Computer fundamentals, the book I wish I had. The creative glue for intermediate-level programming concepts.

Improve your programming versatility by learning the nuances of numbers & their representations.

Not a math wizard? No problem! Computers are monsters because they think different than us. We will learn:

• What the monsters look like.
• How you can prevent the 125 million dollar mistake that caused the NASA Climate Orbitor to crash, and how Tony Hoare made a billion dollar mistake.
• How do emojis, text, and everything else in your computer work by interpreting numbers differently?
• Where and how are numbers stored and accessed?
• How can we stop thinking about numbers by using abstraction?

This is an evergreen classic programming book, focused on foundational principles rather than expiring knowledge trends. We feel 10 bucks is a fair price per digital volume and we don’t do sales. It’s a great deal, anytime! Feel free to buy the book now, or later, or whenever. The book will still be relevant, though you might encounter the monsters sooner…

We also recommend these evergreen classic programming books:

• Gödel, Escher, Bach: an Eternal Golden Braid by Douglas Hofstadter
• Data and Reality: A Timeless Perspective on Perceiving and Managing Information in Our Imprecise World by William Kent
• A Mathematician’s Lament by Paul Lockhart
• Structure and Interpretation of Computer Programs by Gerald Jay Sussman, Hal Abelson, and Julie Sussman
• Patterns of Software by Richard P. Gabriel
• Design Patterns by Alexander Shvetz (Refactoring Guru)
• Ladders Of Abstraction by Bret Victor (Worry Dream)
• Computer Networking: A Top-Down Approach by James F. Kurose and Keith W. Ross
• Crafting Interpreters by Robert Nystrom
• The Algorithm Design Manual by Steven Skiena
• Computer Systems: A Programmer’s Perspective by Randal E. Bryant and David R. O’Hallaron
• Computer Organization and Design by David A. Patterson and John L. Hennessy
• Operating Systems: Three Easy Pieces by Andrea Arpaci-Dusseau and Remzi Arpaci-Dusseau
• Designing Data-Intensive Applications: The Big Ideas Behind Reliable, Scalable, and Maintainable Systems by Martin Kleppmann
• The Mythical Man-Month by Fred Brooks
• Systemantics by John Gall

Credits

Written by Kevin Focke

Surrealistic drawings and cover background by Darío Mekler

Monster drawings and cover cartoon by Thais Freire Sanchez