No Starch Press publishes "How NOT To Program in C++

[Brad Jones]

NO STARCH PRESS TO PUBLISH "HOW NOT TO PROGRAM IN C++

Brainteasers that make C++ programmers think

San Francisco, CA - No Starch Press, the publisher that makes computing fun, announces the latest in their line of innovative computer books, "HOW NOT TO PROGRAM IN C++ " (by Steve Oualline, $24.95, ISBN 1886411956, March 2003). This fun and challenging C++ puzzle book promises to sharpen the skills of any programmer.

"I still remember the first program I ever wrote," says author Steve Oualline. "It computed 2+2. The answer was 2. The program was one line long and it still had a bug in it." Oualline's anecdotes and geeky sense of humor keep readers reading as he challenges them to find the bugs in over 100 broken programs. Based on errors programmers encounter everyday, the
exercises range from easy (one wrong character) to mind-twisting (errors with multiple threads). Hints are provided throughout, and answers are at the back of the book.

"Every other book out there tells you, 'Type this in and it works.' Mine makes you think," says Oualline. "You don't learn by typing in a working program and running it. You learn by sweating over a program for six solid hours only to find that you made a stupid mistake. Then you never make that mistake again."

"How Not To Program in C++" includes examples of:

* Three broken versions of the classic "Hello World" program
* Novice errors every new programmer will encounter
* One character blunders in programs that are absolutely correct and working, except for one misplaced character
* Mistakes that even seasoned C++ experts would find difficult to locate

"This book is like crosswords, but for geeks," says Oualline. "Even programmers need a little recreation."

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Steve Oualline has been a programmer for over 35 years. He is the author of many best-selling computer books, including "Practical C Programming" and "Practical C++ Programming" (O'Reilly). He lives with his wife and two dogs in southern California. On the weekends he works as a real engineer on the Poway-Midland Railroad.

HOW NOT TO PROGRAM IN C++
Steve Oualline
ISBN 1886411956
304 pp., $24.95, $37.95 (Cdn)
March 2003


ABOUT NO STARCH PRESS
Since 1994, No Starch Press has published unique and sometimes fringe books on computing, with a focus on Open Source, security, hacking, web development, programming, gaming, and alternative operating systems. Our titles have personality, our authors are passionate, and our goal is to make computing fun.