[Date Index] [Thread Index] [Author Index]

Re: Book?

• To: mathgroup at smc.vnet.net
• Subject: [mg110503] Re: Book?
• From: Murray Eisenberg <murray at math.umass.edu>
• Date: Mon, 21 Jun 2010 02:12:38 -0400 (EDT)

Before you even consider getting some book, I urge you to point your 
browser to the Learning Center...

   http://www.wolfram.com/learningcenter/

(1) View some of the introductory video screencasts (you'll want 
sound!). In the Learning Center, click the top item, "Looking to get 
started? Watch a video screencast". On the Screencast & Video Gallery 
page, go to Tutorials > Getting Started. I recommend Cliff Hastings' 
"Hands-on Start to Mathematica-Part 1" and Jeff Todd's much longer "An 
Introduction to Mathematica".

You can certainly profit from watching these before your Mathematica 
arrives, but they are good to review, too, with a copy of Mathematica 
installed.

(2) Perhaps browse in the free PDF tutorial files (which are just 
print-formatted versions of what's included in the Documentation Center 
you get with Mathematica). In the Learning Center, these are in the 
section "Want more detailed information? Read one of our tutorials."

(3) Once you have your copy of Mathematica, open the Documentation 
Center from the main menu Help and then in its menu click the icon that 
looks like a book in order to view documentation in an organized 
"Virtual Book". You'll see a separate window with a table of contents 
listing virtual chapters. You can expand each such chapter to show its 
sections.

This virtual book can provide a framework for learning. Sooner or later, 
you'll doubtless want to use the Documentation Center proper, jumping 
around among tutorials, how-tos, individual function reference pages, etc.

On 6/20/2010 3:46 AM, Olive wrote:
> I am new to mathematica and I am looking at a book to learn
> mathematica (in fact I have not yet mathematica but I am considering
> purchasing a home license). I would say no more than 300-400 pages that
> explain how the system works, basic of programming etc... Any thought?
>
> Olive
>
>
>

-- 
Murray Eisenberg                     murrayeisenberg at gmail.com
80 Fearing Street                    phone 413 549-1020 (H)
Amherst, MA 01002-1912