Hey, nice comparison! On Axler's website you can download the pdf of the fourth edition of his book for free, but I don't think the fourth edition has many advantages before you get to determinants. The fourth edition does determinants "right" for a theoretical book in linear algebra, using alternating multilinear forms, while in the third edition determinants are done by fixing a basis and showing invariance later if I remember correctly, which was a bit odd given the target audience and the rest of the book.
Good to know about the differences between the two editions. I have the 4th edition PDF but I want the hardcopy on account of being a collector by nature, therefore planning to get the book within a few weeks.
I believe it is important to be careful when learning mathematics to support practical applications such as machine learning and programming. You can get caught up in details that will hold you back from being able to actually do anything useful. So there is a place for continuing down an endless path of learning and there can also be a need to learn the essential concepts needed to move your work forward. Some of us have to put mathematics and first principle scientific concepts into practice and produce something tangilble for our jobs as opposed to just studying for "fun". Studying difficult math concepts takes on a totally different meaning when you know you are up against a deadline to figure something out and need the mathematical understanding to justify design decisions.
![The most beautiful equation in math, explained visually [Euler’s Formula]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/f8CXG7dS-D0/mqdefault.jpg)
Hey, nice comparison! On Axler's website you can download the pdf of the fourth edition of his book for free, but I don't think the fourth edition has many advantages before you get to determinants. The fourth edition does determinants "right" for a theoretical book in linear algebra, using alternating multilinear forms, while in the third edition determinants are done by fixing a basis and showing invariance later if I remember correctly, which was a bit odd given the target audience and the rest of the book.
Good to know about the differences between the two editions. I have the 4th edition PDF but I want the hardcopy on account of being a collector by nature, therefore planning to get the book within a few weeks.
I believe it is important to be careful when learning mathematics to support practical applications such as machine learning and programming. You can get caught up in details that will hold you back from being able to actually do anything useful. So there is a place for continuing down an endless path of learning and there can also be a need to learn the essential concepts needed to move your work forward.
Some of us have to put mathematics and first principle scientific concepts into practice and produce something tangilble for our jobs as opposed to just studying for "fun". Studying difficult math concepts takes on a totally different meaning when you know you are up against a deadline to figure something out and need the mathematical understanding to justify design decisions.
I couldn't agree more. This is most true in rocket space work. If the calculations are incorrect, the rocket launch will fail spetacularly.