General Books - Page 2

Structure and Interpretation of Computer Programs - 2nd Edition (MIT Electrical Engineering and Computer Science)

Harold Abelson, Gerald Jay Sussman

Amazon Price: $59.04 List Price: $82.00 Usually ships in 24 hours By: The MIT Press Amazon Marketplace: 41 new & used starting at $45.95

Buy at Amazon.com

Browse similar items by category:
Subjects -> Computers & Internet -> Computer Science -> General AAS
Subjects -> Computers & Internet -> Programming -> Algorithms -> General
Subjects -> Computers & Internet -> Programming -> Algorithms -> General AAS

Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 159 Average rating: 3.5 of 5

Editorial Review:

Structure and Interpretation of Computer Programs has had a dramatic impact on computer science curricula over the past decade. This long-awaited revision contains changes throughout the text.

There are new implementations of most of the major programming systems in the book, including the interpreters and compilers, and the authors have incorporated many small changes that reflect their experience teaching the course at MIT since the first edition was published.

A new theme has been introduced that emphasizes the central role played by different approaches to dealing with time in computational models: objects with state, concurrent programming, functional programming and lazy evaluation, and nondeterministic programming. There are new example sections on higher-order procedures in graphics and on applications of stream processing in numerical programming, and many new exercises.

In addition, all the programs have been reworked to run in any Scheme implementation that adheres to the IEEE standard.

Combinatorial Optimization: Algorithms and Complexity

Christos H. Papadimitriou, Kenneth Steiglitz

Amazon Price: $13.57 List Price: $19.95 Usually ships in 24 hours By: Dover Publications Amazon Marketplace: 30 new & used starting at $9.95

Buy at Amazon.com

Browse similar items by category:
Subjects -> Computers & Internet -> Programming -> Algorithms -> General
Subjects -> Computers & Internet -> Programming -> Algorithms -> General AAS
Subjects -> Professional & Technical -> Professional Science -> Mathematics -> Pure Mathematics -> Combinatorics

Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 18 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

A classic... 5 out of 5 stars.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful.

I won't lie to you: this book is well written but relatively hard to read. The subject is inherently difficult, after all! I highly suggest it, though, because the author is a recognized expert on the field and the price is relatively low. It's worth it even if you enjoy a few pages...

Combinatorial Optimization: Algorithms and Complexity 5 out of 5 stars.
0 of 3 people found this review helpful.

The book's state is very good, so I am satisfied with it.

Well written 4 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

I bought this book because I wanted to have theory on linear programming including duality, integer linear programming, typical graph algorithms and matroid theory in one book. Up to now I have read only most of the chapter on matroids and I would like to say a big thanks to the author.

Although you will not solve the world's problems with greedy algorithms, my mathematical part of the heart was pleased and satisfied by the theory which explained the very nice relation between matroids and greedy algorithms.

Maybe I will tell you more in a few months

Editorial Review:

Clearly written graduate-level text considers the Soviet ellipsoid algorithm for linear programming; efficient algorithms for network flow, matching, spanning trees, and matroids; the theory of NP-complete problems; approximation algorithms, local search heuristics for NP-complete problems, more. "Mathematicians wishing a self-contained introduction need look no further." — American Mathematical Monthly. 1982 edition.

.

Data Mining with Microsoft SQL Server 2008

Jamie MacLennan, ZhaoHui Tang, Bogdan Crivat

Amazon Price: $44.84 List Price: $50.00 Usually ships in 24 hours By: Wiley Amazon Marketplace: 25 new & used starting at $29.72

Buy at Amazon.com

Browse similar items by category:
Subjects -> Computers & Internet -> Databases -> Database Management Systems
Subjects -> Computers & Internet -> Databases -> Data Mining
Subjects -> Computers & Internet -> Databases -> SQL -> General

Editorial Review:

Understand how to use the new features of Microsoft SQL Server 2008 for data mining by using the tools in Data Mining with Microsoft SQL Server 2008, which will show you how to use the SQL Server Data Mining Toolset with Office 2007 to mine and analyze data. Explore each of the major data mining algorithms, including naive bayes, decision trees, time series, clustering, association rules, and neural networks. Learn more about topics like mining OLAP databases, data mining with SQL Server Integration Services 2008, and using Microsoft data mining to solve business analysis problems.

