[Tutor] Python Book Recommendations

[Terry Carroll]

On Tue, 14 Aug 2007, Brian Wisti wrote:

> Check with your local library, too. 

Or even your not-so-local library.

> The Seattle Public Library provides access to a limited selection of the
> Safari books (stuff published in the last 2 years from a handful of
> publishers). Maybe your region has similar access.

I just did a quick search of the San Jose catalog, and see a bunch of 
online Python-related books:

  Core Python Programming (2006, 2 copies)
  Game Programming with Python (2004)
  Programming Python (2006, 2 copies)
  Python Cookbook (2005, 2 copies)
  Python Essential reference (2006, 2 copies)
  Python in a Nutshell (2006, 2 copies)
  Python Phrasebook (2006, 2 copies)
  Python programming for the absolute beginner (2003)
  Python programming on Win32 (2000)
  Rapid web appplications with TurboGears (2006, 2 copies)
  Sams teach yourself Python in 24 hours (2000)
  Twisted network programming essentials (2005)
  Twisted network programming essentials (2006, 2 copies)

And here's the kicker: 

   The City of San Jose offers free library cards to all California 
   residents or property owners. 

   http://www.sjlibrary.org/legal/policies.htm?pID=313

So a lot of not-so-local readers can get access to this material.  It's 
not nationwide or worldwide, but it's better than just being limited to 
San Jose.  (Of course I don't know the practical aspects of getting a 
library card; can you do it by mail?)

But leaving this particular library aside: see if there's a large library 
system that you're not personally a part of that you can use.  For years, 
I lived in Santa Clara, not too far from San Jose.  I used Santa Clara's 
own city library; the much larger San Jose library; the Santa Clara 
County library system (which provides a library to a number of cities in 
the county that prefer to be part of a larger system to operating their 
own); and even, for a while, the Santa Cruz County library system (when I 
used to work down that way).

Libraries rock.  Use them well, and you can rock, too.