You will find this book useful whether you are a programming student, an information technology professional wishing to update your skills and learn object-oriented and structured techniques, a business professional who uses computer services, or an individual merely curious about how to tell the computer to do what you want it to.

The intent of this book is to teach you how to program logically without focusing on a particular programming language. You will find this book useful in any programming language class you take because coding a program merely involves translating programming logic into a language that the computer can understand.

Learning the rules of a specific programming language is not hard. Learning how to program—that is, developing the logic necessary to solve a problem—is challenging for most people. Even if you have used computers for many years, this may be your first experience in learning to "think like a computer." You must unlearn the complicated thought processes you have become used to in dealing with everyday life and learn to tell the computer, in simplified terms, exactly what to do step-by-step.

This book assumes no previous knowledge of computers or programming. You should be able to use simple arithmetic tools but no training in advanced mathematics is required. If you have had an introductory course or previous experience with computers, many of the concepts in the beginning of the book will be a review for you. Regardless of your experience level, however, you will need to devote considerable time practicing and doing the exercises at the end of each chapter.

I hope you enjoy learning how to program. Whether you end up as an information technology professional, as a manager, or a user of the Internet, games, word processors, spreadsheets, databases, and other prewritten programs, you will appreciate the time, effort, and creativity involved in generating the logic of a computer program.