Invent Your Own Computer Games with Python, 2nd Edition, is now available in print on Amazon.com:

Buy “Invent Your Own Computer Games with Python” on Amazon.com

Of course, the book will still be available online, in full, for free under a Creative Commons license. If you like the book, but don’t/can’t buy the print version, go to Amazon and put in a review. The book is $25 (and qualifies for Amazon’s free shipping.)

I’m very excited about this. Thanks to all the readers and people who have emailed me. Thanks!

If you’d like to hear a boring but heart-warming story, ask a geek about how they learned programming. It’s like the opposite of trolling: you can instantly provoke tearfully-joyous nostalgia out of programmer strangers on the Internet by making this inquiry. Most of these stories will include some form of a programming language called BASIC, the Beginners All-purpose Symbolic Instruction Code created in the 1960’s at Dartmouth. The Atari generation has now grown up, and so have programming languages. But I think this nostalgia is responsible for us holding onto an out-dated language like a ratty security blanket.

In another post, I wrote about how Python is the new BASIC, as in it should take up the mantle of being the iconic first programming language for kids to learn. The rising sun of Python should be a long-awaited welcome for a new generation of coders. In the early 2000’s, there seemed to be (at least from my perspective) a noticeable gap in kid-accessible programming that was filled with JavaScript, TI-82 calculator programming, and Visual Basic. These were languages suited for the world of software engineers, but it was hardly ideal for the kid software hobbyist. (more…)

Interesting, but ultimately disappointing and unconvincing. (2 out of 5 stars)

Noe avoids mystical explanations and the supernatural. He doesn’t put forth souls or the vague appeals to quantum mechanics that are the hallmarks of new age quackery. And while he skates close, he doesn’t present consciousness as just merely a postmodern social construction. “Out of Our Heads” is grounded in this sense.

Consciousness, Noe states, is not a something that takes place in the brain like digestion takes place in the stomach. And it is more than just the sum of its parts, just as a performing dancer is more than just muscles. But as poetic as Noe gets, his arguments are full of discrepancies and far from compelling. His biggest mistake is that you can easily replace his use of the words “environment” or “body” with “the brain’s sensory input” and all his anecdotes and scientific appeals are just as valid and consistent. (more…)

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…)

A poem that I wrote that any geek with grand project ideas can relate to. (By the way, I’ve finally settled on Django as the framework for my next web app. Maybe with SQLAlchemy. Or not. Or maybe I’ll do it in LISP instead. Or Haskell. Or Erlang. Either way, I still need to learn more JavaScript for the front-end. I should probably buy another book on it. Or two.)

Starting Out, by Albert Sweigart

“When starting out,” the sculptor said,
“First lay out your tools with care.
And always remember, through and through,
The most important thing is to prepare.”

The sculptor’s tools were neat and ordered,
His studio was well-lit and clean,
He always began by sweeping eleven times,
And sometimes twelve or thirteen.

Centered was an untouched marble block,
His raw, undeveloped masterpiece,
Here is where the magic was made,
On this stone his genius would be released.

“But not so fast,” the sculptor warned,
“Great works don’t just fall from Heaven,
After all, it takes nine months to make a baby,
And sometimes, ten or eleven.” (more…)