Ed Huntress wrote:

(...)

Yes! From decades of self-teaching, I can suggest my own solution: two or
three books, written by different authors, that explain the same thing in
different ways. I open them all at the same time and switch back and forth.
This was particularly useful to me in learning semiconductor theory many
years ago, but it works for all kinds of subjects. It also helped me a great
deal with the metallurgy of steel, which often is oversimplified until you
can't understand what the mechanisms are.

The Web often is even better at providing multiple sources, but, as we all
know, it can lead you down a primrose path, too.

We all appear to learn differently.

I've set up my newsgroup reader to mark the posts from select
participants like you, Ed and Pete C and Jim Wilkins, etc because
I find that I can generally understand your point effortlessly.
It almost doesn't matter what the subject is.

I find a startling qualitative difference between 'textbook'
presentation (which can be obscure *and* tiresome) and this
informal communication which I find clear and compelling.

It's frustrating because I can't reconcile the tacit goal of
the textbook with that of the newsgroup. They should both
communicate effectively but in a lot of cases I get a sense
that the textbook author is almost gleeful in his precise,
correct and totally useless presentation.

That is fascinating stuff.

--Winston