the language of logic

i like quaint things. i have a number of them stashed around the house. one of them is an old self-study book originally published in 1968, though i have a second edition copy from 1979. it's a paper back with a brown cover and a very late-70s weird stripe design on the front.

it was written by a professor who was a programmer but who apparently taught courses such as "the philosophy of science". he wrote the book to help people taking his courses that expected a basic understanding of logic to quickly pick up how logic works and the symbols used to describe logical constructs. there are three sections and each page (which the author calls frames, and which can be torn out along perforations) can be completed in a under a minute. there are self-tests and quizzes, multi-page instruction and several other interesting methods employed. it's meant to be used once and then maybe kept for reference.

by the gem is on page 2. you see, at the bottom of each page there are instructions as to what to do next. like a choose your own adventure book, almost. "if you didn't get the answer to question 3, go to frame 4. other wise, go to frame 5."

page 1's entry at the bottom of the page is:

"If you have missed any of these, turn to frame 3.
If you are correct on all of these, turn to frame 4."

no frame 2, you see. well, page 2 simply says:

"You have not followed directions. You need to cooperate in order for this program to succeed. Follow the directions printed at the bottom of this frame."

the bottom of the page says:

"Please reread Instructions to the Reader, page ix. Then return to frame 1 and FOLLOW THE DIRECTIONS."

i bet the guy was a wicked coder. i also think there are hidden mysteries in this style of self-study guide we could tap for desktop documentation to. perhaps i'll bring it with me to Malaga.