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Featured Items
Most recently reviewed items are below. |
Featured Items
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Teamwork is an Individual Skill, Chris Avery.
Berrett-Koehler Publishers, 2001. Chris spoke at the Agile a couple years ago, and I really enjoyed his talk. He explores many themes: teamwork, feedback, commitment, collaboration, trust. His perspective is that individual skills make these possible. Almost every section has personal and team challenges that give you areas to work on. Highly recommended. (Reviewed June, '07) Related books in Coaching. |
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The Toyota Product Development System,
James M. Morgan and Jeffrey K. Liker,
Productivity Press, 2006. Toyota's
lean manufacturing system has had a lot of press, but lean influences
their product development approach as well. This book emphasizes the
system aspects of their approach. Along the way it explores a variety of
practices and tools: set-based approaches, use of a chief engineer,
alignment, and more. I preferred this book over
Kennedy as it feels both broader and deeper. |
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Harvard Business Review.
(Magazine). This almost-monthly magazine features interesting articles on the challenges of business. I particularly enjoy the case studies, where different experts comment on a situation. I keep an article or two from almost every issue. (This month, I kept "Managing the Right Tension," which talks about the challenges of managing e.g., short-term vs. long-term, and I kept "Strategies to Fight Low-Cost Rivals," which considers whether you should attack, co-exist, or become a low-cost player yourself.) (Reviewed Nov., '06) Related items in Business. |
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Getting Things Done: The Art of Stress-Free Productivity,
David Allen, Penguin Books, 2001. I've added several projects recently, and decided to use a more formal system to track everything. Getting Things Done ("GTD") is centered around a system for managing time and, well, getting things done. The book is clear, and Allen describes his techniques with authority. (Reviewed Oct., '06) Related books in Interesting. |
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Systemantics: How Systems Work and Especially How They Fail, John
Gall.
Pocket Books, 1978.
Peter Coffee recommended this in his keynote at Agile '06, and I can see why. It's a humorous look at how systems are by nature out of control. My favorite rule - "A complex system that works is invariably found to have evolved from a simple system that works." (Reviewed August, '06) Related books in Business. |
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Journey through Genius: The Great Theorems of Mathematics, by William Dunham.
ISBN 014014739X. Penguin, 1991. This book is a wonderful mix of proofs and history. The proofs are interesting (and showed me how rusty I am on some of
this), but the history really brings it alive, providing a context to show
why mathematicians care. I was left with an even greater appreciation
for how Euclid, Newton, and Euler really stand high above so many others. (Reviewed August, '06)
Related books in Interesting. |
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Free
Play: Improvisation in Life and Art, Stephen Nachmanovich. Tarcher/Putnam,
1990. When everything happens in "real time", we have improvisation, whether it's music or drama (or software!). Nachmanovitch explores the interplay of freedom and rules, of work and play, of practice and performance. Using art, music, and more, he leads us to explore creativity, in a touching and thought-provoking way. (Reviewed July, '06) Related books in Coaching. |
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Design Patterns in Java. Steve Metsker and William C. Wake.
Addison-Wesley, 2006. I won't review my own book 8>), but I will summarize: This is a workbook-style book, updating Steve's earlier Design Patterns Java Workbook and Design Patterns in C#. It covers the same 23 patterns as Design Patterns, but adds some different perspective and a number of challenges to help you make sure you understand the patterns. It's targeted to intermediate programmers, though more advanced programmers who want to brush up on patterns might consider it also. (May, '06) Related books in Software. |
I link to Amazon.com as part of their associate program, but don't forget to check half.com and others, especially if you don't mind a used book.
I'm a reviewer for Addison-Wesley, O'Reilly, and occasional
others. I also know many of the authors whose books I mention. I try not to let
this bias me.