Version 9 of Book Practical Programming in Tcl and Tk

Updated 2005-01-27 07:37:28 by suchenwi

Author: Brent Welch

This book has been out for some time now. For information on the most recent edition, see Book Practical Programming in Tcl and Tk, Fourth Edition (released in June of 2003).


I bought this book to learn Tcl/Tk, I graduate with an MIS major, and I am mainly trying to prepare myself to be a descent developer. I looked in many programming language, read several chapters from several books on several different programming language. I saw the need to focus on one language to try to move forward with my career and skill record. I picked Tcl/Tk. I think it offers a nice balance between being an interesting language that can help me develop application in different domains, and thus opens many opportunies for me.

This book was really disapointing for me. I read some of the chapters availbe online, and I remember I was satisfied by what I saw in the first chapter and the regex chapter. I book table of content is huge around 50 chapters that covers every aspect of Tcl. And I still drewel as I skim through it from time to time.

But the content of some chapter is disapointing. The author keeps refering to other part of books, in way that keeps you wondering and annoyed, you never feel you have your feet firm on the ground if you know what I mean. If don't want to read chapter 16 when I am still in chapter 6, and if I need to, then maybe the topics sequence is not the best, which I think it is. I feel the next edition need to include less references to other parts of the book.

Another more important thing that annoyed me, is that its seems that author is just presenting the information rather than explain the information, I want the author to talk to me more, to tell me stories, show me case studies, tell me about his real life experience. After I read the first three chapter parts in the Tk section, I still feel hollow, I still feel I don't know how things fit together, how widgets depends on each other. I think the author needed to offer an overview of the widgets prior to explain them or giving example. A few diagrams, annotated screenshots, more annotated screenshots.

The book is comprehensive, very comprehensive, and one in a small list. And I also haven't read all the chapters yet, so maybe I'll change my mind later.


US The two best Tcl/Tk books I have are Tcl und Tk, a german edition of Tcl and the Tk Toolkit, by John Ousterhout and Effective Tcl/Tk Programming by Mark Harrison and Michael McLennan. Although the first is terribly outdated (it describes Tcl 7.x and Tk 4.x) it was the one that initially attracted me to Tcl and Tk. I'd really wish, John O. would write a new edition on Tcl/Tk 8.4 or 8.5. It's a great book for beginners. IMHO still one of the best books to start with.


Breadcrust I have Effective Tcl/Tk Programming myself, and it isnt a bad book, but it focuses too much on Tk but not so much on Tcl, and always uses the author's style of programming in Tcl, instead of suggesting different ways on doing things. But apart from that it isnt bad


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