Debugging: The 9 Indispensable Rules for Finding Even the Most Elusive Software and Hardware Problems
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When the pressure is on to resolve an elusive software or hardware glitch, what’s needed is a cool head courtesy of a set of rules guaranteed to work on any system, in any circumstance.
Written in a frank but engaging style, this book provides simple, foolproof principles guaranteed to help find any bug quickly. Recognized tech expert and author David Agans changes the way you think about debugging, making those pesky problems suddenly much easier to find and fix.
Agans identifies nine simple, practical rules that are applicable to any software application or hardware system, which can help detect any bug, no matter how tricky or obscure. Illustrating the rules with real-life bug-detection war stories, Debugging shows you how to:
Understand the system: how perceiving the “”roadmap”” can hasten your journeyQuit thinking and look: when hands-on investigation can’t be avoidedIsolate critical factors: why changing one element at a time can be an essential toolKeep an audit trail: how keeping a record of the debugging process can win the day
Whether the system or program you’re working on has been designed wrong, built wrong, or used wrong, Debugging helps you think correctly about bugs, so the problems virtually reveal themselves.
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Publisher : AMACOM
Publication date : November 5, 2006
Edition : Illustrated
Language : English
Print length : 192 pages
ISBN-10 : 0814474578
ISBN-13 : 978-0814474570
Item Weight : 11.5 ounces
Dimensions : 6.75 x 0.4 x 9.6 inches
Best Sellers Rank: #218,784 in Books (See Top 100 in Books) #3 in Computer Programming Debugging #40 in Software Testing #71 in Information Management (Books)
Customer Reviews: 4.6 4.6 out of 5 stars 255 ratings var dpAcrHasRegisteredArcLinkClickAction; P.when(‘A’, ‘ready’).execute(function(A) { if (dpAcrHasRegisteredArcLinkClickAction !== true) { dpAcrHasRegisteredArcLinkClickAction = true; A.declarative( ‘acrLink-click-metrics’, ‘click’, { “allowLinkDefault”: true }, function (event) { if (window.ue) { ue.count(“acrLinkClickCount”, (ue.count(“acrLinkClickCount”) || 0) + 1); } } ); } }); P.when(‘A’, ‘cf’).execute(function(A) { A.declarative(‘acrStarsLink-click-metrics’, ‘click’, { “allowLinkDefault” : true }, function(event){ if(window.ue) { ue.count(“acrStarsLinkWithPopoverClickCount”, (ue.count(“acrStarsLinkWithPopoverClickCount”) || 0) + 1); } }); });
Customers say
Customers find the book easy to read and entertaining, particularly appreciating the war stories that illustrate debugging principles. Moreover, the book provides useful tips and helps improve debugging discipline, with one customer noting it applies to almost any kind of debugging. Additionally, they value its short length and clear-cut rules, and one review mentions it’s full of stories that illustrate the principles.
11 reviews for Debugging: The 9 Indispensable Rules for Finding Even the Most Elusive Software and Hardware Problems
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Original price was: €19.€13Current price is: €13.
Maciej –
Genial book!
I wish I read this book long time ago! All these rules apply to life. Itâs an empirical way of thinking and learning.
Paul –
Short, funny, memorable. Learn to be a better debugger and save time.
Buy it and read it. Reading this short book is time very well spent to get better at debugging and troubleshooting. By systematically finding and fixing bugs, you will waste much less time spinning your wheels and guessing. These are useful problem-solving skills with broad applications. The book is concise, memorable, and funny. Each chapter expands on one of nine debugging rules along with memorable “war stories” and end-of-chapter summaries connecting back to the stories. The stories are interesting, unique, and funny. Our brains are wired to remember narratives and learn through making connections; these stories really help cement the rules in your memory. The rules might seem obvious after reading them at first glance. The hard part is remembering, recognizing, and applying the rules to a particular situation; this book helps with that.Here are the rules. Even if they’re familiar, you’ll likely come away with better skills or new ideas after reading the book.9 Debugging Rules- Understand the system- Make it fail- Quit thinking and look- Divide and conquer- Change one thing at a time- Keep an audit trail- Check the plug- Get a fresh view- If you didn’t fix it, it ain’t fixed
omnom10000 –
Excellent non-technical book
I greatly enjoyed reading this book on the metro because it was non-technical and it sounded just like when I help my father solve various electronic/mechanical issues. In fact, it was like he was right there telling me the war stories despite him being 5800KM away.As per pros for the book:* Rang true with me by stating, don’t get lost in the details, but actually get in there and LOOK at the problem – not read about it.* Good stories and examples* Good flow and not boring* Good techniques for problem solving* Good price for the contentCons:* Reads a bit like a personal opinion like rant* Needs a bit more editing (small typos)* Slightly repetitive (but I understand that this may have been a literary tactic)Honestly, this was a good read and I would gladly recommend this book for any person attempting to improve their thought process regarding debugging or solving problems. Undergraduate and graduate students + professors should seek to read this book or have it among the required readings for advanced programming classes.
