How to think like a computer scientist

What Hacker News says

1. fn-moteMay 2026
   You missed How to Think Like a Computer Scientist.

   Many places on the web. Runestone is probably the most useful like but I’ll leave my favorite classic one below.

   http://www.openbookproject.net/thinkcs/python/english3e/

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2. sebgJan 2023
   Python for Kids

   https://nostarch.com/python-kids-2nd-edition

   I've heard really great things about this book.

   ////

   The other one is "How to Think Like a Computer Scientist, Learn Python 3"

   https://openbookproject.net/thinkcs/python/english3e/"

   which is used by Art of Problem Solving for their "Introduction to Programming with Python" class (https://artofproblemsolving.com/school/course/python1)

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3. randcrawDec 2021
   "Foundations of Computer Science" by Aho and Ullman might fit your bill. Its focus is more on the concepts and principles of computing rather than math-centric CS theory. http://infolab.stanford.edu/~ullman/focs.html

   Another nontraditional intro to computing worth mentioning is "Structure and Interpretation of Computer Programs" by Abelson and Sussman(s). It teaches programming concepts using the Lisp/Scheme language (seldom used any more), but does so brilliantly.

   "Think Python: How to Think Like a Computer Scientist" by Downey might provide the right mix of computing concepts and programming practice.

   If you do want a traditional intro to CS theory, two books that cover that topic well are: "Introduction to the Theory of Computation" by Sipser, and "Introduction to Automata Theory, Languages, and Computation" by Hopcroft, Motwani, and Ullman.

   Three very good books that introduce algorithms are: "Introduction to Algorithms: A Creative Approach" by Manber, "The Algorithm Design Manual" by Skiena, and "Algorithms" by Sedgewick and Wayne.

   Remember that CS theory doesn't age, so buying a used early edition of a textbook should serve your needs just as well as an new up-to-date edition.

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4. cpachMar 2021
   I’m not sure if there is any definite resource that covers it all.

   Besides the official documentation perhaps have a look at these resources:

   https://openbookproject.net/thinkcs/python/english3e/

   https://realpython.com/

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5. cpachJun 2020
   I like this book: http://openbookproject.net/thinkcs/python/english3e/ – it’s not so garrulous. Good for quickly looking up concepts.

   Also check out the various community resources. The #python channel on Freenode is good. On Reddit there is https://www.reddit.com/r/learnpython/

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6. massimo-nazariaSep 2019
   Read "How to Think Like a Computer Scientist", at least the first chapters and see if it works for you:

   http://openbookproject.net/thinkcs/python/english3e/

   Good luck with your learning.

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