The Pragmatic Craftsman :: Simplicity from complexity ::

Facts and Fallacies of Software Engineering
by Robert L. Glass
ISBN 0321117425
Date Read 2004

My Rating

Want a quick overview of what software engineering is? Want a short book that will tell you what works and what doesn’t work in software engineering? Want a book that’s written by one of the best IT writers?

Look no further: you’ve got it all in this concise, 220-pages book that will become a software-engineering classic. Yes, this book will join the ranks of Mythical Man-Month, Peopleware, and others. This is not a how-to book, but rather factual information about the state of software-engineering. You’ll get 50 facts from areas like management, quality, life-cycle, and more; plus you’ll get 10 fallacies about pretty much the same areas.

Robert Glass created a masterpiece. This book will open your eyes. It should be a required reading by every software engineer. We could all benefit from Glass’s extensive research.

One thing I found very interesting. You’ve all heard that a best programmer is 10 times as productive as the worse one. Glass, in his Fact #2, says that “The best programmers are up to 28 times better than the worst programmers.” How about that?

All in all, a must read. I loved those small, 2-3 pages long chapters with resources listed at the end of each one.