Just finished "Love's Executioner" and "Creatures of a Day," both by Irvin Yalom. A deeply touching glimpse into the world of psychotherapy. Highly recommended.
Ask HN: Book Recommendations?
21–30 of 85 posts
Re: Ask HN: Book Recommendations?
#22If you haven't already read it, "Getting Things Done" by David Allen is one of the best known productivity books. Some people I have spoken to say his method isn't for them but I've found it useful, even if I haven't implemented everything he suggests. I'd also recommend "Code: The Hidden Language of Computer Hardware and Software" by Charles Petzold. It starts at simple circuits and builds up a picture of how comput…
I have always been skeptical about GTD (and haven't read the book). It seems very cultish. And apparently he just released a new version where he changes the terminology he uses for every concept, which sounds very confusing.
On the other hand, I see GTD principles pop up all the time on todo list apps, and a lot of it seems like a good idea.
Re: Ask HN: Book Recommendations?
#23John Holland, "Hidden Order". Really. What is money? A message bus in a complex adaptive system. Lots of other stuff out there on complexity but this has a unique perspective. If you really want to go crazy find "Signs of Life, How complexity pervades biology" after you read "Hidden Order"
Re: Ask HN: Book Recommendations?
#24You can also check out Blinkist - they summarize business/finance/self help books to 10-15 short key insights. It's pretty cool (Disclaimer: I worked for them, but actually mean it): http://blinkist.com
Re: Ask HN: Book Recommendations?
#25I have barely finished chapter one of this 1981 book but I think it offers insight into the past for all of us who got into this field after Java was already prevalent.
> It chronicles the experiences of a computer engineering team racing to design a next-generation computer at a blistering pace under tremendous pressure.
Re: Ask HN: Book Recommendations?
#26If you haven't already read it, "Getting Things Done" by David Allen is one of the best known productivity books. Some people I have spoken to say his method isn't for them but I've found it useful, even if I haven't implemented everything he suggests. I'd also recommend "Code: The Hidden Language of Computer Hardware and Software" by Charles Petzold. It starts at simple circuits and builds up a picture of how comput…
I have always been skeptical about GTD (and haven't read the book). It seems very cultish. And apparently he just released a new version where he changes the terminology he uses for every concept, which sounds very confusing. On the other hand, I see GTD principles pop up all the time on todo list apps, and a lot of it seems like a good idea.
I'm about 100 pages in, and the concepts seem very sensible so far. It boils down to methodically keeping track of your to-do's in one list, not in your head, so you don't have those distracting "oh right I need to do X" moments throughout your day. The book is a collection of tips to help you do that better -- you can take bits and pieces if you want.
I have no doubt that if I actually started doing what he says my days would be more productive and less stressful.
That said, so far the book is really verbose, so I'm unsure if I'd recommend it over an online summary.
Re: Ask HN: Book Recommendations?
#27Robert Caro's The Power Broker about Robert Moses, the most powerful unelected government official in U.S. history.
Caro, a Pulitzer winning journalist, is a wiz at writing, so you'll enjoy each page. But more importantly, even though Robert Moses was a bad buy, you don't have to be bad to learn to get what you want, in an organization, by ignoring superficial power structures, and focusing on the real ones.
Plus you'll learn a ton about how NYC was built out in the depression.
Re: Ask HN: Book Recommendations?
#28Do a google search for Charlie munger reading list and you'll uncover gems like Influenc, guns germs and steel, poor Charlie's almanac
Re: Ask HN: Book Recommendations?
#29If you haven't already read it, "Getting Things Done" by David Allen is one of the best known productivity books. Some people I have spoken to say his method isn't for them but I've found it useful, even if I haven't implemented everything he suggests. I'd also recommend "Code: The Hidden Language of Computer Hardware and Software" by Charles Petzold. It starts at simple circuits and builds up a picture of how comput…
I have always been skeptical about GTD (and haven't read the book). It seems very cultish. And apparently he just released a new version where he changes the terminology he uses for every concept, which sounds very confusing. On the other hand, I see GTD principles pop up all the time on todo list apps, and a lot of it seems like a good idea.
You might prefer "Time Management for System Administrators" :
http://shop.oreilly.com/product/9780596007836.do
It's a little bit GTD-ish, but has a direct practical IT take on it without so much dwelling on terminology. Certainly changed the way I worked for the better.
Re: Ask HN: Book Recommendations?
#30If you haven't already read it, "Getting Things Done" by David Allen is one of the best known productivity books. Some people I have spoken to say his method isn't for them but I've found it useful, even if I haven't implemented everything he suggests. I'd also recommend "Code: The Hidden Language of Computer Hardware and Software" by Charles Petzold. It starts at simple circuits and builds up a picture of how comput…
I have always been skeptical about GTD (and haven't read the book). It seems very cultish. And apparently he just released a new version where he changes the terminology he uses for every concept, which sounds very confusing. On the other hand, I see GTD principles pop up all the time on todo list apps, and a lot of it seems like a good idea.
I felt the same way about GTD for the longest time, until I decided to read the small book and see what the fuss was all about. It completely changed the way I look at productivity and getting things done. GTD is not so much about David Allen or The GTD Method, but about a logical, structured way of processing inputs into your life. The more inputs you have, the more you'll benefit from the ideas (I consider them ideas more than 'methods') presented in the book.
I don't follow GTD exactly the way David presents it in the book, but that's just the thing: What I learned from the book was not a specific method, but how to think about task management in a way that makes sense given the limited capacity of my brain to remember a large number of transitory things.