Rust: Tools (early access edition)

So... why should I buy a $35 introductory programming book in 2024?

Here are some free introductory Rust books:

  - The Rust Book: https://doc.rust-lang.org/book/
  - Rust 101: https://www.ralfj.de/projects/rust-101/main.html
  - Rust by Example: https://doc.rust-lang.org/rust-by-example/
  - Easy Rust: https://dhghomon.github.io/easy_rust/
  - A Gentle Introduction to Rust: https://stevedonovan.github.io/rust-gentle-intro/

Although I typically show people Rustlings, because it teaches programming workflow.

What am I getting for $35 that isn't covered excellently for free already?

Here are some books I spent money on in the last 5 years:

  - Functional Design and Architecture, by Alexander Granin
  - Production Haskell, by Matt Parsons
  - Thinking with Types, by Sandy Maguire

Being a seasoned developer, I would pay money for someone to fast-forward me through advanced concepts.

Here are some examples of free Rust books covering advanced examples:

  - The Rustonomicon: https://doc.rust-lang.org/nightly/nomicon/
  - Rust Design Patterns: https://rust-unofficial.github.io/patterns/
  - Effective Rust: https://www.lurklurk.org/effective-rust/
  - Rust Atomics and Locks: https://marabos.nl/atomics/foreword.html
  - The Little Book of Rust Macros: https://danielkeep.github.io/tlborm/book/index.html
  - Burn: Deep Learning Framework: https://burn.dev/burn-book/
  - API Development with Rust: https://rust-api.dev/docs/front-matter/preface/
  - Rust Compiler Development Guide: https://rustc-dev-guide.rust-lang.org/getting-started.html

I'd pay money for any of those. Not sure about an introductory book, considering the availability of good, free books.

joshdavham · 7 days ago

Congrats on the new book!

Also some minor feedback: I know you're not supposed to judge a book by its cover, but obviously generated AI images give a lot of people 'the ick' so I'd recommend changing the cover (or modifying it).

bitbasher · 7 days ago

I know this is just an early access, but it seems very underwhelming from the sample. This is all very basic Rust and the $35 price tag is not for an entry level book. You can literally read The Rust Book for free and it's more detailed.

Show replies

sshine · 7 days ago

nixpulvis · 7 days ago

ngl, the prose around the hello world example at the start really turned me off to this $35 resource.

lionkor · 7 days ago

The samples are interesting, I wouldn't buy it (I just did the first few chapters of the rust book instead), but it seems cool. Get rid of the cover tho.