RE: *That* book
RE: *That* book
- Subject: RE: *That* book
- From: Brian Hook <email@hidden>
- Date: Wed, 12 Sep 2001 17:58:26 -0700
I've given this some more thought, and I think what a lot of this really
comes down to are three separate topics that really need to be covered
in their own books:
- object-oriented programming in general, preferably with an emphasis on
languages such as Smalltalk or Obj-C
- the Objective-C language
- the Cocoa framework
- the PB/IB development environment
Because different people need to learn different things, many approach
Learning Cocoa (and Learning Carbon) with different expectations,
typically along the lines of "I hope this teaches me what I don't know
and doesn't waste time on the things that I do know", and inevitably
those expectations are crushed.
If I was inventing a book series, I would likely have the following
volumes:
"OOP with Objective-C"
A brief introduction to object oriented programming and the Objective-C
language. Small book, probably very similar to the "Object Oriented
Programming and the Objective C Language" book/PDF we have now.
"The Objective-C Programming Language"
A rigorous overview of the Obj-C language, from beginner to
intermediate. Includes no system specific information (i.e. no PB/IB/OS
X), but maybe some "case studies" using Cocoa. Basically this would be
the Stroustrup or K&R for Obj-C.
"Learning Cocoa"
Basically what we have now, an introduction to using Cocoa. Small book
that gets readers up to speed on the fundamentals, if not the specifics.
"Advanced Cocoa Programming"
A comprehensive book that basically covers the ENTIRE Cocoa framework.
The Petzold of Cocoa. Likely 1000+ pages full of sample code, good
descriptions, very casual and approachable text, etc.
"Project Builder and Interface Builder: A User's Guide"
A comprehensive description of PB/IB/gdb/gcc and all the other tools
that Apple provides. Covers the environment instead of the language and
frameworks.
The above would pretty much cover the gamut of books necessary to make
OS X development much more approachable for experienced programmers
coming from other platforms and languages. Obviously domain specific
books would hopefully arise ("Writing Games for OS X" or "Network
Programming with Cocoa"), but the bare framework listed above would be
enough to get the ball rolling.
Of course, if every instance of "Description forthcoming" was replaced
with useful text in the official docs and if there was a much better
integrated help (cf. MSDN) for PB, we'd be light years ahead of where we
are today.
Brian