My Bookshelf

The purpose of this page isn't to impress you with the size of my programming library, although it is extensive and there are more books in it than I list here. Rather, the purpose is simply to make it known that I care enough about my trade to read a few books on the subject. Move your mouse over any book title you would like to know more about to see a more detailed review.

PHP Development

The Sams' Teach Yourself books were a great introduction to PHP and MySQL. While php.net is now an excellent resource, for someone learning PHP it is better to have a book. A book provides a better overview in my opinion of what can be done with a language and the features available, and of course it is more comfortable to read. I read the other books recently, not out of necessity but simply because I wanted to take a look at the generally recognized best practices for accomplishing various tasks, and to look for any features I might have overlooked.

JavaScript Development

JavaScript is an often maligned language, but after becoming familiar with it I now find it a valuable tool. Jeremy Keith's DOM Scripting is both the best tutorial on practical JavaScript I have read, and a superior book in general were it written about any language. I have a few more in my bookshelf that I haven't gotten around to reading yet.

XHTML, CSS, Regular Expressions

These are some reference books I have on the basics.

Information Design

The first book in this list was originally alone in this category, but was worth listing anyway. The second book discusses some great ideas on time saving using paper prototypes for application designs.

The fourth book I read the same day as the second book, and it didn't hold a candle to it. Don't waste your time. Likewise the third book presented many concepts in a brief overview, but didn't provide anything insightful. It is more like a narrative of a typical design process. Perhaps it would be useful to beginners who don't have any idea where to start.

Databases

Ah, databases. They're important enough to learn how to use properly.

Software Engineering and Project Management

Because I tend to do quite a bit of freelance work, the responsibility falls on me to provide estimates and schedules, and get the job done on time. Also I sometimes organize a team to work with me, and so effective management skills are important. I've found these books to be helpful.

C & C++ Programming

The C++ programming language has such a huge amount of material available that it would be a senseless waste to not take advantage of it. There is a great deal of useful information in each of these books, even if you are programming in another language.