by Gerald M. Weinberg
Copyright (c) 1998, 1971
This book is misnamed, as the author admits. It should be named “The Anthropology of Computer Programming.” It studies the culture of computer programming rather than the psychology of the practice. Fortunately, despite being written over forty years ago, it succeeds at its task for the reader today as well as for the original reader.
If you can move past the references to dated languages and programming practices, this book elucidates many observations about how programmers work. It’s like reading an anthropology of a long-hidden culture from decades ago. From one who works in computer programming, the cultural fruit of these observations can be seen in labs today.
To be frank, I’ve never felt that I’ve truly understood my peers in the lab. I’ve done well with the computer – with expressing myself through programs. So many of my peers are socially passive in their demeanor. I’m outgoing, even energetic. The cultural analysis in this book, though dated, helps me see this culture more clearly. It helps me feel more at home in my own environment – and perhaps also, in my own skin. As such, this book achieved its goal in my life, and for that, I am sincerely grateful.