14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
If you're developing in C++, you need to read this book, 29 Mar 1998
By A Customer
This review is from: Effective C++: 50 Specific Ways to Improve Your Programs and Designs (Addison-Wesley Professional Computing Series) (Paperback)
C++ can be a language fraught with peril. Leave off a "virtual" in the wrong place and you've created a memory leak. Forget to implement a copy constructor in a particular class and you've created a corrupt heap waiting to happen. In this book, Scott presents guidelines on 50 C++ topics covering a broad range of subjects: how to avoid the C++ pitfalls mentioned above, how to write better code, how to effectively use C++ constructs in your OO designs, and more. Whether you're a newbie or an expert, there's substantial meat in this book for you.
Scott's easy-going writing style makes the explanations easy to read and digest. Unlike other books I've read, Scott provides detailed explanations allowing you to really understand the topic at hand. The 50 items are self-contained chunks of information, each thoroughly covering a specific topic.
C++ developers working for me are required to read this book (and Scott's companion, "More Effective C++") before I let them write a line of production code.
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6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Great, practical C++ ideas and rules, 18 Jan 1999
By A Customer
This review is from: Effective C++: 50 Specific Ways to Improve Your Programs and Designs (Addison-Wesley Professional Computing Series) (Paperback)
Great examples, great explanations, and very thought provoking. As you work through the book, you will ponder several items in the examples.
Then, the next paragraph will begin with 'You're thinking that that won't work, but ...'. If you want to learn better, safer C++, this book may be for you.
This book covers the unwritten rules that will help you write and use better coding practices, without changing everything about the way you think and work. Meyers gives advise about safer pointer casting, better memory management, finding bugs before they find you, and the differences between lab-condition coding and real-world coding.
If you have ever had a customer call back with a bug, then the ideas presented in this book may help you think about how to change that. He also covers the most elegant and efficient ways to hide your data, your implementation, or any combination thereof.
Ever wonder why multiple inheritance doesn't work as well as you though it would, but you know you want to re-use modules of code in your hierarchy? Meyers explains away the mystery between the "is-a", "has-a", and "is-implemented-in-terms-of" connections between code. And, to top it off, he does this in an entertaining, engaging way.
This book has been moved to the front of the reference stack, and should be used intensely during the code module design phase, as well as during implmentation.
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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Excellent purchase for any C++ programmer, 16 Mar 1998
By A Customer
This review is from: Effective C++: 50 Specific Ways to Improve Your Programs and Designs (Addison-Wesley Professional Computing Series) (Paperback)
I'd recommend this book (and the subsequent "More Effective C++) to any serious C++ developer. It gives sage guidence in the most common areas in which novice C++ programmers make mistakes. If I were a C++ project manager, I would ensure all of my developers read this book at least once. Meyer's style isn't everyone's cup of tea - sometimes amusing, sometimes tedious; but you simply cannot fault the man on his mastery of C++ Whilst this book would almost certainly propel a C++ novice's code up to the next level of quality, experienced developers should know this stuff. However, I've personally worked with several 'experienced' (> 2 years) C++ developers who admitted that they had more than one 'light-bulb moment' after reading Meyer's books. This is a testament to Meyer's readable style and ability to explain C++'s more esoteric elements (time for a coffee break, perhaps?). The book works well as a reference guide when developers have that "I know there's a better way to do this..." feeling. Overall, an excellent buy - well worth the money.
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