4 ms·

Programming books are rarely page turners. I cannot think of one book to add to the (currently empty) list here. I find most programming books to be boring an

Programming books are rarely page turners. I cannot think of one book to add to the (currently empty) list here. I find most programming books to be boring and discursive. Far too many fall into a pattern not too far removed from romance novels where, inevitably, the alpha male hero beds the heroine by chapter three. And if software engineering is considered programming, many of those books seem to be anchored in the occult where certain spells produce magical results for arcane reasons. Personally I dislike tutorials and the pedagogy that comes along with that style. Even when well done they seem wordy presentation of the trivial and obvious. Serious computer science books (e.g., Knuth's Art of Computer Programming, Hank Warren's Hackers Delight) take careful reading and study; I read them for pleasure, but it is a different pleasure that I get from, say, a Lee Child's Jack Reacher novel. I think there are good reasons for this situation. The interesting aspects of programming are complex, involve a deep understanding of multiple levels of abstraction, and require considerable background knowledge. This is incompatible with a mindless read.

silentbicycle 16y ago
The average programming book is pretty awful - many seem to be sold by weight. If you skew towards those recently published, there's a very high concentration of instantly obsolete books that cover surface details of the current incarnation of rapidly changing technology. There are real incentives for the programming book publishing industry to churn out tedious garbage: People buy 'em, instant obsolescence means the same people replace 'em. Older books aren't necessarily better, but those remaining have been through a generation or two of garbage collection already, making it easier to find the good ones. Excellent books have been published recently, of course (http://www1.idc.ac.il/tecs/ http://www1.idc.ac.il/tecs/, http://landoflisp.com/ http://landoflisp.com/), it's just easier to find them in hindsight. Books about parsing techniques* rather than ANTLR (or whatever) specifically, language semantics and implementation techniques rather than an awful 200 lb. Wrox book with a mug shot on the cover, etc. tend to stay relevant for much longer. Rather than reading yet another API guide, check out _The Art of the Interpreter_ (http://repository.readscheme.org/ftp/papers/ai-lab-pubs/AIM-453.pdf http://repository.readscheme.org/ftp/papers/ai-lab-pubs/AIM-...). Also, CiteSeer (http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/ http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/) is a gold mine. I haven't gotten _Hackers Delight_ yet, but it's on my list. * Recommended: Dick Grune's _Parsing Techniques, a Practical Guide_. Lots of deep content, but would still be worth it for the bibliography alone.
- icosahedron 16y ago
  I laughed out loud at the attribution asterisks in _The Art of the Interpreter_. Excellent to see humor in an academic paper.
  - mahmud 16y ago
    I always crack up at GLS's joke whenever I see the word "fellow". There is something like "Gerry Susman is a research fellow at MIT. Guy Steele is a jolly good fellow".
    - silentbicycle 16y ago
      All the "HUNOZ" etc. variables make me smile, too.
l0nwlf 16y ago
> I find most programming books to be boring and discursive. I was of the same opinion until I read "Programming Pearls" by Jon bentley. The way it opens up a problem statement, thereby making you think is truly fascinating. If you haven't read it, please do.
- silentbicycle 16y ago
  The sequel (_More Programming Pearls_) is good, too. Judging by the discrepancy between the used prices of PP (~$20) and MPP (<$5), I'd guess most people don't even know it has a sequel.
- drallison 16y ago
  Jon Bentley's books are outstanding but don't fall into the quick read category in my opinion. They are complex and need careful study (and working the exercises) to get all you can from them. His 1982 book, Writing Efficient Programs, and the 1981 precursor, Writing Efficient Code, ought to be read by every C programmer. Sadly, they are now out of print and hard to find. Writing Efficient Programs is a breezy tour of the tricks of the trade, but it is a serious list of hints (some subtle, some not) for making efficient programs.
  - abecedarius 16y ago
    I left _WEP_ out of my list just because it lacks the requested I-want-to-read-it-osity -- it's a very fine book. (IWTRIosity is sort of orthogonal to whether a book rewards careful study. Knuth and SICP have both.)

silentbicycle 16y ago

The average programming book is pretty awful - many seem to be sold by weight. If you skew towards those recently published, there's a very high concentration of instantly obsolete books that cover surface details of the current incarnation of rapidly changing technology. There are real incentives for the programming book publishing industry to churn out tedious garbage: People buy 'em, instant obsolescence means the same people replace 'em. Older books aren't necessarily better, but those remaining have been through a generation or two of garbage collection already, making it easier to find the good ones. Excellent books have been published recently, of course (http://www1.idc.ac.il/tecs/ http://www1.idc.ac.il/tecs/, http://landoflisp.com/ http://landoflisp.com/), it's just easier to find them in hindsight. Books about parsing techniques* rather than ANTLR (or whatever) specifically, language semantics and implementation techniques rather than an awful 200 lb. Wrox book with a mug shot on the cover, etc. tend to stay relevant for much longer. Rather than reading yet another API guide, check out _The Art of the Interpreter_ (http://repository.readscheme.org/ftp/papers/ai-lab-pubs/AIM-453.pdf http://repository.readscheme.org/ftp/papers/ai-lab-pubs/AIM-...). Also, CiteSeer (http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/ http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/) is a gold mine. I haven't gotten _Hackers Delight_ yet, but it's on my list. * Recommended: Dick Grune's _Parsing Techniques, a Practical Guide_. Lots of deep content, but would still be worth it for the bibliography alone.

icosahedron 16y ago
I laughed out loud at the attribution asterisks in _The Art of the Interpreter_. Excellent to see humor in an academic paper.
- mahmud 16y ago
  I always crack up at GLS's joke whenever I see the word "fellow". There is something like "Gerry Susman is a research fellow at MIT. Guy Steele is a jolly good fellow".
  - silentbicycle 16y ago
    All the "HUNOZ" etc. variables make me smile, too.

l0nwlf 16y ago

> I find most programming books to be boring and discursive. I was of the same opinion until I read "Programming Pearls" by Jon bentley. The way it opens up a problem statement, thereby making you think is truly fascinating. If you haven't read it, please do.

silentbicycle 16y ago
The sequel (_More Programming Pearls_) is good, too. Judging by the discrepancy between the used prices of PP (~$20) and MPP (<$5), I'd guess most people don't even know it has a sequel.
drallison 16y ago
Jon Bentley's books are outstanding but don't fall into the quick read category in my opinion. They are complex and need careful study (and working the exercises) to get all you can from them. His 1982 book, Writing Efficient Programs, and the 1981 precursor, Writing Efficient Code, ought to be read by every C programmer. Sadly, they are now out of print and hard to find. Writing Efficient Programs is a breezy tour of the tricks of the trade, but it is a serious list of hints (some subtle, some not) for making efficient programs.
- abecedarius 16y ago
  I left _WEP_ out of my list just because it lacks the requested I-want-to-read-it-osity -- it's a very fine book. (IWTRIosity is sort of orthogonal to whether a book rewards careful study. Knuth and SICP have both.)