As you progress through the rest of the book, don’t be afraid if the concepts don’t
seem to fit together well the first time. When you were learning to speak, it was
not a problem for your first few years you just made cute gurgling noises. And it
was OK if it took six months for you to move from simple vocabulary to simple
sentences and took 5-6 more years to move from sentences to paragraphs, and a
few more years to be able to write an interesting complete short story on your own.
We want you to learn Python much more rapidly, so we teach it all at the same
time over the next few chapters. But it is like learning a new language that takes
time to absorb and understand before it feels natural. That leads to some confusion
as we visit and revisit topics to try to get you to see the big picture while we are
defining the tiny fragments that make up the big picture. While the book is written
linearly and if you are taking a course, it will progress in a linear fashion, don’t
hesitate to be very non-linear in how you approach the material. Look forwards
and backwards and read with a light touch. By skimming more advanced material
without fully understanding the details, you can get a better understanding of
the “why?” of programming. By reviewing previous material and even re-doing
earlier exercises, you will realize that you actually learned a lot of material even if
the material you are currently staring at seems a bit impenetrable.
Usually when you are learning your first programming language, there are a few
wonderful “Ah-Hah!” moments where you can look up from pounding away at
some rock with a hammer and chisel and step away and see that you are indeed
building a beautiful sculpture.
If something seems particularly hard, there is usually no value in staying up all
night and staring at it. Take a break, take a nap, have a snack, explain what you
are having a problem with to someone (or perhaps your dog), and then come back
it with fresh eyes. I assure you that once you learn the programming concepts in
the book you will look back and see that it was all really easy and elegant and it
simply took you a bit of time to absorb it.
seem to fit together well the first time. When you were learning to speak, it was
not a problem for your first few years you just made cute gurgling noises. And it
was OK if it took six months for you to move from simple vocabulary to simple
sentences and took 5-6 more years to move from sentences to paragraphs, and a
few more years to be able to write an interesting complete short story on your own.
We want you to learn Python much more rapidly, so we teach it all at the same
time over the next few chapters. But it is like learning a new language that takes
time to absorb and understand before it feels natural. That leads to some confusion
as we visit and revisit topics to try to get you to see the big picture while we are
defining the tiny fragments that make up the big picture. While the book is written
linearly and if you are taking a course, it will progress in a linear fashion, don’t
hesitate to be very non-linear in how you approach the material. Look forwards
and backwards and read with a light touch. By skimming more advanced material
without fully understanding the details, you can get a better understanding of
the “why?” of programming. By reviewing previous material and even re-doing
earlier exercises, you will realize that you actually learned a lot of material even if
the material you are currently staring at seems a bit impenetrable.
Usually when you are learning your first programming language, there are a few
wonderful “Ah-Hah!” moments where you can look up from pounding away at
some rock with a hammer and chisel and step away and see that you are indeed
building a beautiful sculpture.
If something seems particularly hard, there is usually no value in staying up all
night and staring at it. Take a break, take a nap, have a snack, explain what you
are having a problem with to someone (or perhaps your dog), and then come back
it with fresh eyes. I assure you that once you learn the programming concepts in
the book you will look back and see that it was all really easy and elegant and it
simply took you a bit of time to absorb it.
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