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2nd out of 58 books
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90 voters
My rating:
add to my books
The Pragmatic Programmer: From Journeyman to Master
Using anecdotes, analogies, examples and parables, this user-friendly guide offers techniques for getting any programming job done effectively, and can help any programmer improve skills, no matter what level. Incorporates today's top languages, including Java, C, C++, and Perl.
Paperback, 352 pages
Published
October 30th 1999
by Addison-Wesley Professional
(first published October 20th 1999)
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This is essentially a self-help guide for programmers, the kind of book that enumerates the habits of Good and Happy People and makes you feel slightly guilty about not practicing most of them, but probably won't result in you forsaking your evil ways and stepping on the path toward Nirvana. Hunt and Thomas are friendly but occasionally annoying gurus. Their cloying metaphors (boiled frogs, etc) and kitsch jokes are offputting, and some of their advice borders on insult. One assumes that when...more
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I used to teach a course from this book. Well, not entirely from this book, but mostly from it. Despite it not being designed as a textbook, it's eminently suitable as one. I often think, looking back at this experience, that textbooks should *really* be written in lecture-size chunks, not in huge chapters like most are. The book provides somewhat of a "tour de force" through sane programming practices. It slightly predates the eXtreme Programming craze, but elements of agile developme...more
I no longer have any need for mentors or friends now that I have AVClub (the AVQ&A and "Gateways to Geekery" columns in particular), Quora, and Stack Overflow.
Case in point: That I found this book. Over the past couple of years I have been gradually writing and less-gradually maintaining a code base for separate projects. It's getting the point where I might as well figure out what the hell I'm doing. So I go to Stack Overflow and find my way to a question like "What p...more
Case in point: That I found this book. Over the past couple of years I have been gradually writing and less-gradually maintaining a code base for separate projects. It's getting the point where I might as well figure out what the hell I'm doing. So I go to Stack Overflow and find my way to a question like "What p...more
I'm sure that I'm probably one of the last people to make it through this classic, but I can honestly say 'better late than never'.
Pragmatic Programmer really takes a lot of the important, high-level lessons that can only come from years of experience in the software industry and boils it down to series of stories and advice that can be understood and applied by even the most junior of developers. I really liked the set of 'Tips' that were sprinkled throughout the book, as they served...more
Pragmatic Programmer really takes a lot of the important, high-level lessons that can only come from years of experience in the software industry and boils it down to series of stories and advice that can be understood and applied by even the most junior of developers. I really liked the set of 'Tips' that were sprinkled throughout the book, as they served...more
This is a great, pragmatic, book which explains somewhat high-level practices of programming. It's an area that's not covered in-depth very often. It is written in a voice that speaks both to the programmer and to software development or project managers. Any one in and around programming should read it.
Besides original and valuable advice, it's full of sound advice that you may have heard elsewhere, and that you may have stumbled upon or thought of on your own, but even in those ca...more
Besides original and valuable advice, it's full of sound advice that you may have heard elsewhere, and that you may have stumbled upon or thought of on your own, but even in those ca...more
I don't think I can gush enough about this book.
It's the kind of thing I unconsciously resist reading because I know of all the guilty feelings it could provoke. Well, one thing I can tell you is that it's not like that at all. Oh actually, yes it is. The first chapter starts off gently reminding you that you should be constantly learning new things, for example, a new programming language every year (not necessarily because you want to have mastery of that language, but because...more
It's the kind of thing I unconsciously resist reading because I know of all the guilty feelings it could provoke. Well, one thing I can tell you is that it's not like that at all. Oh actually, yes it is. The first chapter starts off gently reminding you that you should be constantly learning new things, for example, a new programming language every year (not necessarily because you want to have mastery of that language, but because...more
This is my favorite non-technical tech book. It explores good software development practices. In my opinion it is more than just a checklist of what you should do - it literally changed my approach to development with positive results.
