables, threads, you name it, we've turned it into a living breathing (sometimes swearing) thinking *feeling* creature.
We'd like to counter Dijkstra with someone we feel certain would kick his ass in a celebrity boxing match. Roger Schank. He was chairman of the computer science dept at Yale (and director of the artificial intelligence project). Last I heard he was Distinguished Professor of Computer Science at Carnegie Mellon University. (OK, as far as the boxing thing goes, Schank does have the advantage of being alive...)
And since we know some people will be misled by the pictures into thinking that it must be a "for the lesser mind" , or that, "if it's that fun, it must not be serious." we can point to some heavy hitters who have endorsed the book (on the cover) . One is a former PARC guru and now the Director of User Sciences and Experience Research at IBM Almaden Research Center. He also teaches advanced studies in artificial intelligence at Stanford.
Another is Ken Arnold, co-author with James Gosling of "The Java Programming Language", and a co-developer of the Jini specification.
Then again, another quote inside the book is from Rick Rockwell, the original groom from "Who Wants To Marry A Millionaire" (now Darva Conger's ex.).
PARC and FOX in the same endorsement page...
That alone will stop some folks from getting it.
And if you don't like the style, it won't even be tolerable -- at best, an acquired taste, whereas a more traditional format is usually acceptable even if you don't LOVE it.
So a lot of folks (me especially) are wondering how many people out there will actually *want* to learn this way. This is a brand new concept, so we'll have to see. If you want to know how it's being received, check on Amazon from time to time, and search on Java, and sort on bestsellers, or check the O'Reilly bestseller list. The book has been out for only a few weeks; it will be up to learners/readers to decide.
I can tell you our proudest moment came when we got an email from a guy whose wife doesn't fully approve of him reading the book.
cheers,
Kathy Sierra, co-author Head First Java
