Unlike other books that focus exclusively on the science of estimation—including rigid modeling techniques and continuous feedback loops that are not cost effective to most organizations—this unique guide offers practical, tested, hands-on advice for estimating software development costs in the real world. It is written by the award-winning author of Code Complete.

Often referred to as the “black art” because of its complexity and uncertainty, software estimation is not as difficult or puzzling as people think. In fact, generating accurate estimates is straightforward—once you understand the art of creating them. Read the rest of this entry »

This is the definitive, realistic, actionable guide to starting fast with Scrum and agile–and then succeeding over the long haul. Leading agile consultant and practitioner Mike Cohn presents detailed recommendations, powerful tips, and real-world case studies drawn from his unparalleled experience helping hundreds of software organizations make Scrum and agile work.

Succeeding with Agile is for pragmatic software professionals who want real answers to the most difficult challenges they face in implementing Scrum. Cohn covers every facet of the transition: getting started, helping individuals transition to new roles, structuring teams, scaling up, working with a distributed team, and finally, implementing effective metrics and continuous improvement. Read the rest of this entry »

Without formal, verifiable software requirements—and an effective system for managing them—the programs that developers think they’ve agreed to build often will not be the same products their customers are expecting. In SOFTWARE REQUIREMENTS, Second Edition, requirements engineering authority Karl Wiegers amplifies the best practices presented in his original award-winning text? Now a mainstay for anyone participating in the software development process.

In this book, you’ll discover effective techniques for managing the requirements engineering process all the way through the development cycle—including dozens of techniques to facilitate that all-important communication between users, developers, and management. This updated edition features new case examples, anecdotes culled from the author’s extensive consulting career, and specific next steps for putting the book’s process-improvement principles into practice. You’ll also find several new chapters, sample documents and an incisive troubleshooting guide. Read the rest of this entry »

Widely considered one of the best practical guides to programming, Steve McConnell’s original CODE COMPLETE has been helping developers write better software for more than a decade. Now this classic book has been fully updated and revised with leading-edge practices and hundreds of new code samples—illustrating the art and science of software construction.

Capturing the body of knowledge available from research, academia, and everyday commercial practice, McConnell synthesizes the most effective techniques and must-know principles into clear, pragmatic guidance. No matter what your experience level, development environment, or project size, this book will inform and stimulate your thinking—and help you build the highest quality code. Read the rest of this entry »

Written by an Android authority, this up-to-date resource shows you how to leverage the features of Android 2 to enhance existing products or create innovative new ones. Serving as a hands-on guide to building mobile apps using Android, the book walks you through a series of sample projects that introduces you to Android’s new features and techniques.

Using the explanations and examples included in these pages, you’ll acquire the foundation needed to write compelling mobile applications that use Android, along with the flexibility to quickly adapt to future enhancements.

Professional Android 2 Application Development:

• Reviews Android as a development platform and best practices for mobile development
• Provides an in-depth look at the Android application components

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Design Patterns is a modern classic in the literature of object-oriented development, offering timeless and elegant solutions to common problems in software design. It describes patterns for managing object creation, composing objects into larger structures, and coordinating control flow between objects. The book provides numerous examples where using composition rather than inheritance can improve the reusability and flexibility of code.

Note, though, that it’s not a tutorial but a catalog that you can use to find an object-oriented design pattern that’s appropriate for the needs of your particular application–a selection for virtuoso programmers who appreciate (or require) consistent, well-engineered object-oriented designs.
There are other advantages to this book is that it isolates 23 of the most common patterns and presents them in detail. You wouldn’t think that 23 patterns would be enough, but once you become adept at recognizing patterns, you’ll find that a large fraction of the patterns you use in practice are among these 23. Read the rest of this entry »

Since the earliest days of Internet scripting, Web developers have considered JavaScript: The Definitive Guide an essential resource. David Flanagan’s approach, which combines tutorials and examples with easy-to-use syntax guides and object references, suits the typical programmer’s requirements nicely. The brand-new fourth edition of Flanagan’s “Rhino Book” includes coverage of JavaScript 1.5, JScript 5.5, ECMAScript 3, and the Document Object Model (DOM) Level 2 standard from the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C). Interestingly, the author has shifted away from specifying–as he did in earlier editions–what browsers support each bit of the language.

Rather than say Netscape 3.0 supports the Image object while Internet Explorer 3.0 does not, he specifies that JavaScript 1.1 and JScript 3.0 support Image. Read the rest of this entry »

The thing that’s made Windows For Dummies so successful is that it’s packed with the basics you need to make Windows work. This book gets you through all the Windows Vista tasks and tripwires, including starting programs, finding files, navigating the new see-through interface, staying safe while you cruise the Internet, and much more.

Discover how to:

* Find files when they’re hiding
* Hook up with another computer
* Make Vista work like XP
* Block Internet bad guys
* Share a PC without sharing your files
* Fix problems yourself

Rathbone shows how to download a free beta test copy of Vista, then sorts through its five versions (there will be two home versions, believe it or not). You’ll glide through Vista’s new interface, getting comfy with goodies like the Sidebar and Windows Flip (2D and 3D versions). There’s a full chapter on personalizing Vista — including controlling security features such as Windows Firewall, Automatic Updates, malware protection, and user account controls. Read the rest of this entry »

“Photoshop Elements 7″ includes lots of new tools for sprucing up your photos, like the Scene Cleaner that lets you get rid of unwanted elements and the Smart Brush that makes touch-ups a breeze. But the one thing you won’t find in Elements is reader-friendly guidance on how to get the most out of this powerful program. Enter “Photoshop Elements 7: The Missing Manual”, ready to explain not only how the tools and commands work, but when to use them.With this bestselling book (now in its 5th edition), you’ll learn everything from the basics of loading photos into Elements to the new online photo-sharing and storage service.

There’s so much to Elements 7 that knowing what to do – and when to do it – is tricky. That’s why this book carefully explains all the tools and options by putting each one into a clear, easy-to-understand context. Read the rest of this entry »

This book is revised and updated to cover changes to all of Office’s applications and productivity tools. It offers beyond-the-basics coverage of Office word processing, spreadsheets, presentations, e-mail, databases, and desktop publishing. It covers Word, Excel, Access, PowerPoint, Outlook, Publisher, productivity tools such as Microsoft OneNote, and SharePoint. It is thoroughly updated to cover the new Office interface as well as new features in each application.

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