Subject: RE: [hackers-il] RF Opinions: "Code Complete" and "The Pragmatic Programmer"

From: Chen Shapira <[email-masked]>
Date: Tue, 25 Jun 2002 09:45:04 +0200

> I was browsing throught the "Joel on Software" recommended 
> book list[1]
> and saw these titles:

Which reminds me: 
Did anyone here read "Peopleware"? 
I heard it recommended several times, but it always sounds too "businessish"
for me. I'm more interested in books on how to be a programmer, than on how
to employ programmers.

Thanks,
Chen.

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From: Arik Baratz <[email-masked]>
Date: Tue, 25 Jun 2002 10:11:42 +0200

>for me. I'm more interested in books on how to be a programmer, than on how
Being a programmer is a way of life. You get to be a programmer because 
you have a passion to... well, programming. I'm not limiting it to 
computers.

If any of you want me to bring over any books, the deadline to tell me 
about it is the 14th.

-- Arik

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From: Oleg Goldshmidt <[email-masked]>
Date: 25 Jun 2002 10:52:09 +0300

> Did anyone here read "Peopleware"? 

Yes. I thought it was a great book.

> for me. I'm more interested in books on how to be a programmer, than on how

So far ;-). 

The book was very interesting to me from the point of view of team
management and what makes a healthy working environment conductive to
efficient performance. I remember, for instance, how my office mate
and myself started estimating the area of our office and the desk
space (barely sufficient, as I recall). And it helped making useful
suggestions to the (quite enlightened) management. As I recall, it was
also a fun, easy read.

-- 
Oleg Goldshmidt | [email-masked] 
"A sense of the fundamental decencies is parceled out unequally at birth."

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From: guy keren <[email-masked]>
Date: Tue, 25 Jun 2002 23:54:03 +0300 (EET DST)

On Tue, 25 Jun 2002, Chen Shapira wrote:

> for me. I'mmore interested in books on how to be a programmer, than on how
> to employ programmers.

the only book about project management i've read so far, is 'debugging the
development process' (by the same author as code complete). i'd say that
the types of books one wishes to read depends on their 'phase'. if you're
into programming properly, then do concentrate on those books - thought
since you've already been programming for a while, they might be too
'trivial' in a sense.

but note that more then a good book, having a good programming companion
to either learn from, or learn with, is most productive and useful. just
developing a habbit of discussing code issues with someone at work, even
if they work on a different project, can be quite beneficial. as for
books, after you read one, you'll see that the others quite overlap the
former. and what they all do not teach you, as far as i could see, is how
to handle the tradeoff between good code, and the pressure to deliver
software yesterday at a low price, and with programers that not all of
them are good or great, or 'into' the project, or commited, or in good
enough mood to take criticism.

-- 
guy

"For world domination - press 1,
 or dial 0, and please hold, for the creator." -- nob o. dy