Welcome to intro textbooks.

We have selected the best introductory textbooks for high-school students, undergraduates, autodidacts and lifelong learning.

Valid XHTML 1.0 Strict

Computer Science
textbook cover
Computer Science - An Overview

Author: J. Glenn Brookshear
Publisher: Addison Wesley, 2008, 688pp, 10th ed.

Students and instructors alike continue to praise the broad coverage and clear exposition that Computer Science: An Overview uses to present a complete picture of the dynamic computer science field. Timely topics such as bioinformatics and artificial intelligence engage students, and the introductory textbook provides coverage of foundational hardware topics like data representation and storage, machine architecture, and machine language.
Computer Science
textbook cover
Algorithmics

Author: David Harel, Yishai Feldman
Publisher: Pearson Education, 2004, 536pp, 3rd ed.

This introductory textbook presents the concepts, methods, and results that are fundamental to the science of computing. Algorithmics begins with the basic ideas of algorithms such as the structure and the methods of data manipulation, and then moves on to demonstrate how to design an accurate and efficient algorithm. Inherent limitations to algorithmic design are also discussed throughout the second part of the text. This introductory textbook is for anyone interested in being introduced to the theory of computer science.
Computer Science
textbook cover
Introduction to Algorithms

Author: Thomas Cormen, et al.
Publisher: MIT Press, 2003, 1056pp, 2nd ed.

Both rigorous and complete, Cormen's introductory textbook covers traditional material and modern developments: elementary data structures, sorting graph algorithms and NP-completeness are included along with material on Fibonacci heaps, parallel algorithms, network flow algorithms, computational geometry, and number-theoretic algorithms.
Computer Science
textbook cover
Computer Organization and Design - The Hardware-Software Interface

Author: David A. Patterson, John L. Hennessy
Publisher: Morgan Kaufmann, 2008, 912pp, 4th ed.

Even today, to write great software, it helps to understand the underlying hardware. And if you’re a hardware architect, you’d better understand how your choices will impact developers. Computer Organization and Design, Fourth Edition will help software and hardware folks understand each other. The introductory textbook even provides separate learning paths for each audience.
Computer Science
textbook cover
Operating System Concepts

Author: Abraham Silberschatz, Peter Baer Galvin, et al.
Publisher: Wiley, 2008, 992pp, 8th ed.

Open-source operating systems, virtual machines, and clustered computing are among the leading fields of operating systems and networking that are rapidly changing. With substantial revisions and organizational changes, Silberschatz, Galvin, and Gagne’s Operating System Concepts, Eighth Edition remains as current and relevant as ever, helping you master the fundamental concepts of operating systems while preparing yourself for today’s emerging developments.
Computer Science
textbook cover
19 Deadly Sins of Software Security - Programming Flaws and How to Fix Them

Author: Michael Howard, David LeBlanc, John Viega
Publisher: McGraw-Hill Osborne, 2005, 304pp, 1st ed.

Ninety-five percent of software bugs are caused by the same 19 programming flaws. Secure your software by eliminating code vulnerabilities from the start. This essential book for all software developers--regardless of platform, language, and type of application--outlines the 19 sins of software security and shows how to fix each one.
Computer Science
textbook cover
Computer Networks

Author: Andrew S. Tanenbaum
Publisher: Prentice Hall, 2002, 912pp, 4th ed.

Computer Networks, Fourth Edition is the ideal introduction to computer networks. Renowned author, educator, and researcher Andrew S. Tanenbaum has updated his classic best seller introductory textbook to reflect the newest technologies, including 802.11, broadband wireless, ADSL, Bluetooth, gigabit Ethernet, the Web, the wireless Web, streaming audio, IPsec, AES, quantum cryptography, and more.
Computer Science
textbook cover
Database System Concepts

Author: Abraham Silberschatz, Henry F. Korth, S. Sudarshan
Publisher: McGraw-Hill, 2010, 1376pp, 6th ed.

In this undergraduate textbook, which could also serve as a reference, the authors address both the fundamentals behind constructing and maintaining as database as well as describing the most common commercial software available. General topics also include data storage and querying, transaction management, data mining and information retrieval, system architecture, advanced topics and case studies.
Computer Science
textbook cover
Artificial Intelligence - A Modern Approach

Author: Stuart Russell, Peter Norvig
Publisher: Prentice Hall, 2009, 1152pp, 3rd ed.

Artificial Intelligence: A Modern Approach introduces basic ideas in artificial intelligence from the perspective of building intelligent agents, which the authors define as "anything that can be viewed as perceiving its environment through sensors and acting upon the environment through effectors." This introductory textbook is up-to-date and is organized using the latest principles of good textbook design.
Computer Science
textbook cover
Compilers - Principles, Techniques & Tools

Author: Alfred Aho, Ravi Sethi, Jeffrey Ullman, et al.
Publisher: Addison Wesley, 2007, 1020pp, 2nd ed.

This introductory textbook provides the foundation for understanding the theory and practice of compilers. This book by Aho, Sethi and Ullman teaches the reader everything from Backus Naur Form to code generation and optimization. The contents of this introductory textbook apply to anyone doing any sort of language development, be it as simple as reading an HTML file, or as advanced as writing a C compiler.
Computer Science
textbook cover
Art of Computer Programming - Volumes 1-3 Boxed Set

Author: Donald E. Knuth
Publisher: Addison-Wesley, 1998, 896pp, 2nd ed.

Knuth's multivolume work is widely recognized as the definitive description of classical computer science. The first three volumes have for decades been an invaluable textbook and resource in programming theory and practice for students, researchers, and practitioners alike.
Computer Science
textbook cover
Applied Cryptography - Protocols, Algorithms, and Source Code in C

Author: Bruce Schneier
Publisher: Wiley, 1996, 758pp, 2nd ed.

The definitive publicly available text on the theory and practice of cryptography. Cryptographic techniques have applications far beyond the obvious uses of encoding and decoding information. For Internet developers who need to know about capabilities, such as digital signatures, that depend on cryptographic techniques, there's no better overview than Applied Cryptography, the definitive book on the subject.

Bruce Schneier covers general classes of cryptographic protocols and then specific techniques, detailing the inner workings of real-world cryptographic algorithms including the Data Encryption Standard and RSA public-key cryptosystems. The book includes source-code listings and extensive advice on the practical aspects of cryptography implementation, such as the importance of generating truly random numbers and of keeping keys secure.
Computer Science
textbook cover
Computer Graphics - Principles and Practice in C

Author: James D. Foley, Andries van Dam, et al.
Publisher: Addison-Wesley, 1995, 1200pp, 2nd ed.

Computer Graphics: Principles and Practice is the most exhaustive overview of both 2D and 3D computer graphics techniques available. This introductory textbook's 21 chapters cover graphics hardware, user interface software, rendering, and a host of other subjects. Assuming a solid background in computer science or a related field, this textbook gives example programs in C and provides exercises at the end of each chapter to test your knowledge of the material.