The Fundamentals of Programming

When it comes to programming, understanding the founding concepts can greatly improve student engagement and future success. In its Fourth Edition, Starting Out with Programming Logic and Design is a language-independent introductory programming book, ideal for a precursor programming course or the first unit of an introductory programming course. The text covers fundamental topics such as data types, variables, input, output, control structures, modules, functions, arrays, files, object-oriented concepts, GUI development, and event-driven programming.

Designed for beginners, the text is clear and approachable, making the complex concepts accessible to every student. In this edition, Gaddis uses updated, contemporary examples to familiarize students with models and logical thought processes used in programming without further complicating them with language syntax. By using easy-to-understand pseudocode, flowcharts, and other tools, Gaddis illustrates how to design the logic of programs. Then, confident in their high-level understanding of computer programming, students are able to handle programming languages and syntax with greater ease and aptitude. 

Tony Gaddis is the principal author of the Starting Out With . . . series of textbooks. Tony has twenty years of experience teaching computer science courses, primarily at Haywood Community College. He is a highly acclaimed instructor who was previously selected as the North Carolina Community College “Teacher of the Year” and has received the Teaching Excellence award from the National Institute for Staff and Organizational Development. The Starting Out With . . . series includes introductory books covering Programming Logic and Design, C++, Java, Microsoft® Visual Basic, C#®, Python, and Alice, all published by Pearson.

An Introduction to Programming Using Python

Chapter 1  An Introduction to Computers and Problem Solving

1.1  An Introduction to Computing and Python

1.2  Program Development Cycle

1.3  Programming Tools

1.4  An Introduction to Programming with Python

Chapter 2  Core Objects, Variables, Input, and Output

2.1  Numbers

2.2  Strings

2.3  Input and Output

2.4  Lists, Tuples, and Files — an Introduction

Key Terms and Concepts

Programming Projects

Chapter 3  Structures that Control Flow

3.1  Relational and Logical Operators

3.2  Decision Structors

3.3  The while Loop

3.4  The for Loop

Key Terms and Concepts

Programming Projects

Chapter 4  Functions

4.1  Functions, Part 1

4.2  Functions, Part 2

4.3  Program Design

Key Terms and Concepts

Programming Projects

Chapter 5  Processing Data

5.1  Processing Data, Part 1

5.2  Processing Data, Part 2

5.3  Processing Data with Dictionaries

Key Terms and Concepts

Programming Projects

Chapter 6  Miscellaneous Topics

6.1  Exception Handling

6.2  Selecting Random Values

6.3  Turtle Graphics

6.4  Recursion

Key Terms and Concepts

Programming Projects

Chapter 7  Object-Oriented Programming

7.1  Classes and Objects

7.2  Inheritance

7.3  Working with Objects

Key Terms and Concepts

Programming Projects

Chapter 8  Graphical User Interface

8.1  Widgets

8.2  The Grid Geometry Manger

8.3  Writing GUI Programs

Key Terms and Concepts

Programming Projects

Appendices

Appendix A  Installing Python

Appendix B  Using IDLE

Appendix C  ASCII Values

Appendix D Python Keywords

Answers

Guide to Application Topics

Index