Others have mentionned that they already knew most of the things in this book, and practice these good habits in their development environments. I've worked in dozens of environments ranging from very successful experienced companies, to fly-by-nigh...more
Others have mentionned that they already knew most of the things in this book, and practice these good habits in their development environments. I've worked in dozens of environments ranging from very successful experienced companies, to fly-by-nigh...more
I found this book to be a source of good common sense in software development. It's written in a clear, easy to understand manner. It has a nice habit of cross referencing itself, which helps read the book in any order you like, or come back and revisit parts. It's a refreshing read, and I'd recommend it to anyone wanting to improve their development practices and/or smooth out most nasty surprises in software development.
I'm a bit of a self-taught programmer, and I wish I had read thi...more
I'm a bit of a self-taught programmer, and I wish I had read thi...more
This is a book I would highly recommend (and have recommended) to anyone I know who is just starting out in the world of computer programming. It teaches a lot of the principles that experienced developers take for granted and it also has a thing or two to teach those experienced developers. As someone who finds himself in a situation where I am often teaching and mentoring new developers, this book also helped me to take some of the concepts I knew about and put them into a common verbiage that...more
Эту книгу нужно ОБЯЗАТЕЛЬНО прочитать КАЖДОМУ студенту, который учится на специальностях, связанных с ИТ. Причём лучше прочитать уже на втором-третьем курсе, чтобы студенты не только знали языки программирования и алгоритмы, но и принципы разработки, чтобы они понимали, что значит «быть разработчиком».
Книга состоит из небольших глав, сгруппированных в разделы, читается легко, авторы не «лезут в дебри», да и в целом книга небольшая, так что с учётом этих причн, я, опять же, в первую о...more
Книга состоит из небольших глав, сгруппированных в разделы, читается легко, авторы не «лезут в дебри», да и в целом книга небольшая, так что с учётом этих причн, я, опять же, в первую о...more
(4.0) Good for new programmers
This seems to be a favorite in the office, so before I participating in the recommending of this book to new hires, I figured I should check it out first. There is definitely some good stuff in here, but most won't be new for anyone who's been programming professionally for 2 or 3 years or more. I think most engineers' problems is that they don't do what they know is the right thing.
I think many people have said this before, but at the risk of du...more
This seems to be a favorite in the office, so before I participating in the recommending of this book to new hires, I figured I should check it out first. There is definitely some good stuff in here, but most won't be new for anyone who's been programming professionally for 2 or 3 years or more. I think most engineers' problems is that they don't do what they know is the right thing.
I think many people have said this before, but at the risk of du...more
This book is a real kick-in-the-pants for computer programmers. No matter where you are on the technology curve, this book will give you great insight into developing your craft.
The premise of the book is that software development is a craft. The subtitle of the book is, "From journeyman to master", which evokes the traditional pathway a person learned to ply a craft. An apprentice would sit at the feet of a master and learn the secrets of the trade.
Computer ...more
The premise of the book is that software development is a craft. The subtitle of the book is, "From journeyman to master", which evokes the traditional pathway a person learned to ply a craft. An apprentice would sit at the feet of a master and learn the secrets of the trade.
Computer ...more
If you are a programmer, get this book. This is the best book I've read on how to be a good, professional programmer.
From Amazon.com's review:
From Amazon.com's review:
Programmers are craftspeople trained to use a certain set of tools (editors, object managers, version trackers) to generate a certain kind of product (programs) that will operate in some environment (operating systems on hardware assemblies). Like any other craft, computer programming has spawned a body of wisdom, most of whic...more
For however many well-trained, efficient, and professional practitioners of computer programming there are, so too are legion those who sound their way through the makestuff of information by more crooked means. If you or someone you know falls into the latter camp then this book can help. It covers the penumbra of tools and practices that surround the writing of code which, as suggested by the subtitle, help one master the practice.
As in many texts on programming, quotes from outsid...more
As in many texts on programming, quotes from outsid...more
The authors propose their philosophy of software development, some of which can be applied to life in general. So the DRY principle- Don't Repeat Yourself says that if any information exists in more than one place, then inevitably, when it is updated, it won't be updated everywhere it is found.
So the key is to make sure that all information exists in just one location, and that anything that needs the information obtains it from that location, so that updates are propagated automa...more
So the key is to make sure that all information exists in just one location, and that anything that needs the information obtains it from that location, so that updates are propagated automa...more
I just finished reading this book for the first time. It's a book I know I should have read a long time ago but just never got around to it. The book is packed full of good ideas. Some of the practical examples may be out of date (a lot of C++, Makefiles, CVS, etc.), but the core ideas still hold true. Many of these ideas a baked into the Ruby/Rails tools and the philosophy is generally shared throughout the community as well, so it's nice to see the roots of these ideas.
