|
Secrets of the Rock Star Programmers: Riding the IT Crest |  | Author: Ed Burns
Publisher: McGraw-Hill Osborne Media
Category: Book
List Price: $24.99
Buy New: $3.95
as of 7/30/2010 12:59 MDT details
You Save: $21.04 (84%)
New (34) Used (26) from $1.92
Seller: R&M books and gifts
Rating:  9 reviews
Sales Rank: 766785
Media: Paperback
Edition: 1
Pages: 352
Number Of Items: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1.3
Dimensions (in): 9.1 x 7.3 x 0.9
ISBN: 0071490833
Dewey Decimal Number: 005.1
EAN: 9780071490832
ASIN: 0071490833
Publication Date: February 21, 2008
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
| |
| Features:
| • | ISBN13: 9780071490832 | | • | Condition: New | | • | Notes: BUY WITH CONFIDENCE, Over one million books sold! 98% Positive feedback. Compare our books, prices and service to the competition. 100% Satisfaction Guaranteed |
|
| Similar Items:
| |
| Editorial Reviews:
Product Description
A-list Programmers Reveal How to Develop Breakout Skills Find out what it takes to push your programming chops to the next level and design killer software by getting inside the minds of today's rock star programmers: - Rod Johnson, Inventor of the Spring Framework
- Adrian Colyer, Pioneer of Aspect Oriented Programming Tools, Project Lead of AspectJ
- Java Posse--Tor Norbye, Joe Nuxoll, Carl Quinn, and Dick Wall
- Chris Wilson, Lead Architect of Microsoft Internet Explorer
- Nikhil Kothari, Architect of ASP.NET AJAX
- Hani Suleiman, Author of "The Bile Blog"
- James Gosling, Father of Java
- Kohsuke Kawaguchi, Creator of the Hudson Continuous Integration Tool
- Herb Schildt, The World's Bestselling Programming Author
- Floyd Marinescu, Co-founder of ServerSide.com; Founder and Lead Editor of InfoQ.com
- Andy Hunt, Co-founder of the Pragmatic Programmers
- Dave Thomas, Object Oriented Software Pioneer
- Max Levchin, Co-founder and Former CTO of PayPal
- Libor Michalek, Co-founder of Slide.com
- Weird Al Yankovic, The Programmer's Rock Star
|
| Customer Reviews:
Showing reviews 1-5 of 9
 great read June 8, 2008
Steve McManus (Boston, MA)
4 out of 4 found this review helpful
I found this book a great read for a variety of reasons. I don't have an IT background but I enjoy reading about groundbreakers and top performers in any field -- hence my interest in the book. The author does a great job of getting at why these folks are RockStars and how they all think about programming and software. But it also does a great job of getting at the issues they face that we all share -- how do I keep up with the deluge of information in my field, how do I stay current with trends and changes in the industry, how do I maintain a work/life balance, etc? And for those with an IT background, there is some very technical information as well. And with the great interview with Weird Al at the end, there is something here for everyone. You'll find value in this book if you don't know COBOL from Ajax, are in CS 101, or are a 20 year industry veteran.
Finally - A Book On Programming I Can Read March 22, 2008
J. Saxbe (Columbus, Ohio USA)
5 out of 7 found this review helpful
I am not a full time programmer but I am in charge of a programming team who must trust that I know what I'm talking about when I suggest different approaches and different technologies. Even though the only code that I can get working on my own in a number of languages is a 'Hello World' script, I must still be able to provide insight on the programming for our application. This is not easy when most of the books on programming are filled with code. In order to stay current, I try to get my hands on whatever accessible content there is. 'Dreaming in Code' by Scott Rosenberg wasn't bad. The author did the best he could to make the building of a PIM read like a John Grisham novel. But the focus was narrow and it took me longer than expected to get through. Not the case with 'Secrets of the Rock Star Programmer.' This book has 14 interviews with top programmers who discuss what they were thinking when they each decided to change the world. Thankfully there's no code. But it's clearly written by a programmer and for programmers. Much was over my head but I'd rather have more in-depth, detailed info than something that was made for the lowest common denominator. There's a pretty neat chart in the back that indexes the commonly asked questions with each subject and that makes it easier than a traditional index in finding sections that are relevant. Another cool feature is how the author points out the 'character attributes' of his subjects along with his own 'observations' in a sidebar at various points. My first read-through basically consisted of just reading these. The bottom line is that there aren't many books that I can read that provide a thorough overview of the programming world. I browse the computer shelves at the bookstore every week looking for something like this, usually to no avail. Im glad I picked this one up when it appeared. Im putting it on my shelf beside 'Designing Interactions' which does for interface design what 'Secrets of the Rockstar Programmers' does for programming.
