Most Helpful Customer Reviews
14 of 15 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
The definitive guide on common-sense software development, 18 July 1997
By A Customer
This review is from: Code Complete: A Practical Handbook of Software Construction (Paperback)
The subtitle of McConnell's book is "A Practical Handbook of Software Construction". I have found that it lives up to this claim excellently. Like Brook's classic "The Mythical Man-Month" Code Complete offers practical advice on the real-world challenges of software development. Code Complete contains 33 chapters, which can be read as separate essays.
To entry-level programmers and computer science students, this book is an excellent primer on the fundamentals of the industry. For experienced programmers, this book is an great way to review your own development strategies and best practices. For project managers, Code Complete serves as a great source of ideas for process improvement, as well as a great learning tool to pass on to new entry-level hires. My employer has used several chapters out of Code Complete as the basis for discussion topics.
McConnell writes in an easy-to-read, entertaining style that has made him one of the most popular authors in the field. His book "Rapid Development", is also an extremely popular book on software development, and many (including me) are anxiously awaiting his next work, "Software Project Survivial Guide". In short, Code Complete belongs in the library of every serious developer.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Exhaustive account of programming practices of last 30 years, 18 May 1998
By A Customer
This review is from: Code Complete: A Practical Handbook of Software Construction (Paperback)
Buy this book only if you are SERIOUS about programming. Because if you're not, you'll never get through it. McConnell's book is an exhaustive guide to the nitty-gritty details of programming. There are entire CHAPTERS devoted to choosing names for variables, and dozens of pages covering every style of indenting since 1950. I am devouring programming books for my future career, and I am glad that I got this book. It covers all aspects of the design and coding process, with a heavy emphasis on readability and maintainability. It helped me to correct some bad coding practices that I developed. I was most impressed by the references. McConnell has drawn together hundreds of papers, articles, and books written since the 60s and digested them all for you in this compact volume. He frequently quotes statistics and studies to support his claims. (Indenting lines 3-5 spaces boosts comprehension by 68%, but indenting by 6 or more spaces decreases it by 32%) I got a real chuckle on his advice about how to deal with bosses who want to see code during the planning stages -- get printouts from previous projects and leave them around your desk, then lie!
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
If you buy ONE book on software development, get this one., 10 Oct 1996
By A Customer
This review is from: Code Complete: A Practical Handbook of Software Construction (Paperback)
Titled "Code Complete", McConnell's book is the definitive reference on the phase between requirements definition and pure testing. This is a book that should actually be Required Reading for programmers; some sections of it should be tattooed on the forehead of anyone wanting to manage a development team.
After touching on requirements and specs, the author goes through the various topics that merit a developer's interest, including routine design, quality assurance, and anything you might think of. Yet he does not dictate; McConnell presents hard data why you should adopt some methodology, and then offers you a selection of methods, but he never claims that his view is the only correct one.
This alone distinguishes him positively from the likes of Booch, Rumbaugh, Jacobson and so on, who peddle their books to further their seminar operations.
The author's reading list and the annotated bibliography alone are worth the price.
By the way, to use this book most effectively, leave it lying around ... until one of your co-workers snarfs it. Then, leave another copy lying around. Repeat until your environment is fully saturated and keep a final copy to yourself. (I went, since 1993, through eleven copies of "Code Complete", and the pay-off was worth it!)
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No
|