Megan –
Fantastic Book That’s Good for Non-Engineers
In Debugging, the author takes us through some key rules on how to solve even the thorniest problems. You’ll get lots of examples in the form of war stories. While the text is aimed mainly at engineers (primarily hardware, with some software thrown in), many of the war stories are about things as simple as car trouble. Everything is written in a lighter tone. Nothing too dry or heavy.If you’ve been in the field for more than a couple years and you don’t absolutely suck at it, a lot of the content in Debugging will be the equivalent of preaching to the choir. That said, it never hurts to have a reference on hand because after so many years, you *will* forget something here or there.If you’re looking for another book in a similar vein to this one, read Stop Guessing by Nat Greene. In fact, there’s a lot of crossover between Stop Guessing and Debugging, the biggest one being…stop guessing/quit thinking and look.
Amazon Customer –
Get this if you serious about improving
I am a software engineer, and my for the longest time I thought I was a good troubleshooter. Until I started going to interviews, talking about how I would debug this and that problem. Hearing people’s feedback, asking how they would solve it sometimes. Too often I get stuck in the same ways of doing things. And I definitely was not understanding the system, it was more like poke this, then that, and hope it works, if not try poking again. I did not learn anything this way and it has really hurt my professional career growth. Which is why I got this book. It is very high level. I like understanding fundamentals. I have learned the hard way that you cannot skimp on them. What is nice about this book is that I think it will apply to all areas of problem solving in my life. Of course it does not give you the magic answer, you will need to still do the hard work, but at least if gives you a framework within which you can understand what you are doing, what could be done better, provide self feedback, not overlook important aspects or get in a bad habit of assuming too much which is one of my bigger issues. Can’t recommend this book more. If you want to get better as a software engineer, this book will give you an excellent road map.
LittleMac –
Basic debugging guidelines list expanded to book format
Perhaps because I am an experienced debugger I found this book to be much thicker than was justified by the content. Essentially the author lists what he considers essential rules for good debugging (no argument with the list, although other lists also work as well) and devotes a chapter to giving examples of each rule in use. The writing style is fine, with some humor that mostly seems to work–it’s an easy, quick read. My complaint is simply that the discussion of each rule provided far too many words and too little new knowledge for my taste. That said, the author’s guideline list is useful for those few of us that can learn such a skill as debugging from a book. In my opinion, experience helps a good deal more than reading. Nevertheless, for someone just becoming acquainted with the kind of problem solving discussed in the book the book may be useful…if referred to frequently enough for the rules to become habitual.
Rey Cosmico –
Un must en los conocimientos como programador, fundamentos e ideas para poder hacer debugging en código de manera eficiente.
Ravi –
Written in a simple style.
Mustafa Ãzçetin –
Bazı kitaplar daha okurken insana “neden bunu daha önce okumadım” dedirtir ya… Ä°Åte tam öyle bir kitap. Defalarca okunması ve iyi özümsenmesi gereken bir kitap. Bir yazılım mühendisi olarak zamanımızın önemli bir kısmı hata ayıklama ile geçiyor ve bu iÅi gerçekten hakkıyla ve verimli olarak yapmak gerekiyor. Yoksa saatleriniz, hatta günleriniz güme gidebiliyor. DiÄer mühendislik alanları için de çok kıymetli bir eser. Okuması da rahat ve keyifli. Åiddetle tavsiye ediyorum.Bu arada kargo ve paketleme de gayet baÅarılı, teÅekkürler.
Romain –
Une méthode de debugging systématique, présentée à l’aide d’un recueil d’exemples (“war stories”) issues de l’expérience de l’auteur. Utile et général, absolument pas centré sur un domaine ou une technologie: les “war stories” couvrent aussi bien une installation électrique défaillante qu’un logiciel de téléconférence, une fuite d’eau inexpliquée ou une chaudière trop tiède.Agréable, utile et divertissant.
Gregor Theis –
“Debugging” ist ein Buch über das Vorgehen beim Debuggen von beliebigen Problemen in beliebigen Anwendungsfällen. David Agans stellt 9 Regeln (plus Subregeln zu jeder Regel) auf, um gezielt Fehleranalyse zu betreiben. Zu jeder dieser Regeln mehrere Beispiele, wie diese voll eingesetzt werden oder zum Teil wie die Missachtung dieser Regeln zum Desaster führt. Die meisten dieser Beispiele sind aus dem Bereich der elektrischen Schaltungsentwicklung.Ich debugge Computer Programme nun seit 20 Jahre und ich habe in diesem Buch viel gelernt. Ich fand “Debugging” leicht, gut und schnell zu lesen. “Debugging” ist darin meiner Meinung, dass man ein wiederholbares Problem (Regel 2 “Make it fail”) durch strukturiertes Herangehen vollständig und korrekt lösen kann (nur eine Frage der Zeit). Die Regel 1 “Understand the system” hätte ich für Software Leute in der Form “Verstehe deine Architektur und alle Komponenten” dargestellt. Leider habe ich an dieser Stelle zu oft Probleme erlebt (gerade bei Multi Tier Architekturen), da viele Entwickler die Grundlagenlernschritte aus Zeitgründen gerne überspringen (um dann wie wild JAVA auf unschuldige ORACLE Datenbanken loszulassen ;-). Ich finde “Debugging” sehr schön pragmatisch, verständlich und praxisnah, ohne Wasserkopf.Für mich ist dieses Buch ein echter Klassiker und an sich zeitlos (reine Methodik unabhängig von der Anwendungsdomäne). Ich werde dieses Buch weiterempfehlen (habe ich auch schon) zusammen mit den “Pragmatic Programmer” Büchern (siehe meine weiteren Rezensionen).