When comparing For Dummies vs How to Design Programs, the Slant community recommends How to Design Programs for most people. In the question“What are the best beginner's books for programming?” How to Design Programs is ranked 5th while For Dummies is ranked 8th. The most important reason people chose How to Design Programs is:
Available online for free.
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Pros
Pro Price
Compared to beginner books of the same language by another publisher, For Dummies books are usually the more affordable option.
Pro Great for complete beginners
For someone who has no prior programming experience, these books will take you through the fundamentals of programming at a reasonable pace.
Pro Free
Available online for free.
Cons
Con Inconsistent
The "For Dummies" series covers a wide variety of languages. However the style is largely inconsistent across the different books, so it's recommended that you look up reviews for that specific book first.