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What is the single most influential book every programmer should read?

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Re: What is the single most influential book every programmer should read?

#31

Post by timr »

The ranking of this list is extremely suspect.

Code Complete is a fine book. The Pragmatic Programmer is okay. But neither book holds a candle to Introduction to Algorithms for career-long usefulness. For that matter, neither one holds a candle to Design Patterns for the ability to expand your mind and improve your ability to think about code (I read both at the same time, and Design Patterns is the only one whose lessons I remember distinctly, years later).

I think the main problem here is that the easy, mechanical reads get more votes than books that are harder, but more valuable. It's the technical equivalent of a lolcat photo.

Re: What is the single most influential book every programmer should read?

#32

Post by radicalbyte »

feral wrote: post #19

I'm not sure that all those people on Stackexchange have read the question properly. The question is "What is the single most influential book every programmer should read?" I.e. given the set of books that every programmer should read, which one is the single most influential? As a programmer, lets consider the answer to the question, as parsed logically (regardless of intent). Typing 'most influential books' into G…

If we're assuming an America-centric question and your abstract definition then you can summarize it with just one book:

1. The Bible.

Closely followed by whatever the first book that people in stackoverflow's demographic read whilst learning to read.

Re: What is the single most influential book every programmer should read?

#33

Post by radicalbyte »

InclinedPlane wrote: post #26
famousactress wrote: post #13

Man, still Code Complete? I dunno. Wasn't that big a fan, honestly. I think I got more out of the first three chapters than the sum of the rest of the book. If we're talking about technical books, Refactoring is easily the most beneficial read I can remember having. I was pleased to see it (barely) trump Design Patterns... a book that I think (through no real fault of it's own) has spoiled more developer-years than i…

I think Code Complete deserves its usual top spot on these lists. You need to understand the skill set of the typical entry level coder, even after acquiring a CS degree. There is so very, very much they don't know and Code Complete helps fill in a lot of the gaps. Most usefully it helps instill the idea that it's important to use practices that are backed up by evidence and that there is a lot more to learn when you…

The value of the GOF book is in the way of thinking, not in the actual patterns themselves.

Re: What is the single most influential book every programmer should read?

#34

Post by lclarkmichalek »

A Mathematician's Apology is a good read on why the most abstract of subjects is worthy of study. It is a justification of pure mathematics, without resorting to applied mathematics. Though not directly related to computing, it has some lovely insights, and is a thought provoking read. In computing we talk a lot of "elegant" code, without ever defining what elegance is, and in A Mathematician's Apology, Hardy talks of how the most beautiful mathematics is that which has not applicable to the outside world. It is odd in a way that the foreword to the book (a biography of Hardy, written by his friend C.P. Snow) is by a mathematician who is remembered for his contribution to physics; mathematics that seems to be the opposite of Hardy's definition of beauty.

Re: What is the single most influential book every programmer should read?

#35

Post by konstruktor »

Many of those books are great, and I have read shockingly many of them. However, I find all "... every x should know/have done/have read" lists very disturbing, since they seduce my ego into wasting time. Right now, my priority is reduce todo-lists, focus on less stuff that actually gets done, and use lean/just in time in as many areas as possible.

Re: What is the single most influential book every programmer should read?

#36

Post by BerislavLopac »

radicalbyte wrote: post #33
InclinedPlane wrote: post #26

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think Code Complete deserves its usual top spot on these lists. You need to understand the skill set of the typical entry level coder, even after acquiring a CS degree. There is so very, very much they don't know and Code Complete helps fill in a lot of the gaps. Most usefully it helps instill the idea that it's important to use practices that are backed up by evidence and that there is a lot more to learn when you…

The value of the GOF book is in the way of thinking, not in the actual patterns themselves.

I was seriously disilusioned when I have learned that most of the design patterns make sense only in strongly-typed languages, and that the whole mess that is abstract factory can in, say, PHP be replaced with a simple

    new $className();

Re: What is the single most influential book every programmer should read?

#37

Post by neilk »

phillmv wrote: post #21
famousactress wrote: post #13

Man, still Code Complete? I dunno. Wasn't that big a fan, honestly. I think I got more out of the first three chapters than the sum of the rest of the book. If we're talking about technical books, Refactoring is easily the most beneficial read I can remember having. I was pleased to see it (barely) trump Design Patterns... a book that I think (through no real fault of it's own) has spoiled more developer-years than i…

Going through the list: Code Complete: First ed 1993 Prag Prog: 1999 SICP: 80s? K&R C: ditto CLRS: 1990 Refactoring: 1999? GoF DP: 1994 Mythical Man Month: late 70s, 80s? TAOCP: Decades ago, and not a serious suggestion Dragon book: 1986 GEB: 80s was it? Programming Pearls: 1999 CODE: 1999 Off the top items in that list, only two have them have been published in the last TWELVE years, which in our industry is at leas…

Given that JavaScript and Python are very mainstream now, we need some sort of text that covers functional techniques for the average programmer in scripting languages. SICP is dated and doesn't really match what modern languages can do.

Mark-Jason Dominus' "Higher-Order Perl" is fantastic, but unfortunately specific to a language that's most programmers are not choosing in 2011. There was an attempt at a JavaScript port. Maybe someone should take that up again.

Re: What is the single most influential book every programmer should read?

#38

Post by gtrak »

BerislavLopac wrote: post #36
radicalbyte wrote: post #33

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The value of the GOF book is in the way of thinking, not in the actual patterns themselves.

I was seriously disilusioned when I have learned that most of the design patterns make sense only in strongly-typed languages, and that the whole mess that is abstract factory can in, say, PHP be replaced with a simple new $className();

But then you realize, some people can only barely decipher what's printed on the pages, they consider it a bible, when it is in fact, a consequence of design compromises in pseudo-OOP langs like C++ and java.

I really really hate singletons, visitors, factories, and all the lot, but I'm glad I can understand the intent of these things.

I think being disillusioned with this book is a good stepping stone for devs, it felt like one to me.

Re: What is the single most influential book every programmer should read?

#39

Post by bluekeybox »

droithomme wrote: post #4

"Without Conscience: The Disturbing World of the Psychopaths Among Us" by Robert Hare. If only I understood more about how many corporate executives and venture capitalists think about things and regard others earlier in my career, it would have saved a lot of grief. Now that I understand this disorder and how it works, I am able to avoid distasteful and frustrating scenarios and get much more done.

While I agree that some degree of emotional detachment is necessary to succeed, this is a bit too harsh of a judgement...

Re: What is the single most influential book every programmer should read?

#40

Post by InclinedPlane »

radicalbyte wrote: post #33
InclinedPlane wrote: post #26

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think Code Complete deserves its usual top spot on these lists. You need to understand the skill set of the typical entry level coder, even after acquiring a CS degree. There is so very, very much they don't know and Code Complete helps fill in a lot of the gaps. Most usefully it helps instill the idea that it's important to use practices that are backed up by evidence and that there is a lot more to learn when you…

The value of the GOF book is in the way of thinking, not in the actual patterns themselves.

Very much so. However, it's much less successful at instilling that way of thinking than Refactoring is. Worse yet, many readers becomeoverly enamored with the "canonical" design patterns, seemingly not realizing that most of them are special purpose constructs and only useful in very specific circumstances (and in some languages wholly obsolete). They also often don't understand that those examples are but a drop in the bucket amongst the universe of useful patterns (many of which assuredly haven't even been created yet).
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