 A highly valuable book for college grads and project managers May 31, 2008
Randal Burgess (Chicago, IL)
1 out of 2 found this review helpful
First off, you'll have to forgive this book for the title. Using the term "Rock Star Programmers" is just a piece of techie humor that was probably used to sell the book. The problem is, any non-techie that sees you reading it will probably think you're an egotistical chic-geek.
Inside the cover, however, is a wealth of information from various programmers across the industry. What these folks have to say about the software industry's *past* is extremely relevant for budding programmers and the people that have to manage them (and understand them). The author asks each of his subjects what they see coming in the next cycle of technology, but those answers are always vague. It's the observation of the industry's past successes and failures that gives the real answers, and the author flushed that out pretty well.
I also think the author did a decent job getting a variety of people for his interviews. There are gurus, company guys, program managers, pure coders, etc. I don't know the exact coding languages or frameworks of 75% of the subjects, but it doesn't matter. Software is software and there are enough Microsoft, Java, C, and open source guys to avoid any support to the idea that any one technology is best. The book does a good job of not making the reader feel they need to do more research to understand the conversation.
And the last chapter of a "real" rock star was still a nice touch, regardless that some other reviewers that didn't get the humor.
Overall, I'd say this is a good book to read if you are trying to learn what the software industry is about or you've been charged with the tasks of managing the technical direction for your project or firm for the first time.
 OK light reading if you're interested in IT personalities March 4, 2008
calvinnme
9 out of 10 found this review helpful
This book doesn't have any code tricks. It is just a series of interviews with people who have been instrumental in the software and IT industry over the past twenty years with an emphasis on more recent contributors. It mainly goes over how they look at problems and how they solve problems, with a good mix between their approaches to hard and soft skills. If you are a student doing a paper on the history of computing I'd say it would probably give you a pretty good look at some of the personalities involved in computing on which it is difficult to find much written. For example, James Gosling is the father of the Java language, but it is difficult to find any information on his approach to technical problems and his personality in general. This book gives you that kind of insight on Gosling and on other specific personalities that are leaders in the IT field. The final chapter on Weird Al Yankovic is rather strange, since he has nothing to do with the IT field and his intro has his qualifications listed as "The Programmer's Rock Star". I'm not sure how true that is, but it is an amusing chapter.
It's not for everyone, but it is a rare source for this kind of information.
Unique idea, execution a bit lacking March 23, 2008
S. Perry (los angeles)
5 out of 6 found this review helpful
I got this book because I liked the idea very much. I gave it 3 stars because some of the questions and info he presents seemed to be irrelevant. For example, he has these general questions he asks all the programmers (in addition to the unique questions). Questions like, "how important is it to be aware of your own ignorance?", "how important is it to be thinking about how you're thinking?", just strike me as rhetoric and a bit "boring". Also on each programmer he has a profile page like name, degree, etc. he has some irrelevant things like "Birth Order"... Birth Order?? C'mon man. Also, it would be more interesting if he were to interview some more recognizable programmers (maybe Bjarne Stroustroup that created C++, or people that made some significant technology like Craig from craig's list or Sean Fanning from Napster or the guys at Google, or maybe even Bill Gates). Alot of the people he interviewed I just didn't recognize. Also, it seems he has a bias towards the java world. What was a bit irritating is that at the end of the book he interviews Weird Al Yankovic. Again, I just felt this was irrelevant information to the subject at hand. Overall, I'm not dissapointed I got this book.. I just guess I wasn't completely satisfied after reading it.
Showing reviews 1-5 of 9
|
|
|
CERTAIN CONTENT THAT APPEARS ON THIS SITE COMES FROM AMAZON SERVICES LLC. THIS CONTENT IS PROVIDED ‘AS IS’ AND IS SUBJECT TO CHANGE OR REMOVAL AT ANY TIME. | |
