Roy, I agree, this really isn't ideal for junior developers - if you're a relatively experienced developer though, it can prompt you away from slipping into bad habits. I try to reread Code Complete about once a year - and I have to say, I believe my development style is better for it...
I still have my first edition of CC from a decade ago and still learn something from it !
About the 'silver bullet' - wasn't there a famous essay that stated there is *NO* silver bullet in software engineering? (I think it was Cox or Brooks..)
hi Mister Oshergrove - how are you?
i was reading your blog entry - and i thought 'code complete.. where have i heard of that lately?' then i realised - oh - that's the book that i am resting my elbow on at this very minute!
i've been flicking through it lately - all very wise and informative - but like you say - it's not something you're ready for until you've experienced a few disastrous projects first hand.
the 1993 edition i've got could do with some serious updating. as some of the young whipper snappers around the office would say: "it's soooo Old Skool".
cheers
Heh. Old school. I like that :)
Your blog entry surprised me about code complete. It is really not as dry as people think. It is one of the few books I refer often for testing and developement. One more book in this line is "The practice of Programming" by Kernighan and Pike.
Yours' is one of the few blogs I read daily. Keep up the good work
Thanks
Though many people know Code Complete, Rapid Development (by the same author) is often overlooked. Personally I found it even more useful, I guess from the point of view of a senior developer trying to figure out how project management works (or doesn't), and how to improve things from both sides of the fence.
Paul. Yes, I've read rapid dev as well and found it actually more useful for my day to day practices as a reference. I actually used it for my first brainstorming exercises at one of my first positions as team lead. It helped a lot.