The Nature Of Code

All aboard The Coding Train! This beginner-friendly creative coding tutorial is designed to grow your skills in a fun, hands-on way as you build simulations of real-world phenomena with “The Coding Train” YouTube star Daniel Shiffman. How can we use code to capture the unpredictable properties of nature? How can understanding the mathematical principles behind our physical world help us create interesting digital environments? Written by “The Coding Train” YouTube star Daniel Shiffman, The Nature of Code is a beginner-friendly creative coding tutorial that explores a range of programming strategies for developing computer simulations of natural systems—from elementary concepts in math and physics to sophisticated machine-learning algorithms. Using the same enthusiastic style on display in Shiffman’s popular YT channel, this book makes learning to program fun, empowering you to generate fascinating graphical output while refining your problem-solving and algorithmic-thinking skills. You’ll progress from building a basic physics engine that simulates the effects of forces like gravity and wind resistance, to creating evolving systems of intelligent autonomous agents that can learn from their mistakes and adapt to their environment. The Nature of Code introduces important topics such as: Randomness Forces and vectors Trigonometry Cellular automata and fractals Genetic algorithms Neural networks Learn from an expert how to transform your beginner-level skills into writing well-organized, thoughtful programs that set the stage for further experiments in generative design. NOTE: All examples are written with p5.js, a JavaScript library for creative coding, and are available on the book's website.

Learning Processing, Second Edition, is a friendly start-up guide to Processing, a free, open-source alternative to expensive software and daunting programming languages. Requiring no previous experience, this book is for the true programming beginner. It teaches the basic building blocks of programming needed to create cutting-edge graphics applications including interactive art, live video processing, and data visualization. Step-by-step examples, thorough explanations, hands-on exercises, and sample code, supports your learning curve. A unique lab-style manual, the book gives graphic and web designers, artists, and illustrators of all stripes a jumpstart on working with the Processing programming environment by providing instruction on the basic principles of the language, followed by careful explanations of select advanced techniques. The book has been developed with a supportive learning experience at its core. From algorithms and data mining to rendering and debugging, it teaches object-oriented programming from the ground up within the fascinating context of interactive visual media. This book is ideal for graphic designers and visual artists without programming background who want to learn programming. It will also appeal to students taking college and graduate courses in interactive media or visual computing, and for self-study. A friendly start-up guide to Processing, a free, open-source alternative to expensive software and daunting programming languages No previous experience required—this book is for the true programming beginner! Step-by-step examples, thorough explanations, hands-on exercises, and sample code supports your learning curve

Generative design, once known only to insiders as a revolutionary method of creating artwork, models, and animations with programmed algorithms, has in recent years become a popular tool for designers. By using simple languages such as JavaScript in p5.js, artists and makers can create everything from interactive typography and textiles to 3D-printed furniture to complex and elegant infographics. This updated volume gives a jump-start on coding strategies, with step-by-step tutorials for creating visual experiments that explore the possibilities of color, form, typography, and images. Generative Design includes a gallery of all-new artwork from a range of international designers—fine art projects as well as commercial ones for Nike, Monotype, Dolby Laboratories, the musician Bjork, and others.

The authors examine software from a spatial perspective, analyzing the dyadic relationship of software & space. The production of space, they argue, is increasingly dependent on code, & code is written to produce space.

