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mystery.txt
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2006-10-19
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.IF DSK1.C3
^^^^^^^^^^^^TEXTWARE, SOFTWARE, and
ELSEWHERE
^^^^^^^^^^^^^Articles and Reviews for TI
Owners
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^by Jack Sughrue
I really thought this review was going to
be a snap. "So easy," I explained to Seumas
(my poodle), "that we'll be out for our
nightly walk in no time."
(That was some time ago.)
The problem is, I think, that I've talked
about this book so often, and so many people
have already bought it upon my very loud
recommendation that I feel that there is very
little NEW I can say about it. (Except,
maybe, that all those people who have bought
it have told me that they were very happy
with it.)
[Up to now you have probably noticed that
I haven't mentioned the title of the book.
As you already know I'm going to say the book
is good, really good, so the suspense from
this piece of writing is gone. I mean, why
would you continue. It's like knowing the
murderer on the first page of a Martha
Grimes's mystery. So I won't mention the
title until the end. I'll just tell you
about the book and why it is a fine
investment. I can tell the suspense is
really mounting now, and you won't be able to
keep your eyes from slipping to the end of
this article to seek out the title. {-a
little trick I learned in writing school-}
But Restrain Yourself! Stay with it.]
Patience is a virtue that never can
hirtue.
I will just mention that the book is
published by Prentice-Hall, Inc., Englewood
Cliffs, N.J., 07632, and cost me $14.95.
No peeking, remember.
And that it is written by Tony Fabbri (who
also wrote other versions for other computers
and entitled it similarly).
(I should have been a mystery writer.)
And now about the book itself.
This book is just right. I wouldn't make
any changes in it at all. It's extemely
well-written. It is thoughtful, considerate,
intelligent, is absolutely not overwhelming,
is quite non-mathematical (that is,
NON-MATHEMATICAL!) in its approach, is full
of good humor, common sense, logic. It is
the best book - bar none (and this includes
the COMPUTE! and Datamost books I praise so
highly) - for learning graphics. Everyone
who has ever had the desire to program or to
create on the computer, Tony Fabbri offers
you the way.
He takes you on a step-by-step tour of
your computer through simple sample after
simple sample after simple sample. You learn
by doing and doing and doing.
Every programmer or potential programmer
should have reference guides and should have
books of programs to emulate and should have
some tutorial materials in text form. If
this were the only text package of tutorial
materials you owned, you wouldn't have to
concern yourself. It IS a reference guide of
sorts and a program book of sorts (over 100
mini programs to type in), too. But the
thrust of this book is tutorial. Fabbri's
purpose is to give you a thorough under-
standing of your Wonderful Little Machine.
This he does remarkably well.
He wastes very little space talking about
interfaces and CPUs and bits and bytes and
modems. His book says, "Look. Would you
like to skip all this jargon crap and get
down to the nitty-gritty fun of computing?
Well, you have the right computer to do it,
so let's get going!" And he does, and you
do.
I can't imagine anyone taking the Fabbri
trip and not coming out on the other side of
Page 247 a more satisfied human being.
If Fabbri writes any more books for the TI
buy them as fast as you can. Meanwhile, get
this one if you can find it anywhere. Most
bookstores will order it for you. Or write
to the company.
But don't forget to mention the title:
ANIMATION, GAMES, AND SOUND FOR THE
TI99/4A.
(Did you peek?)
[Jack Sughrue, Box 459, E.Douglas, MA
01516]
***********
If any newsletter editor prints these
articles, please put me on your mailing list.
- Thanks - JS
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