macOS Did I choose the right book

[MotionxxUSxx]

http://www.informit.com/store/product.aspx?isbn=0672325861

I just picked up this book to teach myself objective c. Is this the best book for beginners. I currently work as a business analyst and am extremely proficient with SQL. I work with developers everyday at my job, so coding is not foreign to me.

I would like to start developing mac apps and eventually work my way to the iphone. I know it will be a long road, but want to make sure that I am starting at the right place. Is it a problem that this book does not cover the new objective C 2.0? Thanks

 

[Jeremy1026]

http://www.informit.com/store/product.aspx?isbn=0672325861

I just picked up this book to teach myself objective c. Is this the best book for beginners. I currently work as a business analyst and am extremely proficient with SQL. I work with developers everyday at my job, so coding is not foreign to me.

I would like to start developing mac apps and eventually work my way to the iphone. I know it will be a long road, but want to make sure that I am starting at the right place. Thanks

I ordered the same book friday. Maybe we can learn together, I have a bit of programming knowledge from my days with the PSP.

 

[MadDoc]

It's not a bad book by any means (especially if your not a newcomer to programming). Everything in Objective-C 1.0 will function fine in 2.0 but 2.0 adds very handy features (as I am discovering) such as garbage collection (a real effort-saver for most people). I would recommend Apple's text on Objective-C 2.0 here. It's very comprehensive, easy to read and free. Also, take a look at this website for some easy to read PDFs on developing for the Mac.

Good luck!

MadDoc,

 

[MacDonaldsd]

Its a nice book to get started off with objective-C and indeed programming.

like MadDoc said objective-C 1.0 code will work fine so you don't have to worry.

Your want to pick up Aaron Hillegass' Cocoa book, but the new version is out in June so you may wish to wait for that.

To be good at Cocoa you need to have a good understanding of Objective-C (as that is the language you decide to use with it) so best to take things step by step.

Have Fun

 

[iSee]

In my opinion, it's the best book for learning Objective-C when you aren't already proficient in a C-like language. So I think you got a good first book.

The main features of Objective-C 2.0 are:
* Garbage collection
* Properties
* Fast Enumeration

Properties and fast enumeration won't change the way you program much. They are worth learning, but it would be fine to learn them (through the Apple docs) after working through the Objective-C section of that book.

GC *does* change the way you program a bit. At this time it may still be useful you learn the "old" way of managing memory. For example, if you want to write apps that run on Tiger or the iPhone/Touch, GC is not available, so you'll want to learn the retain/release and autorelease patterns.

 

[krye]

That's the same book I'm reading now. So far so good. I liked the idea that the author believes that it is not necessary to learn C before learning Objective C. A lot of people seem to believe that they are the same, or close enough that if you know C, picking up Obj-C should be a snap. That may be true if you already have a proficiency in C, but the newbie shouldn't have to learn C before learning Obj C. I’ve seen enough stuff in the few books I perused at the bookstore to know that learning one right after the other is just going to confuse the newbie. (Like #INCLUDE vs #IMPORT) If you’re going to program in Cocoa, learn Objective C, and not C, and then get yourself an Xcode book.

 

[Jeremy1026]

My copy came today, I'm into Chapter 4 and feel that I learned quite a bit from it. I think this is definitely "The Book" to learn from.