more joel writeup

Author: Matt Swanson

_posts/2010-11-02-more-joel-on-software.markdown

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+---
+layout: writeup
+title: More Joel on Software
+categories:
+- writeup
+---
+![](/static/more-joel.png)  
+[More Joel on Software](http://www.joelonsoftware.com)  
+Joel Spolsky   
+ISBN: 1430209879
+
+---
+
+**What's the point?**
+More musings on software from everyone's favorite ex-Microsoft developer-turned-celebrity-blogger.  This 
+book is more focused on the business aspect of developing software and provides advice on a wide range 
+of topics, including how to hire programmers, management techniques, and company philosophy and culture.
+
+**How was it?**
+I really enjoy Spolsky's writing and he does an excellent job of weaving in stories and anecdotes to support
+his arguments.  On the other hand, I didn't really care for the book as a whole.  All of the content is 
+good, but I had already read 85% of the articles on his blog.  There is some great stuff 
+([Strategy Letter VI](http://www.joelonsoftware.com/items/2007/09/18.html)
+and [Evidence Based Scheduling](http://www.joelonsoftware.com/items/2007/10/26.html) come to mind), but 
+I didn't really benefit from having it as a hard copy.
+
+I like to think of \[More\] Joel on Software as a **gateway book** -- it is a great introductory book for 
+people that are new to the whole "best practices for software" philosophy.  It is approachable enough for
+non-technical managers and can really help get them excited about changing their own processes for the
+better.
+
+**Who should read it?**
+If you are unfamiliar with Joel Spolsky or Joel on Software, you should definitely check out this book.  But 
+if you have read his blog with any frequency (and since he is 'retired' now it is easy to catch up on the 
+archives) then you can probably skip the book.