(Part 4) Best microsoft programming books according to redditors

Effective C++: 50 Specific Ways to Improve Your Programs and Design

More Effective C++: 35 New Ways to Improve Your Programs and Designs

Check the syllabus and get a head start on the topics covered. My two favorite C books are C Programming: A Modern Approach and C Programming Language. The first one is for absolute beginners, while the second one is for someone who already knows the basics of programming.

I started with C++, its easy enough to learn but tough to master. Java or C++ would be the best, a tip would be find a school you like find the intro to programming class where the teacher posts the notes and assignments on his campus website. Download it all and buy the book and do it at the same pace.

C++ and Java are pretty much a toss up until you get to pointers so either one really. Also avoid using some of the advanced libraries and coding it out for the extra practice. I learned VB later and it works well enough and VB.NET is a huge step forward, but it is a bit finicky with ASP.NET VB pages so I would suggest the C++ route as C# didn't give me as many issues.

Also in my opinion C++ is easier than C, also find a page on coding standards a university posts online. Coding standards are important but the some of them are extremely complex and over the top. Once you learn one language its easy enough to pick up more. But after you learn a language its more about learning programming concepts that apply to problem solving like sorting, memory management, MVC, algorithms, etc. That is where you get the difference between someone who know how to program and someone who is a developer.

Also I used this book
http://www.amazon.com/Absolute-C-Walter-Savitch/dp/0201709279/ref=sr_1_sc_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1374738681&sr=8-2-spell&keywords=savidge+c%2B%2B

Are you in for some fun. =)

https://www.amazon.com/Beginning-ASP-NET-4-5-1-Wrox-Programmer-ebook/dp/B00IX62K42/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1480957102&sr=8-2&keywords=asp.net

I used this book to learn C++ as my first programming language circa 1998, and for me it was a magical experience. I remember reading it front to back as I progressed through my semester, and at the time it defined for me what computer science and software engineering meant. It was like holding raw power in my hands. I still own it to this day.

It's an odd book, written by C++ compiler writers; for people who haven't yet learned programming, but are otherwise deeply interested in system-level programming; who are starting to learn programming with C++, yet will some day become C++ compiler writers. :D

You'll probably find it both conceptually below your level, and prosaically over your head. It's quite verbose, starting off with the absolute basics, yet quickly touches on a number of highly technical details that probably constitute Too Much Information for what you need. Yet conceptually it's quite pure, and if you do manage to read it front-to-back, you will end up with as solid an understanding of what it means to program in C++98 as anywhere available.

Circa 2010, and not your first language, I'm not sure it will hold the same promise of mystery and discovery. Moreover, the world of programming languages has evolved a lot in the past decade. C++11 will be coming out next year, and is a huge improvement in the language -- the biggest in 13 years. Take a gander what is in store before either deciding to commit C++98 to memory -- or elsewise rejecting C++ as hopelessly dated and confusing.

Is this the book you're talking about? I think there's a couple of different versions.

As a junior developer, I think you should really have a strong grasp on the language. Senior developers will point you to the right libraries to use, but if you don't know the language, those libraries are worthless.

This book is $3 on Kindle, _slightly less than giving someone a Platinum badge on Reddit_: https://www.amazon.com/Rockin-Interview-comprehensive-reference-programming-ebook/dp/B00IT70S8U

Edit: I not only recommend the book, I own it. I have many years experience and if I go on a job search, I'll spend 30 disciplined minutes a night studying a book like this, because the worst thing you can do on an interview is commit _unforced errors_.

I learned ASP.NET/C# using an earlier version of Murach's current book on C#/ASP.NET. I was pretty much in your shoes with just C++ and some Java experience. I'm sure the latest version is just as good if not better than the one I used.

Edit: fixed link.

This is the one my university uses

I recommend you get familiar with C# first, before even touching anything in Unity. Trying to tackle both programming and the engine at the same time is a lot of information; it's easy to get overwhelmed with just one of those things, let alone both.


I learned with this book


If you're adamant about video tutorials Brackeys seemed pretty good

Back around 2001 I spent about nine months playing around with C++ and bought a stack of books. My favorite by far was C++ In Action. It won't teach you all the odd tricks and corner cases, and it doesn't do a lot of fancy stuff with templates, but it will quickly teach you the core of the language, and how to use it to write really solid programs.

For your situation it seems ideal. At this point you don't need to impress your coworkers with fancy tricks...you need to write good solid code that makes them comfortable trusting you. This book will get you there.

> If you want to understand C++ template metaprogramming (TMP) you have to know functional programming. Seriously. I want you to think of TMP as maximally obfuscated (subset of) Haskell

-- Bartosz Milewski, author of C++ in action.

> Generic programming I'm a lazy guy, so I love rule of 0, libraries, auto I'm too dumb to write correct code, so it's nice that most errors are caught at compile time (e.g. static type checking)

Haskell is great for these these things (except possibly "rule of 0"; I'm not sure what you mean).

First of all, "Generic programming" was originally implemented in ML, and Haskell is very, very closely related to ML.

Second, there's a lot of nice libraries on Hackage that can easily be integrated with your project via a build system like cabal or stack.

Third, Haskell actually has global type inference, and you don't even need a keyword like auto to take advantage of it.

Finally, Haskell's type system is often considered to be better than C++'s as far as turning mistakes into compilation errors.

