From 2008 to 2009, I wrote a book called “Invent Your Own Computer Games with Python” ( http://inventwithpython.com ) which guides young adults and complete beginners through learning how to program in the Python language. I’ve just completed the second edition of the book, which has been an exhausting amount of work. Looking back over it, I realized that it could have been a much less exhausting experience if I had made some simple preparations.

I’ve decided to write up this post on the lessons learned and the best practices for writing a technical book that aims to teach programming. This post will help me organize my thoughts so that I’m more prepared for my own future writing, but the practical tips can help others who aspire to write a book as well. (more…)

It’s been a lot of work, but the second edition of “Invent Your Own Computer Games with Python” is now ready. The book’s new website is http://inventwithpython.com

“Invent with Python” is a free book that teaches kids (and adults) how to make computer games in the Python language. It’s aimed at people who have had no experience with programming before. The website also has some nifty features: online diff, a tracing tool, and (soon) video tutorials to accompany the book.

Thanks a lot to everyone who’s helped out!

I had an email interview with Grindstone Journal a couple weeks back. The interview material was used in the article “Atheists find challenges, notoriety and community on Youtube.”

Posted below is a transcript of the email interview in full: (more…)

This is playing off of this post on Reddit: http://www.reddit.com/r/netsec/comments/7u9mx/hey_reddit_think_its_easy_to_link_an_online/

The joke of course is that my name is plastered all over this website and the web in general. I was planning on donating to the EFF anyway (and, hey, so should you.) But it got me thinking about identity online. (more…)

I posted this Python cheat sheet before in my PyBat post, but several people found it useful so I wanted to give it it’s own post for emphasis.

And if you just want to see some simple samples of Python code, you can always look at the example programs from my free book for non-programmers, Invent Your Own Computer Games with Python (released under a Creative Commons license).