the road to learning useful math
Ixiaus: In the course of my self-education I've come across a number of interesting books for mathematics. My two favorites:- Practical Mathematics by C. I. Palmer
 - Mathematics for the Nonmathematician by Morris KlinePractical Mathematics is an old book, first published in the early nineteen hundreds. It covers everything beginning with multiplication to advanced algebra and trig. It uses practical trade problems in gear cutting, cam ratios in engines, &c... The book has only been re-published by the company Lindsay's Technical Books. You can also find it in Google's book repository.Mathematics for the Nonmathematician is a bit more recent and written by a strong mathematician with a lot of history and background. This book got me hooked on mathematics, no other book has done that; his in-depth scholarly work plus his skill in mathematics makes it both interesting and educating to read.A large majority of programming problems can be tackled with solid arithmetic or algebra.