Comments on: The Unix Programming Environment http://www.johndcook.com/blog/2009/06/15/joel-spolsky-books/ The blog of John D. Cook Sat, 11 Feb 2012 01:10:06 -0500 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.4 hourly 1 By: Sugan http://www.johndcook.com/blog/2009/06/15/joel-spolsky-books/comment-page-1/#comment-34818 Sugan Wed, 17 Mar 2010 03:31:08 +0000 http://www.johndcook.com/blog/?p=2471#comment-34818 Yeah. You are correct. The book "UNIX PROGRAMMING ENVIRONMENT" is awesome. I got a old battered copy of the same recently. After going through the pages, I was awestruck with the information it held. Though it was compiled years before my birth. Its worth a reading. We can always apply and upgrade the techniques mentioned. I would suggest the book as a must read, for everyone who chooses UNIX. Yeah. You are correct. The book “UNIX PROGRAMMING ENVIRONMENT” is awesome. I got a old battered copy of the same recently. After going through the pages, I was awestruck with the information it held. Though it was compiled years before my birth. Its worth a reading. We can always apply and upgrade the techniques mentioned. I would suggest the book as a must read, for everyone who chooses UNIX.

]]> By: Eugene Wallingford http://www.johndcook.com/blog/2009/06/15/joel-spolsky-books/comment-page-1/#comment-19528 Eugene Wallingford Fri, 19 Jun 2009 15:33:50 +0000 http://www.johndcook.com/blog/?p=2471#comment-19528 Connecting this post with your post on old books, I often recommend Thomas Standish's old "Data Structure Techniques" [ http://tinyurl.com/mzpjyl ]to grad students and others who want to read about data structures. That was a text we used as freshmen, but today's students would look askance at it. It is still a great way to learn basic data structures without all the language-specific and other decorations in today's DS books. Connecting this post with your post on old books, I often recommend Thomas Standish’s old “Data Structure Techniques” [ http://tinyurl.com/mzpjyl ]to grad students and others who want to read about data structures. That was a text we used as freshmen, but today’s students would look askance at it. It is still a great way to learn basic data structures without all the language-specific and other decorations in today’s DS books.

]]> By: Thomas Guest http://www.johndcook.com/blog/2009/06/15/joel-spolsky-books/comment-page-1/#comment-19383 Thomas Guest Wed, 17 Jun 2009 06:46:32 +0000 http://www.johndcook.com/blog/?p=2471#comment-19383 "The Unix Programming Environment" is the only book on this list I haven't read, so I can't really comment on it. It does sound dated. I note, though, that it's not the oldest of the four. For me and many others, the Unix platform has become increasingly important: so many applications are server-based now. Even if you chose to write scripts in PowerShell or Python, you may end up reading a lot of Bash. “The Unix Programming Environment” is the only book on this list I haven’t read, so I can’t really comment on it. It does sound dated. I note, though, that it’s not the oldest of the four.
For me and many others, the Unix platform has become increasingly important: so many applications are server-based now. Even if you chose to write scripts in PowerShell or Python, you may end up reading a lot of Bash.

]]> By: Gene Harris http://www.johndcook.com/blog/2009/06/15/joel-spolsky-books/comment-page-1/#comment-19372 Gene Harris Wed, 17 Jun 2009 01:30:24 +0000 http://www.johndcook.com/blog/?p=2471#comment-19372 I've worked through Linux Application Development by Johnson and Troan. That's about as far back in time as I am willing to go anymore. I’ve worked through Linux Application Development by Johnson and Troan. That’s about as far back in time as I am willing to go anymore.

]]> By: jmbr http://www.johndcook.com/blog/2009/06/15/joel-spolsky-books/comment-page-1/#comment-19343 jmbr Tue, 16 Jun 2009 13:23:08 +0000 http://www.johndcook.com/blog/?p=2471#comment-19343 I'd replace The Unix Programming Environment with Advanced Programming in the Unix Environment (by the late Richard Stevens). Still useful if you want to do systems programming in Unix and I think there's a recent updated edition (by a different author), I’d replace The Unix Programming Environment with Advanced Programming in the Unix Environment (by the late Richard Stevens). Still useful if you want to do systems programming in Unix and I think there’s a recent updated edition (by a different author),

]]> By: John http://www.johndcook.com/blog/2009/06/15/joel-spolsky-books/comment-page-1/#comment-19306 John Tue, 16 Jun 2009 01:25:41 +0000 http://www.johndcook.com/blog/?p=2471#comment-19306 For one thing, the book assumes you're sharing a machine with many other people, competing for limited resources, as was the norm back then. Running commands with <code>nice</code>, deleting <code>.o</code> files quickly to conserve disk space, etc. For another, in 1990 the command line was primary. The GUI was mostly a way to arrange multiple terminal windows. Now the GUI is primary, and the command line is an add-on for automation or miscellaneous tasks. I do write scripts, but I use PowerShell or Python, very different experience from Bourne shell. For one thing, the book assumes you’re sharing a machine with many other people, competing for limited resources, as was the norm back then. Running commands with nice, deleting .o files quickly to conserve disk space, etc. For another, in 1990 the command line was primary. The GUI was mostly a way to arrange multiple terminal windows. Now the GUI is primary, and the command line is an add-on for automation or miscellaneous tasks.

I do write scripts, but I use PowerShell or Python, very different experience from Bourne shell.

]]> By: Mitch http://www.johndcook.com/blog/2009/06/15/joel-spolsky-books/comment-page-1/#comment-19305 Mitch Tue, 16 Jun 2009 01:00:57 +0000 http://www.johndcook.com/blog/?p=2471#comment-19305 How -do- you work then? Among all the other ways of doing things, don't you ever write shell scripts? How -do- you work then? Among all the other ways of doing things, don’t you ever write shell scripts?

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