Hacker's Delight

Henry S. Warren

Amazon Price: $43.99 List Price: $54.99 Usually ships in 24 hours By: Addison-Wesley Professional Amazon Marketplace: 36 new & used starting at $38.48

Buy at Amazon.com

Browse similar items by category:
Subjects -> Computers & Internet -> Business & Culture -> Hacking
Subjects -> Computers & Internet -> Business & Culture -> Security
Subjects -> Computers & Internet -> Computer Science -> Systems Analysis & Design

Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 14 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

Editorial Review:

A collection useful programming advice the author has collected over the years; small algorithms that make the programmer's task easier. *At long last, proven short-cuts to mastering difficult aspects of computer programming *Learn to program at a more advanced level than is generally taught in schools and training courses, and much more advanced than can be learned through individual study/experience. *An instant cult classic for programmers! Computer programmers are often referred to as hackers -- solitary problem solvers engrossed in a world of code as they seek elegant solutions to building better software. While many view these unique individuals as "madmen," the truth is that much of the computer programmer's job involves a healthy mix of arithmetic and logic. In Hacker's Delight, veteran programmer Hank Warren shares the collected wisdom -- namely tips and tricks -- from his considerable experience in the world of application development. The resulting work is an irresistible collection that will help even the most seasoned programmers better their craft. Henry S. Warren Jr. has had a 40-year career with IBM, spanning the computer field from the IBM 704 to PowerPC. He has worked on various military command and control systems, and on the SETL project under Jack Schwartz at NYU. Since 1973 he has been in IBM's Research Division at Yorktown Heights, New York. Here he has done compiler and computer architecture work on the 801 computer and its several variants through PowerPC. Presently he is working on the Blue Gene petaflop computer project. He received his Ph.D. in Computer Science from the Courant Institute at New York University in 1980.

Approximation Algorithms

Vijay V. Vazirani

Amazon Price: $39.96 List Price: $49.95 Usually ships in 24 hours By: Springer Amazon Marketplace: 17 new & used starting at $36.00

Buy at Amazon.com

Browse similar items by category:
Subjects -> Computers & Internet -> Graphic Design -> General
Subjects -> Computers & Internet -> Graphic Design -> General AAS
Subjects -> Computers & Internet -> Programming -> Algorithms -> General

Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 6 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

Very nice introduction 5 out of 5 stars.
6 of 6 people found this review helpful.

This is a quite nice book by an author who is well-known in the field. The book is not thematic, instead it presents certain problems in each chapter along with the main approximation algorithms and correctness proofs. Yet, each new concept is well introduced with the problems. For instance, the author presents LP-based techniques on the same problem (set cover) in the second part of the book. This makes it quite easy to compare and understand different techniques. The last part of the book is a little bit advanced compared to the first two parts which uses combinatorial or LP-based analysis of the algorithms. The presentation of the PCP theorem- arguably the deepest theorem of computer science- and its consequences are also in the last part.

A warning though: The book is quite terse at times, which enforces a dense reading. This may not be suitable for an undergradute study. My only complaint is that the PCP theorem might well be introduced with a little more intution.

Overall, I rate this book as excellent. If you are interested in algorithms, you should definitely buy it. Also, buy the "Complexity and Approximation" by Ausiello, Crescenzi and others. They provide a more comprehensive and thematic treatment. It also has an excellent bibliography and list of NP-hard problems. These two will make a great couple. The book edited by Hochbaum (Approximation Algorithms for NP-hard problems) on the other hand presents detailed information on the algorithms.

Editorial Review:

Approximation algorithms are currently a central and fast-developing area of research in theoretical computer science. This monograph covers the basic techniques used in the latest research work, techniques that everyone in the field should know, and shows that they form the beginnings of a promising theory. The author consolidates progress made so far, including some very recent results, and makes a strong effort to convey the beauty and excitement of work in the field.

Computational Geometry: Algorithms and Applications

Mark de Berg, Otfried Cheong, Marc van Kreveld, Mark Overmars

Amazon Price: $39.96 List Price: $49.95 Usually ships in 24 hours By: Springer Amazon Marketplace: 32 new & used starting at $20.00

Buy at Amazon.com

Browse similar items by category:
Subjects -> Computers & Internet -> Computer Science -> Artificial Intelligence -> Computer Mathematics
Subjects -> Computers & Internet -> Computer Science -> Artificial Intelligence -> Robotics
Subjects -> Computers & Internet -> Computer Science -> Software Engineering -> Information Systems

Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 15 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Editorial Review:

This well-accepted introduction to computational geometry is a textbook for high-level undergraduate and low-level graduate courses. The focus is on algorithms and hence the book is well suited for students in computer science and engineering. Motivation is provided from the application areas: all solutions and techniques from computational geometry are related to particular applications in robotics, graphics, CAD/CAM, and geographic information systems. For students this motivation will be especially welcome. Modern insights in computational geometry are used to provide solutions that are both efficient and easy to understand and implement. All the basic techniques and topics from computational geometry, as well as several more advanced topics, are covered. The book is largely self-contained and can be used for self-study by anyone with a basic background in algorithms.

