Code, by Charles Petzold should be on any programmer’s list - and the list of anyone with curiosity about how the modern world works. It somehow manages the amazing trick of being readable for the novice, but also containing nuggets of insight for the expert all at the same time. Such a well written book.
The Elements of Computing Systems: Building a Modern Computer from First Principles
by Noam Nisan and Shimon Schocken
https://openlibrary.org/works/OL21015000W/Elements_of_Comput...
The book is great - I love how Gary (IIRC) describes the centrality of data structures and how code kind of emerges from there.
The 2nd part reminds me of another in my personal library:
Algorithms + Data Structures = Programs
by Wirth
https://openlibrary.org/books/OL5191055M/Algorithms_data_str...
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Algorithms_%2B_Data_Structures...
Wirth writes fast but well.
It was a very compact hardcover edition that I could carry around easily in my backpack.
And it had a memorable title.
Data Structures and Algorithms
by Aho, Hopcroft, and Ullman
https://openlibrary.org/books/OL3491774M/Data_structures_and...
but I own copies of both.
Aho et al. was also given in Modula-3 which was perfect since Pascal-derived languages clearly motivate the why and the guts of the algos. C obscures them (too focused on pragmatism).
Wirth's DS + A = P book was also written in Modula-2, a better, real-world language, and the writing was tightened. Still can be found if you know where to look. (I have a German edition cuz I wanted to hear the man say it in his native language-- btw, I am not German).
Agreed that Code is great! I'll pick up the second edition some day if I ever see it on a bookshelf.
Black, thin, warped, glossy cover stock instead of that super nice feeling matte white one, and much thinner nastier paper (despite being longer the book is much thinner).
I have in the past given copies of ‘Code’ to people who’ve seemed interested in learning about computer science/engineering with a ‘this book is so good!’ and upon reflection just now I’m ashamed to say I’ve stopped doing that because the book _feels_ like a cheaply made textbook rather than a nicely presented popular science book now.
It's not like the old days when books were heirlooms with attentive layouts, quality paper and ink, and solid bindings. Addison-Wesley's offerings come to mind, even softcover books from Prentice-Hall. And especially the ancient Computer Science Series from McGraw-Hill College.
Manning and No Starch do a better job these days.
Here's a new hardcover many here could appreciate:
Heavy Wizardry 101: Shellcodes, Backdoors, Droppers, and Worms
by David Martínez Oliveira, aka Pico
O'Reilly still puts out many great, serious books with good formatting and decent binding + paper + printing.
Many of the new titles on machine learning, for instance.