Introduction to Computer Programming

This is a simple, practical book that anyone can understand. It is written to talk the reader through the wonderful world of computer programming. When I was a lecturer at a computer programming school, it always turned out that the students who achieved the highest marks in the class were the ones that grasped the concepts of programming. They understood the fundamentals of what programming languages can do and thereafter they just had to learn the rules on how to apply them. There are many different computer programming languages but generally, they all apply the same concepts. It's like telling a dog to fetch a bone either in English, or Chinese. You need to understand that the dog can fetch the bone. This book is written in layman's terms throughout. The aim of the book is to explain the different tools that are used to develop a program, that are common to all computer programming languages. I have provided examples of what a program might look like for each concept. Once the concepts are understood the reader can then start learning programming with the confidence that they can keep up with the class, enjoy and excel. I have written and rewritten each section numerous times, to try and get each explanation across in as few words as possible. In fact you will be ready to learn programming in a few days. This book is suitable for the following readers: - School kids learning computer studies. - University/College learning computer studies. - Students about to do (or currently in) a computer programming course. - People in the workforce changing or considering changing careers into the programming environment. - Any person curious about what programming is. AGE categories: 13 yrs and above

Derek Felsher, born in 1969, is a computer programmer from Johannesburg, South Africa. He has a Bachelor of Science from the University of Cape Town, is a qualified SAP Consultant in 2 disciplines (ABAP, B1) and has been involved in programming for almost 20 years. Three of these years were spent as a computer programming lecturer (where he realized the necessity for this book). Over the years he has been exposed to many programming languages including COBOL, C, Coldfusion (Internet Programming), SQL, DB2, CICS, ABAP and others. He has been exposed to programming in the Banking, Insurance, Mining and Financial Services industries.