Linear Algebra Done Right by Springer

	Title: Linear Algebra Done Right Purchase Item Manufacturer: Springer List Price: $39.95 Our Price: $31.87
Customer Reviews:
Linear Algebra Done Right by Springer Just a gadget, buy it for fun, not for serious study.
I do not think this book should be complemented by any other books; it is an unnecessary complement to any other books. Buy this for fun, not for a serious study. I just regard this book as a gadget. As the author said, he never had other books beside him when writing this book; I do not think this is the right atitude for writing a book.
Linear Algebra Done Right by Springer better than average but not superb.
this book's approach to linear algebra is not anything unusual; its approach is typical development one sees in algebra books. My main complaint is that this book uses many algebraic notions such as quotient structures and polynomials without enough development of the ideas. i think it is best to study algebra and learn the linear algebra as a part of algebra not as a separate subject. despite my complaint and prejudice, i think this book quite good for as an introductory undergraduate text.
Linear Algebra Done Right by Springer Lousy
The author would be much more effective if he spent less time pontificating and patting himself on the back for not using determinants and more time giving decent arguments. Interestingly enough, even though the book champions the credo "no determinants are necessary" (a ludicrous idea to start with), he DOES grudgingly include a section on determinants and traces at the end of the book because by his own admission, they come in handy. The audacity of the title is a trend reflected throughout the book, punctuated by his neurotic insistance that this is the way things ought to be. It's a very odd book and frankly, not that instructive. I found it more difficult than you would expect at first glance since he gives the impression of an easy read. It develops most of the useful material you'd expect in a junior level course but not a lot of insight. It's probably harder than it need to be and the sections on Jordan form are truly aggravating. The book was a bummer, a total bummer.
Linear Algebra Done Right by Springer Thought Provoking but...
I have no doubt that this is one of the most thought provoking math books that I have come across. So far I am about 2/3 through a 1 semester course and I have learned a ton. Specifically about the structure of vector spaces and linear operators. However, the most important function that this book serves is to move students towards the methodology of mathematics, which means proof construction and counter examples. It also trains students to let go of their intuitions. But you can not self-study this book, there are no answers and more importantly the structure of the course begs for instruction. I would recommend before taking this course doing what i didn't do and have had to do since, make sure you have your first course of linear algebra solidly under your belt, and that doesn't mean having gotten an A in the prior class is sufficient. Go through the most difficult proof driven exercises in your first text, that should serve as practice for easiest homework problems in this book. All that said, there are serious limitations to this book. It would be nice if the author worked out 1 comprehensive semi-difficult exercise in each chapter of the text. While struggling to solve the problems can be enlightening, there is only so many times I can read the same sections over and over again, looking for some insight from the kiddie exercises provided by the author. It would also help if some of the kiddie exercises were accompanied with graphs, especially when describing the sums of vector spaces. Sometimes a picture is worth a thousand words - sometimes! Last but not least, the author has a copyright on the solutions to the book. Where he does not allow professors to post homework solutions to exercises. This has had a devastating effect on the class I am in, because there were many students who were lost in the first couple of homeworks and basically were never given a chance to figure out what was going on. Pedagogically, this is unacceptable. Furthermore it sets a dangerous trend. Math problems should not be copyrighted, the idea of treating them as intellectual property will only further the isolation of the field. It is for this reason above all, that I have taken down my rating from 4 stars to 3.
Linear Algebra Done Right by Springer Undergradutes and Beginners: Avoid At All Cost
This book a great review of linear algebra once you've understood all the concepts and just want to briefly see the theorems, props, and corollaries. There are minimal examples, hardly any computation (since the author is so lazy and tells the reader to prove the examples for him/herself), and very brief readings on each chapter. I HATE this book, to say the least. I have to look for other books to learn linear algebra from, as this is my first time taking an upper div. course in linear algebra at Cal. Graduate students love this book since they've had prior exposure to the material. As for me, this is definitely not a good place to start if you're beginning to learn linear algebra; no surprise in the few number of pages in this book. How do you really expect to learn from a book with completely vague questions and no solutions? This student is very frustrated and disgruntled by Axler.
Linear Algebra Done Right by Springer Product Description
This text for a second course in linear algebra is aimed at math majors and graduate students. The novel approach taken here banishes determinants to the end of the book and focuses on the central goal of linear algebra: understanding the structure of linear operators on vector spaces. The author has taken unusual care to motivate concepts and to simplify proofs. For example, the book presents--without having defined determinants--a clean proof that every linear operator on a finite-dimensional complex vector space (or an odd-dimensional real vector space) has an eigenvalue. A variety of interesting exercises in each chapter helps students understand and manipulate the objects of linear algebra. No prerequisites are assumed other than the usual demand for suitable mathematical maturity. Thus, the text starts by discussing vector spaces, linear independence, span, basis, and dimension. Students are introduced to inner-product spaces in the first half of the book and shortly thereafter to the finite-dimensional spectral theorem. This second edition includes a new section on orthogonal projections and minimization problems. The sections on self-adjoint operators, normal operators, and the spectral theorem have been rewritten. New examples and new exercises have been added, several proofs have been simplified, and hundreds of minor improvements have been made throughout the text.