Re: Timeless Classics of Software Engineering

Steve Johnson wrote:

> I'd like to hear thoughts on what books, in your opinion, are true
> classics in the field of software engineering. I read a lot on the
> topic - at least a book a month for many years. There are many good
> authors, however, the only book on making software that is truly
> timeless, in my opinion, is "Mythical Man Month" by Brooks. It never
> ceases to amaze me that something written over 20 years ago would be
> so relevant.

My list would be:

MMM (as above)

Compiler construction for digital computers, David Gries. One of the earliest compilations of material on compiler design, this was an early book containing practical algorithims for designing large programs of all types. Often referenced by other books, but largely forgotten today.

The C Programming Language, K&R. Introduced both C and Unix, and really gave you an idea how you might write an OS in a high level language at a time when it was assumed that all OSes were assembly language.

Pascal Users Manual and Report, Jensen and Wirth. The forever unfufilled dream that programs could be clean and easy to understand.

The Art of Computer Programming - Knuth. Perhaps the ultimate encyclopedia of programming, the only knock against it I ever heard was that Knuth clearly thought it to be the ultimate programming encyclopedia, too.

Basic Basic, Coan. Don't laugh, most early homebrew computer users read this book. It taught a generation of microcomputer programmers to program.

Principles of Compiler Design, Aho and Ullman. Aka the "dragon book", first generally available book of advanced compiler design. Somewhat "classic because its classic", it even appeared in a movie about hackers, even though it has virtually nothing to do with hacking.

Programming languages: history and fundamentals, Sammet. First (and last) real look at where programming languages came from, and are going to.

Unix Programmers Manual, Vol 1 and 2, Bell labs. Was printed and placed in common bookshelves long before anyone outside a university could get their hands on a Unix implementation. I designed two operating systems based on the concepts in it before even seeing my first Unix implementation, on a 68000 (Unisoft).

Writing Interactive Compilers and Interpreters, P. J. Brown. Admittedly not a popular book, one of the most amazingly practical books on the subject of compiler and interpreter designs that has ever appeared.

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