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.