
The Pragmatic Programmer - DanielBMarkham
http://www.hn-books.com/Books/The-Pragmatic-Programmer.htm
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DanI-S
_GUIs prevent truly proficient programming_

I /hate/ this line of thinking. Do we really think that the perfect way to
interact with a computer was somehow stumbled upon in the 1970s and can never
be improved upon? The computer does not think in ASCII, WE do not think in
ASCII - it's no less of an abstraction than any other form of GUI.

Like the colour syntax highlighting in your vim setup? Fond of autocompletion?
Enjoy having multiple pages of code, side-by-side? YOU ARE USING A GUI.

I apologise if this sounds vitriolic, but it's important. Programming is the
expression of intent. We're never going to progress to more pure forms of that
expression if the people designing our tools believe that we've already
reached nirvana.

Nice review, though; I'll check out the book.

~~~
dwc
Do check out the book. It's full of very good things.

 _> stumbled upon in the 1970s and can never be improved upon_

Certainly it can be improved upon, and I'm pretty sure even GUI haters must
know that. We're just waiting for that to happen, and maybe trying to think
how to make it happen.

The big schism comes because there are "GUI people" who think it's the total
answer to everything, if only we can make better widgets or something. I don't
hesitate to tell such people they're missing something.

~~~
DanI-S
Indeed; the other pole is just as bad. I'm guessing at some point they're
going to meet in the middle and something wonderful will be born. If I could
create great software by staring into a flashing light whilst waving my arms
around and humming, I'd be all for it - but we have a ways to go yet.

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barrkel
I found the book underwhelming after all the praise I had read of it, because
it seemed little more than a collection of common knowledge - I didn't get
much out of it. On the other hand, for people very new to the craft, it may be
more valuable for precisely the same reason.

~~~
jeremymcanally
You also have to keep in mind that this book was written 10+ years ago, when
most of this was not actually common knowledge. :)

~~~
silentbicycle
Programming bloggers have strip-mined it for material over the years, so
you've probably already read much of it by osmosis.

I prefer _The Practice of Programming_ by Kernighan and Pike, personally.

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pasbesoin
Brief suggestion: You pages should mention the authors more prominently. I
didn't bother to allow scripts, but as near as I can tell, I have to look at
the (smallish) cover art or for a reference in the body text, to see who the
authors are. (And if it's too small on the cover as represented, it's a click
through to Amazon.)

Anyway, glad to see conversation around these books.

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Derbasti
Great book. This is the one book that got me started getting professional
about programming. I should really read it again these days.

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martinp
This is one of the best books I've read about software engineering, along with
Code Complete. I completely agree with the conclusion of the review, every
programmer should be required to own and read this book.

~~~
cynoclast
Required to read? Sure.

Own? No.

~~~
runevault
Personally I'd say own simply because it's a book worth rereading yearly or at
least every other year, which means I'm due for a reread.

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diego_moita
This book is worth reading even for veteran programmers; there are a few good
parts in it: the orthogonality idea, the DRY principle in all its
implications, etc.

It's not the definitive book, if there will ever be one. But is a good
reading.

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dustinupdyke
The Passionate Programmer is another must read Prag Prog title.

~~~
chollida1
What did you find enlightening about this book?

I've tried to read it 3 times now and each time put it back. I find it dry and
lacking of any new insights or actionable advice:(

I really would like to get some worth out of this book!

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redthrowaway
I was lucky enough to find this for $10 in the SUB at my school. Haven't
delved too deeply into it, but it seems good so far.

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svlla
This book is like a self-help book... it mostly makes you feel good, otherwise
mostly worthless. People who like this book are probably bad programmers.

