Back to the bookshelf

Typographic jacket · original cover not fetched

FROM THE SHARED SHELF · 2006–2026 SAMPLE

Writing Solid Code

Steve Maguire

5 readers recommend it across 7 discussions

Topics are model-inferred labels.

Keep it on your reading list

THE WORD OF MOUTH

What made it worth passing on?

Original Hacker News comments, in the readers’ own words.

ChrisMarshallNY
Heck, I still use stuff I picked up from Writing Solid Code. That book hasn’t aged as well, but it had some parts that are still quite relevant, today. I always thought that Rapid Development was better than Code Complete. I’ve probably read all of McConnell’s stuff (and I’ve taken a lot of Construx courses). At one time, I was quite the fanboi. A lot of folks around here don’t seem to like him, which I find odd.

Also recommended in this reply

ChrisMarshallNY
> Code Complete by Steve McConnell +1. Also, Rapid Development, by McConnell[0]. I would say that it's even better than Code Complete. It would be considered "quaint," these days, but Writing Solid Code[1], by Steve Maguire, was a seminal book in my education. I still use many of the techniques he mentioned. And I cannot say enough about The Design of Everyday Things, by Don Norman[2]. That book changed my life. I would consider it required reading, for anyone that develops anything that will be used by other humans. [0] https://www.microsoftpressstore.com/store/rapid-development-... (https://www.microsoftpressstore.com/store/rapid-development-9780735691490) [1] https://writingsolidcode.com [2] https://jnd.org/the-design-of-everyday-things-revised-and-ex... (https://jnd.org/the-design-of-everyday-things-revised-and-expanded-edition/)
ljosifov
Mentioned by most, still another vote for K&R "The C Programming Language" - for the sheer joy of it! It still puts a smile on my face recalling how much fun it made learning C. :-) Don't think I've read as measured and not-boring for another language since. Close to as much fun to read was maybe Steve Maguire's "Writing Solid Code". Not strictly about learning C, but the examples are all in C. (some people dislike it's K&R not ANSI C)

Also recommended in this reply

xstartup
McConnell, Steve. Code Complete. Redmond, WA: Microsoft Press, 1993. McConnell, Steve. Software Project Survival Guide. Redmond, WA: Microsoft Press, 1998. Maguire, Steve. Writing Solid Code. Redmond, WA: Microsoft Press, 1993. Ranade and Nash. The Elements of C Programming Style. New York: McGraw-Hill, 1992. Kernighan and Plauger. The Elements of Programming Style. New York: McGraw-Hill, 1982. Caner, Cem, et al. Testing Computer Software, Second Edition. New York: Wiley Computer Publishing, 1999. Hunt, Andrew, et al. The Pragmatic Programmer. Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley, 2000. Holub, Allen. Enough Rope to Shoot Yourself in the Foot: Rules for C and C++ Programming. New York: McGraw-Hill, 1995.
slackerIII
Boyd: The Fighter Pilot Who Changed the Art of War (for thoughts on competition) Managing Gigabytes (if you are doing anything related to search) Writing Solid Code (especially if you are using C/C++) Most of the research papers that come out of OSDI/SOSP: Dynamo, BigTable, Sawzall, GFS, Chubby, etc