In this third edition, besides revisions to the second edition, new sections discussing Voronoi diagrams of line segments, farthest-point Voronoi diagrams, and realistic input models have been added.

Computers and Intractability: A Guide to the Theory of NP-Completeness (Series of Books in the Mathematical Sciences)

M. R. Garey, D. S. Johnson

Amazon Price: $57.37 Usually ships in 24 hours By: W. H. Freeman Amazon Marketplace: 18 new & used starting at $35.00

Buy at Amazon.com

Browse similar items by category:
Subjects -> Computers & Internet -> Programming -> APIs & Operating Environments -> Device Drivers
Subjects -> Computers & Internet -> Programming -> Algorithms -> General
Subjects -> Computers & Internet -> Programming -> Algorithms -> General AAS

Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 13 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

Editorial Review:

This book's introduction features a humorous story of a man with a line of people behind him, who explains to his boss, "I can't find an efficient algorithm, but neither can all these famous people." This man illustrates an important quality of a class of problems, namely, the NP-complete problems: if you can prove that a problem is in this class, then it has no known polynomial-time solution that is guaranteed to work in general. This quality implies that the problem is difficult to deal with in practice.

The focus of this book is to teach the reader how to identify, deal with, and understand the essence of NP-complete problems; Computers and Intractability does all of those things effectively. In a readable yet mathematically rigorous manner, the book covers topics such as how to prove that a given problem is NP-complete and how to cope with NP-complete problems. (There is even a chapter on advanced topics, with numerous references.) Computers and Intractability also contains a list of more than 300 problems--most of which are known to be NP-complete--with comments and references.

The Art of Computer Programming, Volume 4, Fascicle 0: Introduction to Combinatorial Algorithms and Boolean Functions (Art of Computer Programming)

Donald E. Knuth

Amazon Price: $17.99 List Price: $19.99 Usually ships in 1 to 3 weeks By: Addison-Wesley Professional Amazon Marketplace: 26 new & used starting at $14.65

Buy at Amazon.com

Browse similar items by category:
Subjects -> Computers & Internet -> Programming -> Algorithms -> General
Subjects -> Computers & Internet -> Programming -> Algorithms -> General AAS
Subjects -> Computers & Internet -> Programming -> Introductory & Beginning -> General

Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 3 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

Editorial Review:

This multivolume work on the analysis of algorithms has long been recognized as the definitive description of classical computer science. The three complete volumes published to date already comprise a unique and invaluable resource in programming theory and practice. Countless readers have spoken about the profound personal influence of Knuth’s writings. Scientists have marveled at the beauty and elegance of his analysis, while practicing programmers have successfully applied his “cookbook” solutions to their day-to-day problems. All have admired Knuth for the breadth, clarity, accuracy, and good humor found in his books.

To begin the fourth and later volumes of the set, and to update parts of the existing three, Knuth has created a series of small books called fascicles, which will be published at regular intervals. Each fascicle will encompass a section or more of wholly new or revised material. Ultimately, the content of these fascicles will be rolled up into the comprehensive, final versions of each volume, and the enormous undertaking that began in 1962 will be complete.

Volume 4, Fascicle 0

This fascicle introduces what will become by far the longest chapter in The Art of Computer Programming, a chapter on combinatorial algorithms that will itself fill three full-sized volumes. Combinatorial algorithms, informally, are techniques for the high-speed manipulation of extremely large quantities of objects, such as permutations or the elements of graphs. Combinatorial patterns or arrangements solve vast numbers of practical problems, and modern approaches to dealing with them often lead to methods that are more than a thousand times faster than the straightforward procedures of yesteryear. This fascicle primes the pump for everything that follows in the chapter, discussing first the essential ideas of combinatorics and then introducing fundamental ideas for dealing efficiently with 0s and 1s inside a machine, including Boolean basics and Boolean function evaluation. As always, the author’s exposition is enhanced by hundreds of new exercises, arranged carefully for self-instruction, together with detailed answers.

Algorithms

Sanjoy Dasgupta, Christos Papadimitriou, Umesh Vazirani

Amazon Price: $34.87 Usually ships in 24 hours By: McGraw-Hill Science/Engineering/Math Amazon Marketplace: 29 new & used starting at $25.95

Buy at Amazon.com

Browse similar items by category:
Subjects -> Computers & Internet -> Databases -> General
Subjects -> Computers & Internet -> Databases -> General AAS
Subjects -> Computers & Internet -> Programming -> Algorithms -> General

Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 11 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Editorial Review:

This text, extensively class-tested over a decade at UC Berkeley and UC San Diego, explains the fundamentals of algorithms in a story line that makes the material enjoyable and easy to digest. Emphasis is placed on understanding the crisp mathematical idea behind each algorithm, in a manner that is intuitive and rigorous without being unduly formal..

