The Philosophical Programmer is a fascinating combination of extraordinary insights about the philosophical and ethical meanings of programming, a book that is likely to become a much needed primer in the years to come, a work whose accessible and practical chapters apply fundamental concepts to the actual writing of programs.

While computer books tend to be overwhelming, and to assume a great amount of reader knowledge, The Philosophical Programmer familiarizes the reader with the general nature of programming before addressing the idiosyncracies of particular systems and languages. By first accustoming the reader to the words a programmer uses, and to thinking the way a programmer thinks (which includes an introduction to ethical issues -- such as piracy and privacy -- which are inextricably linked to computers and programming), Daniel Kohanski paves the way to a more profound and lasting understanding of programming.

Kohanski, whose prescient ideas echo those of Nicholas Negroponte, Esther Dyson, and Marvin Minsky, has created the most profound, yet simple, computer book that will appeal to everyone, from expert programmers to the computer illiterati.