Problem Solving with Algorithms and Data Structures Using Python 2nd Edition

Excellent book. Well laid out.

Pros: * It is free on [...] * One of the very few books on data structures and algorithms using Python * Problems have multiple solutions, which are timed and discussed in terms of complexity/cost * Experiments a made to prove that a given type has certain time complexity Cons: * The naming of variables and functions follows Java's style, not Python's style. The correct style is on [...] That teaches newbies the wrong habit and annoys experienced Python developers. * Big-O notation is defined incorrectly as "Order of magnitude" and called "a useful approximation to the actual number of steps in the computation" in the chapter on Algorithm Analysis. See wikipedia for a correct definition. You can't be teaching algo analysis and give a wrong definition of Big-O. * Recursion is defined incorrectly - "Recursion is a method of solving problems that involves breaking a problem down into smaller and smaller subproblems until you get to a small enough problem that it can be solved trivially". The above describes "divide and conquer", not "recursion". * Class definitions follow the syntax for "old-style" classes. Everyone moved to "new-style" classes a long time ago. * Sometimes even their "best" solution is not very good and/or does not take advantage of existing Python functionality. For example the Anagram Detection Example in the chapter on Algorithm Analysis - the last solution is counting the number of character occurrences by looping. This is inefficient. Just use collections.Counter Overall it's an OK intro, but not particularly in-depth and the Cons I've listed are serious drawbacks imho.

I did not enjoy the book at all but i decided to not be picky. The i encountered a couple of code issues. But what makes buy another data structure and algorithm book was that the physical quality of the book. It is really hard to keep it open in order to make your hands free to code. Stupid paper material and book size

Overall excellent condition and good price.

I am a huge fan of this book. There's seemingly a free version of it online but it's worth paying for for the sake of longevity and also just to support the authors, who did a really great job. I'm a "self-taught" software engineer (in scare quotes because no one is really self taught), which means I have no formal training in data structures and algorithms. A lot of books and courses are math heavy, which makes sense in an academic context but isn't terribly practical. I don't need to do limits and integrals and things to understand and use tree algorithms, and this book doesn't ask me to. It's just a step by step, very practical introduction to basic data structures and algorithms. Can't recommend it highly enough for someone trying to get into these topics, especially if you've been put off by theory and math-heavy courses or books in the past.

The book is great. Except there is one page that got folded on the inner part that makes it appear longer. But that’s no issue at all.

Não gostei da forma que o livro chegou. Veio com algumas marcas de sujeira e outras de impactos.