131–140 of 145 posts
* Introductory Logic and Sets for Computer Scientists.
* Formal Specification: Techniques and Applications.
both by Nimal Nissanke.
The writing is Precise, Succinct, Clear with lots of examples. A wide variety of topics are explained without overwhelming the reader and all within a decent-sized book.
Code: The Hidden Language of Computer Hardware and Software by Charles Petzold is an excellent work that very clearly guides the reader through the components and steps that lead to the sophisticated computer systems we have nowadays. Each step is explained with no logical leaps and could be followed by a young child. Improving almost anything by George Box blew my mind. As children and even as university students we…
Also by Charles Petzold: Programming Windows. Not sure how the new editions fare, but the first (second maybe?) was great.
In fact i would go so far as to say it was directly responsible for the success of Microsoft Windows.
This book was originally published in 1969 and assumes you know nothing about cars or mechanical systems. They do a great job of getting the reader up to speed quickly without moving too fast or leaving out important concepts.
I was introduced to the book by my high school English teacher. He used it as an example of fine technical writing that doesn't feel like technical writing. I enjoyed the chapter he shared with us so much that I bought the book and read the whole thing. It's a great manual!
Most anything by Bob Nystrom. Some (all?) of his books are available for free on the Web. I recommend starting with Crafting Interpreters.
fwiw I would recommend all programmers read Game Programming Patterns even if they have no intention to ever write a game.
For example, the “HP ProBook 470 G5 Notebook PC: Maintenance and Service Guide” has an excellent reputation.
If your looking for something a bit more interesting, I suggest Mitigating Attacks on Houses of Worship by CISA: https://www.cisa.gov/sites/default/files/publications/Mitiga...
Earlier quoted context omitted.
I think so too. I remember reading Larry Wall's Perl book. I found it rambling and incoherent. Didn't hold my interest for too long. Kernighan's books are quite different.
The book is not too different from the language, ahem. OTOH, C is not my favorite language, but the K&R C book is the best technical writing I remember reading.
Anything by Bill Bryson, but especially “At Home” and “One Summer: America, 1927”. Both are brilliant. “John Adams” by David McCullough. Possibly the best historical bio ever. “The Making of the Atomic Bomb” by Richard Rhodes. The best recounting of the founding of Los Alamos. “Hackers” by Steven Levy. The best book on the birth of creatine coding. “The Soul of a New Machine” by Tracy Kidder. The best tale of hardwar…
Raymond's "Cathedral" post is a contender for one of the most overrated pieces of technical writing. "The parts that are interesting are not new, and the parts that are new aren't good". It's justifiably infamous for the now-discredited "Linus's law", about "many eyes making all bugs shallow", but large parts of it are also shoplifted from Brooks and Pike. I think it's remembered fondly mostly because it was an effec…
If you leave aside security bugs, is Linus’ law still invalid?
Any reference to any material on this?
Earlier quoted context omitted.
Raymond's "Cathedral" post is a contender for one of the most overrated pieces of technical writing. "The parts that are interesting are not new, and the parts that are new aren't good". It's justifiably infamous for the now-discredited "Linus's law", about "many eyes making all bugs shallow", but large parts of it are also shoplifted from Brooks and Pike. I think it's remembered fondly mostly because it was an effec…
I feel like security bugs are in a class of their own and need different ways of thinking about them. If you leave aside security bugs, is Linus’ law still invalid? Any reference to any material on this?
But more importantly, it says 'all bugs' not 'all bugs except for these other bugs which would make the whole thing untrue'