APPropriate Behaviour
The book about all the things software writers do that aren't writing software.
FSF
Author Archives: Graham
When all you have is a NailFactory…
…every problem looks like it can be solved by configuring a different nail. We have an obsession with tools in the software industry. We’ve built tools for building software, tools for testing software, tools for recording how the software is … Continue reading
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A note on notes
I’ve always had a way to take notes, but have never settled into a particular scheme. This post, more for my benefit than for yours, is an attempt to dig through this history and decide what I want to do … Continue reading
Posted in tool-support
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How to version a Mach-O library
Yes, it’s the next instalment of “cross-platform programming for people who don’t use Macs very much”. You want to give your dynamic library a version number, probably of the format major.minor.patchlevel. Regardless of marketing concerns, this helps with dependency management … Continue reading
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How to handle Xcode in your meta-build system’s iOS or Mac app target
OK, I’ve said before in APPropriate Behaviour that I dislike build systems that build other build systems: Some build procedures get so complicated that they spawn another build system that configures the build environment for the target system before building. … Continue reading
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I just updated Appropriate Behaviour
The new release of Appropriate Behaviour—the book about things programmers should do that aren’t programming—is now up. The most obvious, and most awesome, change in this update is a fabulous new cover, designed by Sebastian Hermida of leanpubcovers.com. Should you … Continue reading
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Happy Birthday, Objective-C!
OK, I have to admit that I actually missed the party. Brad Cox first described his “Object-Oriented pre-compiler”, OOPC, in The January 1983 issue of ACM SIGPLAN Notices. This describes the Object Oriented Pre-Compiler, OOPC, a language and a run-time … Continue reading
Posted in AAPL, code-level, social-science
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Does the history of making software exist?
A bit of a repeated theme in the construction of APPropriate Behaviour has been that I’ve tried to position certain terms or concepts in their historical context, and found it difficult, or impossible to do so with sufficient rigour. There’s … Continue reading
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An observation designed to aid the reading of books on software
Wherever a book on writing software describes the 1968 NATO conference in Garmisch on Software Engineering, consider whether the clarity of the argument can be improved by adding the following parenthetical clause: […], a straw man version of an otherwise … Continue reading
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Anyone Can Write A Manifesto And You Can Too!™
Over a small number of years, I have helped to write some software. During this time I have come to value: Solving problems over rejecting what has passed before Solving problems over congratulating ourselves Solving problems over creating problems Solving … Continue reading
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Talking about talking
I recently gave a talk to my colleagues about giving talks. Here is an annotated collection of the notes I made in preparation. – What do you want the audience to get out of the talk? As you’re constructing your … Continue reading
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