The classic guide to how computers work, updated with new chapters and interactive graphics "For me, Code was a revelation. It was the first book about programming that spoke to me. It started with a story, and it built up, layer by layer, analogy by analogy, until I understood not just the Code, but the System. Code is a book that is as much about Systems Thinking and abstractions as it is about code and programming. Code teaches us how many unseen layers there are between the computer systems that we as users look at every day and the magical silicon rocks that we infused with lightning and taught to think." - Scott Hanselman, Partner Program Director, Microsoft, and host of Hanselminutes Computers are everywhere, most obviously in our laptops and smartphones, but also our cars, televisions, microwave ovens, alarm clocks, robot vacuum cleaners, and other smart appliances. Have you ever wondered what goes on inside these devices to make our lives easier but occasionally more infuriating? For more than 20 years, readers have delighted in Charles Petzold's illuminating story of the secret inner life of computers, and now he has revised it for this new age of computing. Cleverly illustrated and easy to understand, this is the book that cracks the mystery. You'll discover what flashlights, black cats, seesaws, and the ride of Paul Revere can teach you about computing, and how human ingenuity and our compulsion to communicate have shaped every electronic device we use. This new expanded edition explores more deeply the bit-by-bit and gate-by-gate construction of the heart of every smart device, the central processing unit that combines the simplest of basic operations to perform the most complex of feats. Petzold's companion website, CodeHiddenLanguage.com, uses animated graphics of key circuits in the book to make computers even easier to comprehend. In addition to substantially revised and updated content, new chapters include: Chapter 18: Let's Build a Clock! Chapter 21: The Arithmetic Logic Unit Chapter 22: Registers and Busses Chapter 23: CPU Control Signals Chapter 24: Jumps, Loops, and Calls Chapter 28: The World Brain From the simple ticking of clocks to the worldwide hum of the internet, Code reveals the essence of the digital revolution.

“Brian Overland makes programming simple. . . . To my amazement, his books explain complicated code clearly enough for anyone to understand.” —Art Sedighi, PhD Tapping into the full power of Python doesn’t have to be difficult. Supercharged Python is written for people who’ve learned the fundamentals of the language but want to take their skills to the next level. After a quick review of Python, the book covers: advanced list and string techniques; all the ways to handle text and binary files; financial applications; advanced techniques for writing classes; generators and decorators; and how to master packages such as Numpy (Numeric Python) to supercharge your applications! Use profilers and “magic methods” to code like a pro Harness the power of regular expressions to process text quickly with a single statement Take advantage of 22 coding shortcuts, along with performance tips, to save time and optimize your code Create really useful classes and objects, for games, simulations, money, mathematics, and more Use multiple modules to build powerful apps while avoiding the “gotchas” Import packages to dramatically speed up statistical operations—by as much as 100 times! Refer to the five-part language reference to look up fine points of the language Supercharged Python demonstrates techniques that allow you to write faster and more powerful code, whether you’re manipulating large amounts of data or building sophisticated applications. Register your book for convenient access to downloads, updates, and/or corrections as they become available. See inside book for details.

Processing: Creative Coding and Generative Art in Processing 2 is a fun and creative approach to learning programming. Using the easy to learn Processing programming language, you will quickly learn how to draw with code, and from there move to animating in 2D and 3D. These basics will then open up a whole world of graphics and computer entertainment. If you’ve been curious about coding, but the thought of it also makes you nervous, this book is for you; if you consider yourself a creative person, maybe worried programming is too non-creative, this book is also for you; if you want to learn about the latest Processing 2.0 language release and also start making beautiful code art, this book is also definitely for you. You will learn how to develop interactive simulations, create beautiful visualizations, and even code image-manipulation applications. All this is taught using hands-on creative coding projects. Processing 2.0 is the latest release of the open-source Processing language, and includes exciting new features, such as OpenGL 2 support for enhanced 3D graphics performance. Processing: Creative Coding and Generative Art in Processing 2 is designed for independent learning and also as a primary text for an introductory computing class. Based on research funded by the National Science Foundation, this book brings together some of the most engaging and successful approaches from the digital arts and computer science classrooms. Teaches you how to program using a fun and creative approach. Covers the latest release of the Processing 2.0 language. Presents a research based approach to learning computing.

Processing opened up the world of programming to artists, designers, educators, and beginners. The Processing.py Python implementation of Processing reinterprets it for today's web. This short book gently introduces the core concepts of computer programming and working with Processing. Written by the co-founders of the Processing project, Reas and Fry, along with co-author Allison Parrish, Getting Started with Processing.py is your fast track to using Python's Processing mode.