Name: Innovation Games
ISBN: 9780201835953

Luke Hohmann

Creating Breakthrough Products Through Collaborative Play

Innovation Games

Gavin

How big teams make things. How awesome tech feels on the inside: 
 Too many interests, too many exciting opportunities for learning, research, and thought. What a marvellous predicament! Not only is the end not in sight, the pace is not slackening. We have many future joys.

The oldest thing by far on my computing syllabus and nearly the most stylish.* This anniversary edition has a chapter which is just the whole book boiled down to its propositions and whether or not they stood up twenty years later, which is a thing that other non-fiction could gravely benefit from. (You sometimes see the like of this in honest philosophy books, included as ‘analytical index’ or ‘prolegomenon’ or ‘exordium’.) Brooks is not merely exoteric, not just an IBM mook; suitably acerbic and suitably enthusiastic. 

The open secret of programming is that it is actually a whole barrel of fun, just one that baffles, bores or scares outsiders:

  The craft of programming gratifies creative longings built deep within us and delights sensibilities we have in common with all men, providing five kinds of joys:
• The joy of making things;
• The joy of making things that are useful to other people;
• The fascination of fashioning puzzle-like objects of interlocking moving parts;
• The joy of always learning, of a nonrepeating task; 
• The delight of working in a medium so tractable — pure thought-stuff — which nevertheless exists, moves, and works in a way that word-objects do not.



(NB: The Christian God rears up at unexpected intervals – and at one point Brooks recommends openly patriarchal programming teams - on the model of “God’s plan for marriage”. But this lone wacko note doesn't get in the way.)


* (I set myself Shannon, Wang, Knuth.)

Luke Kanies

Oldie but goodie, this book sets out a lot of fundamentals on how to work, especially in the information age.

Nikolay Bachiyski

Ако се занимавате с правене на софтуер, задължително я прочетете. Наистина.

Аз я прочетох малко късно. Доста от нещата вътре или бях чувал или бях осъзнал по други пътища. Въпреки това беше поощрително и поучително да ги прочета накуп, описани с истински думи и то смилаемо.

Ако ще я четете, не се занимвайте с друго издание освен с най-новото (поне 20 години след първоначалното). В есетета примерите са ужасяващо остарели и дори някои принципни неща са се променили. В новото издание има допълнения като „The Mythical Man-Month after 20 Years“, които донякъде компенсират за остарелите текстове по-рано в книгата.

Innovation Games Creating Breakthrough Products Through Collaborative Play