I've always found the Deitel & Deitel books to be of great value when you want to learn how to use a programming language in the practice. The one for C is this one:

http://www.amazon.com/C-How-Program-5th/dp/0132404168/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1219748403&sr=8-1

But still, if you are an absolute beginner, The C Programming Language is the way to go. Small, concise, a pleasure to read, and even shows you how many of the standard library functions are written.

Bill Wagner, Effective C#

.NET Framework Design Guidelines

Hhm. Well, first of all, I think you might have a hard time finding a book that will teach about both design and web development. Each of those are complicated enough to write separate books on. I think you'll be better off by finding two separate books (one on web dev, one on design) than finding one that combines both.

A kind of the same goes for Web. Dev. This is such a broad term, that you will hardly find any book that tries to cram in every possible aspect of web development. If you are a bit more specific and focus on a specific technology (like NodeJS, ASP.net with Angular or just plain old PHP, MySQL and JavaScript ) you'll get more value for money. There are more generic books out there, but the technologies (especially for web dev) change almost daily and books simply can't keep up with that. If you'd ask me, I think you'll be much better off having a good understanding of JavaScript in general before you move on to a specific stack or framework.

I got the book M is for Data Monkey, but honestly I just picked easy projects and googled and looked in this subreddit as I went. Excel is Fun on youtube is always a good source. This dude is also awesome and so entertaining.

> 1.) I have little to no programming experience but very interested in the development of games is Unity a good place to start?
It's a great place to start. Get some books and start working away. Find some tutorials. Programming is hard but with time you will get it.
Google search for books
Good C# beginer book.
Tutorials by Unity
> 2.) How difficult is Unity to learn? (From a beginners standpoint)
Not very difficult. See above

> 3.) How long does it take to learn?
It depends on how easily you can pick up programming. I'm not a great programmer and that is what is slowing me down. I find myself going back to the basics every now and then.

> 4.) To make a decent looking game do I have to use any additional software (with Unity) / have experience with other software?
Blender is free for 3D modeling. It's very useful.

Programming in C++ by Stephen Dewhurst.
It is a short book (~200pages) and it doesn't waste any time on how to use Cout, printf etc..
It is designed for ppl who are familiar with C-like syntax. A thorough book ( a little old, but still relevant).
http://www.amazon.com/Programming-2nd-Stephen-C-Dewhurst/dp/0131827189

You could learn C++.

Isn't that book a bit deep for a newbie?

On topic: I'd go for something like Visual C# 2010 step-by-step, it's an easy read and covers everything you need to know.

WPF 4 Unleashed is also a must have, amazing book. Once you get to the WPF section of step-by-step transition to this one. The step-by-step book admits its WPF section is minimal and encourages you to look elsewhere.

Once you finish those then I'd pick up a more in depth one like Professional C# 4.0 and .NET 4 if you like.

EDIT: Just to add, I didn't use the eBook editions of WPF Unleashed or Professional C# 4.0 (hardcopy) so can't vouch for the quality of those, I have read all 3 though and own Step-By-Step as an ebook.

For beginners, this is the best book available.
http://www.amazon.com/Let-Us-Yashavant-P-Kanetkar/dp/8176561061/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1408206526&sr=8-1&keywords=let+us+c%2B%2B

Once you are comfortable you can buy C++ by Stroustrup.

You realize that what you're asking for is illegal, right?

Did you even try to find a used copy before whining about the price?

The best thing to do would be to pick up a book on general programming principles, something that will teach you the basics about control statements (booleans, conditionals, loops), variable types, and data structures.

Python (or Ruby) is probably the easiest language to get started with because there isn't a lot of strange syntax or archaic symbols, and you're relieved of the burden of doing low-level stuff like memory management (for the most part). Also, you'll be able to read other people's example code pretty quickly, because it is a lot like English.

C++ was my first language, but Dive Into Python by Mark Pilgrim was what I learned python from. You can read it for free here. I'd recommend learning the abstract concepts from a good beginners' c++ book if possible.

Google is your friend.

https://www.google.com/search?q=9780132990448&sugexp=chrome,mod=12&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8

Also here is a review I stumbled upon:

"The authors must believe that the date is due for a new edition, without actually having anything new content-wise to show for it, and the result is again, another edition that deals with the same problems that have plagued the earlier editions. You should read the reviews of the previous editions of this book and you'll get more information that might save you from wasting your time and money. Not much has changed in the new editions, other than the abundant use of colors in vain attempts to revitalize the overall poor quality of the content, but most importantly, there are much better alternatives, if you want to spend on a book to learn C and enjoy yourself while you're at it. I highly recommend the very best one out of my stack of C books: C Programming A modern approach by K. N. King.

It's obvious that new editions bring in more money to the authors and it keeps their books proudly filed under "new" on the store bookshelves, but without enough valid material to make it a worthy investment for students and programming enthusiasts, it is very difficult to recommend this book. I regret buying a copy of the latest edition and i compared it to an older 4th edition from a friend. The content is about the same, retaining its poor structure but some paragraphs of text were extended to meaningless conclusions, which are completely lost into the pages of text that are used to describe simple examples. Really, there was no need for the new edition. It's just not worth it, at least, from the point of view of the buyer/reader."

Here is the 5th edition (only $5!!): http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listing/0132404168/ref=sr_1_3_up_1_main_olp?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1345193151&sr=1-3&condition=used

Edit: Cheapest-
http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listing/013299044X/?tag=wwwcampusboocom-20&condition=used

Second Cheapest: http://www.alibris.com/booksearch.detail?invid=11365280428&cart=1&cm_sp=cart-_-listing-_-title