Book Reviews

I check through stacks of books regularly, looking for well-written ones to make me a better software developer. These lists of hiqh quality books are organized by topic.

Software Development

Databases
Good databases start from good database design. This page reviews several database design and implementation books. There are suggestions for new and experienced developers.
Programming
Writing code well is easier and cheaper than writing code badly. This page reviews programming books of particular interest to 4D developers.
Object Oriented Design, Analysis, and Programming
Object Oriented Analysis, Design and Programming have changed how software is developed. This page reviews some important and/or useful OO books. I pay particular attention to books that 4D programmers can understand and benefit from.
Project Management and Software Development Practices
Software development is too error-prone and expensive. This page reviews software project management books that anyone can read. If you are a new software project manager, start with one of these titles.

Design

Information Design
Information design is a pretentious term redeemed by the great books written about it. This page reviews some of the best books in the field.
User Interface
Programmers sometimes think of the user interface as a skin on top of their program. To the user, the user interface is the program. This page reviews books that explain how to create better user interfaces.
Usability
Usability is a high-yield set of techniques for improving software. This page reviews several of the best usability books.

Top Ten

Top Ten Books for Software Developers

Web Topics

Web Design
Writing HTML is easy. Creating effective Web systems is hard. This page reviews some of the best Web design books available.
HTML
HTML is not hard, but it is detailed. This page reviews several comprehensive and up-to-date HTML reference books.

Big Ideas

Strategic Thinking
Buggy thinking leads to buggy software. Brilliant programming can't turn a flawed idea into a success. Learning to think strategically is more important than learning new coding tricks. The books on this page explore ways of seeing the world more accurately and insightfully.
Coooperation
If business is based on competition, how do we manage to build complex systems together? Competition is less important to how we work than cooperation. The books on this page discuss different aspects of the biology and sociology of cooperation.

Read a great book lately? Send an email to dpadams@island-data.com.