. Features include:. The use of boxes to strengthen the narrative: pieces that provide historical context, descriptions of how the algorithms are used in practice, and excursions for the mathematically sophisticated..

. Carefully chosen advanced topics that can be skipped in a standard one-semester course, but can be covered in an advanced algorithms course or in a more leisurely two-semester sequence..

. An accessible treatment of linear programming introduces students to one of the greatest achievements in algorithms. An optional chapter on the quantum algorithm for factoring provides a unique peephole into this exciting topic. In addition to the text, DasGupta also offers a Solutions Manual, which is available on the Online Learning Center..

. "Algorithms is an outstanding undergraduate text, equally informed by the historical roots and contemporary applications of its subject. Like a captivating novel, it is a joy to read." Tim Roughgarden Stanford University. .

Concrete Mathematics: A Foundation for Computer Science (2nd Edition)

Ronald L. Graham, Donald E. Knuth, Oren Patashnik

Amazon Price: $59.99 List Price: $74.99 Usually ships in 24 hours By: Addison-Wesley Professional Amazon Marketplace: 29 new & used starting at $40.99

Buy at Amazon.com

Browse similar items by category:
Subjects -> Computers & Internet -> Computer Science -> Software Engineering -> Information Systems
Subjects -> Computers & Internet -> Computer Science -> General AAS
Subjects -> Computers & Internet -> Programming -> Algorithms -> General

Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 31 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Great book... some reviewers simply don't get it. 5 out of 5 stars.
12 of 12 people found this review helpful.

I have the First Edition and came here to look into the Second Edition. There are several negative reviews and basically those folks have fundamental misunderstandings. So I'll add my review.

First, what kind of book is it? It is not an introductory-level math book with lots and lots of repetition. It is a book on hard math, done in a concise manner by brilliant teachers who assume students are very comfortable with calculus, probability, etc. You really cannot afford to skip around and dabble as if this were an introductory algebra course or something. (I'm not being elitist. I did not attend Stanford and don't consider myself a math genius and am not making this a "we versus the unwashed masses" issue, as I have really struggled with the material myself.)

Second, what is the book about? Several reviewers have theories on where the "Concrete" part of the title comes from, but the bottom line is that it's a book on the discrete math that you need to know for theoretical computer science. (For example, discrete calculus versus the continuous calculus we all learned in school.) Any Analysis of Algorithms course, for example, will confront you with recurrence equations and lots of discrete math.

Third, how is the book organized? At first, it appears rather disjoint. The authors have a sort of, "Hey, look at that flower," and "hey, look under this rock" kind of approach as you walk down a path but the path itself isn't really spelled out. None-the-less, the book does build step-by-step from examples of recurrence equations (Towers of Hanooi, Josephus) in Chapter 1, to Generating Functions in Chapter 7.

Perhaps they could have made the path more explicit, but I can't see how they'd organize it much differently. They could throw entire chapters into Appendices, but things build on each other in such a way that you'd simply have to skip around from the main chapters to the Appendix anyhow.

Fourth, what other books cover this material? I'm not well-qualified to talk about the entire universe of books, but I must say that the three Analysis of Algorithm books I have for my current class definitely give only the very basics of this material and really only present two possibilities: 1) fiddle around with the equation, possibly using a graphic representation, until you see a pattern and make a guess, then prove it by induction, or 2) if your algorithm is one specific class, plug some numbers into this 3-part formula and if one of the parts applies an answer will pop out for you. Concrete Math is gives you many powerful tools to solve such problems.

Fifth, what is the flavor of the book? The authors have an informal writing style -- outside of the very formal math and proofs -- and the book has marginal notes that were contributed by the "beta-tester students" as the book was being written.

Some reviewers have criticized the marginal notes, and I simply have to shake my head and be glad I don't have to work alongside them. Yes, many of the notes are puns or other humor, but those are a nice break from the heavy math. And many of the notes provide great hints and perspectives from students who are also learning the material. I wish all technical books had such notes, but only a Knuth could get a publisher to go to the trouble.

So that's my review. An excellent book that's very intense and covers a hard, very technical topic. It's like learning math from algebra to differential equations all over again in a different language, and perhaps the negative reviewers simply never understood this. If you're not a programmer who needs to rigorously analyze algorithms, skip the book unless you simply want to learn for the joy of learning.

Editorial Review:

This book, updated and improved, introduces the mathematics that support advanced computer programming and the analysis of algorithms. The book's primary aim is to provide a solid and relevant base of mathematical skills. It is an indispensable text and reference for computer scientists and serious programmers in virtually every discipline.