These books were found by searching the College of DuPage Library catalog for “computer science,” with results sorted by relevance and filtered by books held by the library.

Computer Science: A Very Short Introduction

By Subrata Dasgupta

This tiny little book packs a powerful depth of information into its small package. Part of the A Very Short Introduction series from Oxford University Press, Computer Science provides an overview of the complex topic of computer science. It touches on the major topics in the field, including algorithms, programming, and computer architecture. It also spends time on more abstract topics, such as the differences between information and knowledge, and the application of heuristic theory. While the book is written as an introduction, it can sometimes be dense and technical. For its brief length and direct but thorough overview, I would recommend it as a starting point for a student looking to get a sense of the wider subject of computer science. It would not suit a general public audience needing a slower and simpler explanation.

Written by Subatra Dasgupta, the Computer Science Trust Fund Eminent Scholar Chair in the School of Computing and Informatics at University of Louisiana at Lafayette, this book was published in 2016. Though the field of computer science evolves constantly, this description of the fundamentals remains relevant because it doesn’t focus on specific technologies. The book is organized into seven chapters, with a preface and epilogue, as well as an index and a list of further reading for each chapter. Each chapter dives into an aspect of computer science, using diagrams and brief examples to explore the details. This book could be considered a very short textbook or a general nonfiction title. The intended audience is “anyone wanting a stimulating and accessible way into a new subject,” according to the front matter description of the A Very Short Introduction series. It seems better suited to students with slightly more familiarity with technical or academic writing.

Anyone Can Code: the Art and Science of Logical Creativity

By Ali Arya

Computer science -- and its component skills, including coding -- can be intimidating to the newcomer. One look at complex code can be like reading something in a foreign language. Luckily, thanks to books like Anyone Can Code, there are accessible ways to begin learning that language and even beginning to master it. This book focuses on the logical underpinnings of programming, walking the reader through the basic concepts of software including data, functions, and modularization. While the material may be slightly advanced for a general audience, an undergraduate student or determined learner would find this book a clear and logical introduction to the fundamentals of coding.

Published in 2021 by CRC Press, this is the first edition of this book. The author is Ali Arya, an Associate Professor in the School of Information Technology at Carleton University in Ottawa, Canada. Organized into clear cut chapters on the various topics, each chapter begins with the learning objectives and an overview. Then it goes through various subtopics and coding examples, before ending with highlights and end-of-chapter notes consisting of: “Things I Should Mention,” “Self-Test Questions,” “Things You Should Do,” and “Reflect on the Experience of Reading This Chapter.” Each chapter offers coding examples in three different languages, not to confuse the reader but to show them that these concepts are not unique to any one coding language.

The book ends with a bibliography and index, plus includes front matter that lists sidebars, tables, exhibits, and definitions of key terms. With these tools and organizational style, this resource is written like a textbook. However, given the title that Anyone Can Code, this book is meant for anyone who is eager to learn more about programming and coding.

Starting Out with Programming Logic & Design

By Tony Gaddis

Coding is so much more than a series of vocabulary words to learn and some math. Underlying the art of coding – and the entire field of computer science – is a focus on logic and design. This book, Starting Out with Programming Logic and Design, walks the reader through learning how to code by breaking down the subject into a series of logical topics such as Boolean logic and recursion. Each chapter covers an area of coding using general language, then ends with examples in three different coding languages to show these topics in action. Readers will leave this book with not only a better understanding of the logical processes behind common coding scenarios, but also a beginning appreciation for how software is designed and built.  

This copy of Starting Out with Programming Logic and Design is the fifth edition, published in 2019, with the previous edition published in 2016. There is a sixth edition published in 2022, so the rate of update appears to be every three years. Pearson Education is the publisher, known for their textbooks and educational content. The author, Tony Gaddis, is a professor at Haywood Community College and has twenty years of experience in the computer science field. The book also has a long series of reviewers who helped develop and revise the text. 

Each chapter is divided into sub-sections exploring the topic in detail, with a final section implementing the lessons of the chapter in three different languages: Java, Python, and C++. This allows the reader to compare and contrast how different languages handle the same topic. The chapters end with review questions, a combination of multiple choice, true and false, short answer, and programming exercises. The book ends with several useful appendices, the answers to the various challenges, and an index. This is clearly a textbook meant for undergraduate students, but its logical organization and learning challenges could be tackled by anyone interested in learning the fundamental logic of programming.

A New History of Modern Computing

By Thomas Haigh and Paul E. Ceruzzi

When studying computer science, it can be tempting to dive right into the practical applications of its skills -- programming languages, software design, and the many, many technologies that make up its foundations. However, it can be difficult to place all of this in a historical context. This is where A New History of Modern Computing can help place the development of computer science into the proper timeline. Beginning in the 1940s with the invention of programmable computers, each chapter follows the development of the computer into a new tool, from data processing device to personal plaything to “everywhere and nowhere.” With a better understanding of the technological components and major corporations behind the world of computing today, this book could be a great resource for better understanding the field as a whole.

Originally published as A History of Modern Computing in 1998, this comprehensive update was published in 2021 by the MIT Press. Co-author Thomas Haigh is a professor at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, interestingly in history rather than computer science. The other co-author, Paul E. Ceruzzi, is Curator Emeritus at the Smithsonian Institution’s National Air and Space Museum, with previous publications concerning computing and the internet. Ceruzzi was also the solo author of the original text.

The resource is organized into chapters detailing different thematic developments in computing, in chronological order. There is an index, as well as notes and an extensive bibliography. While both the table of contents and the index could provide easy ways to navigate to a specific topic, the somewhat lengthy and dense chapters and more ambiguous section headings may make it more difficult to browse casually. Given the textbook-like shape and technical material, the intended audience for this resource appears to be an academic one, though anyone interested in the history of computing could find its thorough history an interesting read.