Why learn F#? This multi-paradigm language not only offers you an enormous productivity boost through functional programming, it also lets you develop applications using your existing object-oriented and imperative programming skills. With Programming F# , you'll quickly discover the many advantages of Microsoft's new language, which includes access to all the great tools and libraries of the .NET platform. Learn how to reap the benefits of functional programming for your next project -- whether it's quantitative computing, large-scale data exploration, or even a pursuit of your own. With this comprehensive guide, F# team member Chris Smith gives you a head start on the fundamentals and advanced concepts of the F# language.

• Get a clear understanding of functional programming, and how you can use it to simplify code

• Gain a solid understanding of the language's core syntax, including object-oriented and imperative styles

• Simplify concurrent and parallel programming with F# Asynchronous Workflows and the Parallel Extensions to .NET

• Learn advanced F# concepts, such as quotations and computation expressions

Amazon.com® Reader Reviews (Ranked by Helpfulness)

Average Amazon.com® Rating:  Based on 2 Ratings

Easiest F# Book Available - 2009-11-11
Reviewer Rating:
As of Nov 2009, this is probably the easiest book out there on F#. Chris Smith doesn't approach the book assuming prior functional programming knowledge. He avoids getting overly complicated or using difficult terms. There was no point in the book where my eyes glossed over because it got too hard to follow.

The book is split into two parts. The first part is a mainly a run through all of the F# syntax, getting you setup and writing F# code quite quickly. Even though I've been using F# for a couple of years, I still picked up a few new things. It's a book you can use as a reference for parts of the language, even though the actual product documentation is coming together. Of note is the section on lists, which I found particularly clear and easy to follow.

The second part of the book is where Mr. Smith takes it up a notch. The book says it's "applied" F# programming, which in many programming books means the author is about to go over some common APIs for you. Not so in this book. The second part shows some of the very powerful and practical things you can do with F#. The introduction to workflows (computation expressions) was excellent; I don't believe I've seen an easier-to-understand explanation for those who haven't dealt with such constructs before (and there's no use of the dreaded word "monad"!).

What really surprised me was that this book follows up on workflows with a great section on quotations. Not only does it give an overview of what they are, but it provides enough depth so that you can actually start processing and manipulating quotations right away.

Even the appendix is worth reading, as there's a part on F# interop. While F# runs on the CLR, there are certain constructs in F# that won't necessarily look pretty in C#. The appendix goes over how to avoid those problems and make clean ".NET-friendly" APIs.

Overall, I'm quite content with the book. It's a good purchase, even for an experienced F# user. If you're trying to learn F#, and don't have a functional background, this is the book to start with.

As a note, the content doesn't overlap excessively with "Functional Programming for the Real World". So if you're considering both, you won't be disappointed. They're actually so complementary, I'm not sure which one is better if you can only get one.

Great book for a foundation in functional programming and F# - 2009-10-29
Reviewer Rating:
Programming in F# by Chris Smith is an extremely clear and cogent treatment of Microsoft's promising new language, F#, and of functional programming overall. I have followed F#'s development closely, but from afar, as my background is in mathematics, and have lusted after using F#. With the release of beta 2 of Visual Studio 2010, we now have a very sturdy implementation of this functional language, and Chris Smith's book explains its deep beauty with clarity and imagination.
I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in learning the broad overview and the particulars of a new programming paradigm, one that treats humans as humans and computers as computers.

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