Reviews and Comments

There are a few programming books that I keep coming back to. "A Philosophy of Software Design" is one of them.

This is a slim volume. Heck, you can read it in one seating if you set your mind to it. It doesn't have a lot of code samples, and the ones it does have are Java or C++. No trendy languages here, thank you very much. What's more, it has the audacity to say TDD and agile are not perfect. It also says code is not self-explanatory most of the time (but it can be simple), and that's why you should write comments. This is probably why it rubs some people the wrong way.

But you know what? This is a good book. Sure, it's opinionated, but what experienced person isn't? The author is honest about it. And unlike some other authors who seem to think they have all the answers, Osterhout starts the book by telling you to use your brain. You're not going to agree with him 100%, and that's OK.

Don't let yourself be put off by reviewers complaining about this or that. It's a short book. You can read it in a weekend. Read it and make up your own mind.

A few thoughts about some of the other reviews:

- Some people claim this is an OK book for a junior developer, but it can't teach them much. This book rewards people who read it carefully;

- Some people don't like that the author spends so much time on comments. That's silly. It's like complaining about someone telling you to think carefully and organise your thoughts when you're solving a problem. Let them bang out code, and read on;

- Some will complain that the author is somewhat critical of TDD and agile. It's OK, let them bang out code, and learn how to think strategically.