Sebastopol, CA--Ask any Python aficionado and you'll be told that Python programmers have it all: an elegant language that offers object-oriented programming support, a readable, maintainable syntax, integration with C components, and an enormous collection of precoded standard library and extension modules. Moreover, Python is easy to learn but powerful enough to take on the most ambitious programming challenges. But one thing that Python programmers have lacked is a concise and clear reference resource, with the appropriate measure of guidance in how best to use Python's great power. Python in a Nutshell by Alex Martelli (O'Reilly, US $34.95) fills this need.
In the tradition of O'Reilly's "In a Nutshell" series, this book offers Python programmers one place to look when they need help remembering or deciphering the syntax of this open source language and its many modules. This comprehensive reference guide makes it easy to look up all the most frequently needed information--not just about the Python language itself, but also the most frequently used parts of the standard library and the most important third-party extensions.
"The 'In a Nutshell' books are unique by design: they offer one-stop-shopping and fast look-up of all the most frequently needed information about one technology. 'Python in a Nutshell' offers exactly this take about Python," notes Martelli. "Python is an easy, simple language, and the Nutshell format fits it wonderfully, as everything about the language can be fit in its concise and complete form, including some guidance on how best to use it. Python's library is huge and enormously rich, and here the Nutshell format and style is excellent in presenting the practical highlights--that 30% of the modules and functions that cover well over 90% of practical needs--including a very few crucial third-party extensions."
"Python in a Nutshell" focuses on Python 2.2 (and all its point releases), which is currently the most stable and widespread Python release. This book includes:
- A fast-paced tutorial on the syntax of the Python language itself
- An explanation of object-oriented programming in Python, covering both the classic and new-style object models
- Coverage of other core topics, including exceptions, modules, strings, and regular expressions
- A quick reference for Python's built-in types and functions, as well as the key modules in the Python standard library, including sys, os, time, thread, math, and socket, among many others
- Reference material on important third-party extensions, such as Numeric and Tkinter
- Information about extending Python and embedding it into other applications
"Python in a Nutshell" provides a solid, no-nonsense quick reference to information that programmers rely on the most. This latest addition to the best-selling "In a Nutshell" series will immediately earn its place in any Python programmer's library.
Additional Resources:
Python in a Nutshell
Alex Martelli
ISBN 0-596-00188-6, 636 pages, $34.95 (US), $54.95 (CAN), 24.95 (UK)
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