The Pragmatic Programmer

Synopsis

The Pragmatic Programmer is one of those rare tech books you'll read, re-read, and read again over the years. Whether you're new to the field or an experienced practitioner, you'll come away with fresh insights each and every time.

Dave Thomas and Andy Hunt wrote the first edition of this influential book in 1999 to help their clients create better software and rediscover the joy of coding. These lessons have helped a generation of programmers examine the very essence of software development, independent of any particular language, framework, or methodology, and the Pragmatic philosophy has spawned hundreds of books, screencasts, and audio books, as well as thousands of careers and success stories.

Now, twenty years later, this new edition re-examines what it means to be a modern programmer. Topics range from personal responsibility and career development to architectural techniques for keeping your code flexible and easy to adapt and reuse. Read this book, and you'll learn how to:

• Fight software rot
• Learn continuously
• Avoid the trap of duplicating knowledge
• Write flexible, dynamic, and adaptable code
• Harness the power of basic tools
• Avoid programming by coincidence
• Learn real requirements
• Solve the underlying problems of concurrent code
• Guard against security vulnerabilities
• Build teams of Pragmatic Programmers
• Take responsibility for your work and career
• Test ruthlessly and effectively, including property-based testing
• Implement the Pragmatic Starter Kit
• Delight your users

Written as a series of self-contained sections and filled with classic and fresh anecdotes, thoughtful examples, and interesting analogies, The Pragmatic Programmer illustrates the best approaches and major pitfalls of many different aspects of software development. Whether you're a new coder, an experienced programmer, or a manager responsible for software projects, use these lessons daily, and you'll quickly see improvements in personal productivity, accuracy, and job satisfaction. You'll learn skills and develop habits and attitudes that form the foundation for long-term success in your career. You'll become a Pragmatic Programmer.

"One of the most significant books in my life."
--Obie Fernandez, Author, The Rails Way

"Twenty years ago, the first edition of The Pragmatic Programmer completely changed the trajectory of my career. This new edition could do the same for yours."
--Mike Cohn, Author of Succeeding with Agile, Agile Estimating and Planning, and User Stories Applied

". . . filled with practical advice, both technical and professional, that will serve you and your projects well for years to come."
--Andrea Goulet, CEO, Corgibytes, Founder, LegacyCode.Rocks

". . . lightning does strike twice, and this book is proof." 
--VM (Vicky) Brasseur, Director of Open Source Strategy, Juniper Networks

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Summary

The Pragmatic Programmer: From Journeyman to Master is an insightful book for anyone interested in learning the principles of software development. Written by the experienced software developers, Andrew Hunt and David Thomas, the book uses base examples from Traveling Sales Person Problem and design principles in Programming to explain the foundations of coding, such as debugging and refactoring.

Chapter 1 introduces the two authors and focuses on understanding what it takes to become a pragmatic programmer, and how the Pragmatic Programmer edicts can help shape one’s work. In this chapter, the authors use the Traveling Sales Person Problem as an example to explain their edicts such as “Always participate in Pas 99% of programming is rework.” Through this example, readers can understand that they need to plan their programming tasks and use refactoring techniques to achieve the best outcomes.

Chapter 2 looks at the software life cycle, from building a prototype to supporting a released version. As the authors explain, “A best practice is any practice that reaches the highest level of quality or performance for a given task.” Using this as a basis, they discuss various useful practices for mastering the software life cycle, such as setting good objectives and refactoring judiciously.

Chapter 3 examines the art of debugging from finding and fixing bugs to applying the strategies of debugging. The authors advise readers to “think outside the box” when it comes to debugging and employ the strategies of exploring, predicting, disproving, and mitigating.

Chapter 4 is all about the principles of good design. The primary focus of this chapter is on the DRY principle (Don’t Repeat Yourself). The authors explain in detail how to apply this principle and make their code more maintainable and robust. To do this, they present different design principles, such as abstraction and separation, and how to use OOP techniques.

Chapter 5 discusses its namesake, “Pragmatic Paranoia”, or being aware of the mistakes and security threats one is likely to face when developing software. The authors use the example of a bank robbery to explain why and how one should have pragmatic paranoia when programming.

The last chapter presents ways to improve productivity and the way the authors program. The authors’ techniques, from using automated tools to learning new skills, can help anyone who wants to be a Pragmatic Programmer. The authors also discuss the importance of leveraging the power of the community and using version control systems to track versioning and the changes made to the code.

Overall, The Pragmatic Programmer: From Journeyman to Master is a great book for any aspiring programmer. It contains practical advice, as well as lessons from highly experienced software developers. Its diverse examples and striking analogies will help readers gain insight into the way programming should be done.