In fact, it's a good book... if you're just beginning to program. I've just read it late, so it contains nothing new to me. I can't imagine that there are software developers who don't know about practices described in this book. Besides, it's already outdated (RCS? Really?).
As to Russian edition of this book, it's translated very badly, it's almost unreadable.
As to Russian edition of this book, it's translated very badly, it's almost unreadable.
Not really for programmers. I found - being a programmer - I knew most of the stuff in this book already. I think it's better suited to IT managers/Project managers as it gives some insight as to how a developer can be more productive. If focuses on how to produce reliable, decoupled, low maintenance code. In essence, put in a good infra-structure and code will look after itself.
A really great book that highlights an important point: know a craftsman by his tools. The programmer is master of text. A designer is master of photoshop. That's why I think it's silly to have programmers write text that creates art! What we really need is an open PSD file format that can be accessed in a DOM like manner by programmers. Flash is close.
I can't think of anything bad to say about this book, but my reaction was kind of m'eh. It's essentially a checklist of good programming practices. I probably would have had a more positive reaction to it if I hadn't already been in work environments which practiced many of these principles - very little was new or insightful to me.
Michael Minutillo
rated it
Recommends it for:
Software Engineering Students and Grads
Shelves:
software
If I had to choose one book to hand to a new graduate as they make their way into the world of Software Engineering this would be it. It's short enough that they'll open it, light enough that they'll get all the way through and packed full of so much useful advice that many seniors in the field just take for granted.
This book makes sense.
It is not detailed, but rather it covers many issues in software development and pushes you in the right direction.
It offers you quality further readings, which is definately a very strong advantage of the book.
Recommended to every programmer (actually, I would guess manager, also).
It is not detailed, but rather it covers many issues in software development and pushes you in the right direction.
It offers you quality further readings, which is definately a very strong advantage of the book.
Recommended to every programmer (actually, I would guess manager, also).
This might well have been the first "programming" book I bought that was not about a specific technology. It doesn't have code examples, but instead has advice on BEING a programmer.
I just cleaned out about 100 compure-related books, and this is one of the 5 or 10 that I decided to keep.
I just cleaned out about 100 compure-related books, and this is one of the 5 or 10 that I decided to keep.
This book is really going to change my life. There's just no delaying its impact.
The examples and defended in the book are quite out of date when compared to 'modern' programming languages, common development environments, and overall zeitgeist, however the tone, message, and principles behind this book make it invaluable and surely timeless in intention.
The examples and defended in the book are quite out of date when compared to 'modern' programming languages, common development environments, and overall zeitgeist, however the tone, message, and principles behind this book make it invaluable and surely timeless in intention.
A 12-year-old technical book which is relevant and useful is pretty rare, which speaks highly of the authors. It's interesting to see, a decade+ on, which of the practices they recommend are standard and which never caught on. I think they were more right than wrong.
Geat book. Similar to the book "Getting real" in the sense that (my) current practises follow the methods and approaches described in this book. The book is fun to read and reminds you how you should be developing, as a pragmatic programmer.
Ivan
rated it
Recommends it for:
any programmer
Recommended to Ivan by:
found in CitizenSpace library
A little dated if you're using a framework like Ruby on Rails, but definitely worth reviewing. Lots of great practices. I feel like this book gives you the foundational understanding to what inspired many currentRuby on Rails practices.
This book is a must read for all programmers. It is a well written catalog of the wisdom and experience of Dave Thomas and Andy Hunt. If you care about investing in your own technical skills, this is a great book to start that journey.
This book is a must for any developer, be they a beginner or a long-established engineer. Andrew Hunt outlines SIMPLE ways to improve efficiency and effectiveness in tasks that challenge every developer each day of our lives.
It's a classic of course, but I found the writing style irritating after a while. It has some excellent advice for budding and experienced programmers alike but I'd like to see a new edition, revised for the Internet age.
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