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“Code” 2nd Edition

charlespetzold.com

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Re: “Code” 2nd Edition

#71

Post by jgwil2 »

skripp wrote: post #55
unwind wrote: post #22

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Uh, as someone with too many years of programming behind me to imagine that, can you mention some concrete things that you found arbitrary or completely mysterious, and that the booked cleared up for you? Thanks.

What makes this book great is that it more or less only assumes you know how an on-off switch works. Then he goes on to teach you how a (although rather primitive) CPU works and how you would program it. The teaching style in this book is so unbelievably good that even if you know all the ins and outs of a computer you want to read on because he explains everything in a way that you wish that you would have come up w…

> assumes you know how an on-off switch works.

Really he explains how that works too. It's reasoning from first principles at its finest. I wish school curricula were so well-designed.

Re: “Code” 2nd Edition

#72

Post by Barrin92 »

begueradj wrote: post #16
stevoski wrote: post #5

This book (1st edition, at least) is astonishing. Perhaps the best book for coders that I’ve ever read. I recommend it to all the HN crowd. Reading it, I felt like I actually understood how computers worked, right down to the “electricity going through wires” level and lower, and how that builds up to if-then statements, etc, in a high-level language.

The content is something we learn in universities, even deeper. I think it's good for self taught programmers

As a computer science student (Informatik over here), I have to say that my university program was heavy on theoretical CS and maths, but there was extremely little in terms of hardware or low level engineering. The one networking class I took diving into the internet stack was probably the closest to it.

Obviously everyone's experience will be different but I think of a CS education more of treating computers like an abstract machine, not a physical one.

Re: “Code” 2nd Edition

#73

Post by crispyalmond »

shadowfox wrote: post #56
morninglight wrote: post #51

"Programming Windows" exposed the simplicity behind the Windows architecture. If you had even a smattering of C experience, Petzold could get you writing Windows applications the same day you opened his book. He triggered an explosion of software development. There are excellent books for novice Linux programmers, but unfortunately, nothing compared to Petzold's clear and direct presentation. .

> There are excellent books for novice Linux programmers Do you have any suggestions in this regard?

Unsure of novice, but I have this book[0] which is pretty great.

[0] https://man7.org/tlpi/

Re: “Code” 2nd Edition

#74

Post by krallja »

coldpie wrote: post #67
ThrowawayR2 wrote: post #62

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Don't oversell it. Speaking as someone who has done VLSI layout of a 32-bit processor in my student days, Petzold's book is a solid popularization but it doesn't cover a tenth of what a computer engineering degree does.

Fair point. I'm speaking about a computer science degree.

Depends on the school, for sure. My CS education included a course on Computer Architecture, for which the final project was to implement your unique architecture on an FPGA and demonstrate it running a (simple) algorithm. I liked that course so much, I went back for Computer Architecture II and learned about pipelining, hazards, etc.

Re: “Code” 2nd Edition

#75

Post by drivers99 »

jljljl wrote: post #44

Love this book. Recommend pairing it with Nand2Tetris to get a good understanding of how Computers work: https://www.nand2tetris.org/

Nand2Tetris is great and I'd like to add "The Pattern on the Stone" by Danny Hillis to the list. (I just noticed it was revised in 2015.)

Re: “Code” 2nd Edition

#76

Post by danielvaughn »

localhost wrote: post #30

Code is my favorite technical book of all time [1]. Charles does an amazing job of building a computer up from basic principles "two young boys who want to communicate after their parents tell them to go to bed at night" all the way to modern (for 1999) computers. He layers abstraction on top of abstraction all the way to a working computer. My only (slight) disappointment in the book is that he tries to cover operat…

I picked it up years ago, got through the first few chapters, but then never finished it. I loved the early buildup and still want to go back and keep reading.

Re: “Code” 2nd Edition

#80

Post by beezlebroxxxxxx »

scrollaway wrote: post #77

Any suggestions on where to preorder this from Europe (Belgium)?

> If you’d like to pre-order the book from the publisher, don’t try to find the book on the Pearson website. Instead, order the book from InformIT.com or MicrosoftPressStore.com or your favorite online retailer.

So I imagine any online retailers where you might be able to preorder technical books. If you are not adverse to doing so, it can probably be pre-ordered in the coming months on Amazon, as well.

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