7 Best-Selling Prolog Books Millions Love

Jose C. Cotta's experience with symbolic computation and artificial intelligence shines through in this methodical approach to learning Prolog. The book offers a wide-ranging collection of 175 problems with complete programs and commentary across 17 sections, making it particularly useful for both beginners refreshing their basics and advanced students deepening their understanding. You’ll find practical guidance not just for learning Prolog syntax, but also for applying it to software development, as the book encourages you to integrate example programs into larger systems. This structure makes it a solid choice if you want to grasp Prolog through hands-on examples rather than abstract theory alone.

Drawing from his close observation of real-world expert systems in commercial and industrial settings, Dennis Merritt offers a detailed exploration of building expert systems in Prolog that goes beyond theory. You’ll encounter practical insights into systems like the one installed in the German Federal PTT’s Telephone Shop, which dynamically configures and prices telephone installations with a graphical interface. The book walks you through how such systems operate in distributed networks, emphasizing knowledge base updates and real-time adaptation to inventory changes. If you’re involved in AI programming or interested in applying Prolog to solve complex, interactive problems, this book provides concrete examples and technical depth to sharpen your approach.

This tailored book explores advanced Prolog programming techniques, focusing on your unique background and goals to deepen your mastery of this logic-based language. It covers essential patterns and sophisticated strategies, examining how to write efficient, elegant Prolog code that solves complex problems with clarity. By addressing your specific interests, this personalized guide reveals the power of recursion, backtracking, and pattern matching in practical contexts. Through a custom approach, it matches proven knowledge with your learning needs, uncovering insights that millions of Prolog programmers have found valuable. The book encourages hands-on exploration of expert-level concepts, helping you refine your skills and confidently tackle intricate Prolog challenges.

During their extensive teaching careers, Anna-Lena Johansson and Hans Joachim Dudek developed this book to bridge the gap between logic theory and practical programming in Prolog. You’ll learn how logic programming treats coding as a human-centered activity, emphasizing clarity and declarative understanding rather than machine details. The book carefully introduces Prolog’s execution, data structures, and applications like expert systems, making it approachable even if you have no prior programming experience. Exercises at the end of each chapter reinforce concepts, and detailed coverage of various Prolog implementations broadens your practical knowledge. If you want a solid foundation in logic programming that builds your reasoning skills alongside coding, this book suits you well.

Patrick Saint-Dizier and Sharon J. Hamilton crafted this book to bridge the gap between traditional programming languages and the logic-driven world of Prolog. You learn foundational Prolog concepts alongside practical programming methods, making it accessible whether you’re new to computer science or experienced in other languages. The book’s structure, split into fundamental lessons followed by AI-related examples like games, offers a clear path from basics to more complex applications. Exercises at the end of chapters, with solutions in the appendix, let you test your skills hands-on, making this more than just theory. If you want a methodical yet approachable introduction to Prolog, this book serves that purpose well, though those seeking deep AI theory might look elsewhere.

What sets this book apart is how Richard O'Keefe, drawing on his role as a computer science lecturer, unpacks the nuances of writing better Prolog code beyond the basics. You learn why many Prolog programs remain hard to write well and how to navigate those challenges through a collection of focused topics rather than a beginner's overview. The book dives into practical patterns and idioms that sharpen your logic programming skills, making it ideal if you’ve already tackled introductory materials but want to deepen your craft. Its candid approach helps you rethink common assumptions in Prolog programming, especially in organizing and structuring your code.

This tailored book dives into Prolog programming with a focus on daily, structured lessons designed to accelerate your learning curve. It explores the core concepts of logic programming, guiding you through practical examples and exercises that build your proficiency step by step. The content matches your background and interests, ensuring each chapter addresses your specific goals, from understanding syntax to mastering recursion and pattern matching. By weaving together widely recognized techniques with your personal learning preferences, this book offers a unique, personalized pathway to quickly build confidence and skill in Prolog. It reveals the essentials needed to navigate Prolog’s logic-driven environment efficiently, creating a tailored learning experience that keeps you engaged and progressing steadily.

When Dennis Merritt first recognized the challenges learners face with logic programming, he developed Adventure in Prolog to bridge the gap between theory and practical understanding. This book takes you through the fundamentals of Prolog with clarity, emphasizing problem-solving techniques and the language’s unique approach to logic. You’ll explore core concepts like pattern matching, recursion, and backtracking, supported by straightforward examples that demystify complex ideas. If you’re new to logic programming or seeking a concise introduction that balances theory with practice, this text offers a solid foundation without overwhelming jargon.

Ehud Y. Shapiro's deep involvement in the Weizmann Institute's Applied Mathematics department fueled his development of Concurrent Prolog, a pioneering language designed to tackle the challenges of parallel computing. You explore a detailed examination of concurrent logic programming languages, focusing on Flat Concurrent Prolog's radical yet simple foundation for parallel systems. The book walks you through practical aspects such as embedding other high-level languages, advanced programming techniques, and efficient implementations on both sequential and parallel computers. This work suits those interested in parallel computing architectures and advanced logic programming, especially if you're aiming to understand how to leverage concurrency in high-level programming environments.