Reviews for Software Engineering for Students

1. Great for curriculums stuck in the 1970's

   Rated 2 out of 5 stars, March 12th, 2010

   If you are studying for the British Computer Society Exams this book is on the recommended reading list and you should probably get it. There is a wide range of topics and the writing style is clear and condensed so students studying for the exams may get alot of mileage. My issue with the book is with it's approaching to programming topics. It is written with a 1970's mindset, this is actually a bonus for the BCS exams because it matches the mindset of their curriculum. Clearly the author only learnt and thinks that there is only one way to program. According to the book there are two programming styles - structured and unstructured, he writes about expensive procedure calls 30 years after Steels paper debunking that myth and he ignores declarative programming languages and higher order functions. So with that said, buy this book if you are sitting the BCS exam or preparing a similarly outdated curriculum. Otherwise, it's an awful lot of money to waste.

2. A good reference book for students

   Rated 4 out of 5 stars, January 12th, 2010

   I have no programming experience but found the book to be thoroughly interesting and readily understandable.

3. Excellent

   Rated 5 out of 5 stars, December 12th, 2005

   This book is a must for anyone studying software engineering at university level. I have found everything I need within this book for my final year and more. I am astounded that lecturers on my course have not recommended this book as a key text, as the information is insightful and very helpful. Reading through this book has highlighted areas which would have been useful during my second year of this course and it's a shame I did not have a copy sooner!

   The layout is easy to follow and the flow of writing is excellent. Nothing is taken for granted within the text and everything is explained thoroughly and nothing is overwhelming. This is one of the few academic books that I actually found interesting to read.

   I recommend this book to anyone studying software engineering, especially the 2nd and 3rd year students!! Excellent

4. From a student perspective

   Rated 5 out of 5 stars, March 12th, 2005

   This is a really clear and insightful edition of Software Engineering. Each chapter focuses on a different development method and provides a discussion and analysis of the tools and techniques. The content is suitably thorough, but without being arrogant, patronising or presumptuous. Also included are relevant case studies and stimulating self-text questions. Reassuringly, the traditional techniques are present, but the new chapters on topics such as Agile Methods and Open-Source Development bring it right up to date. The format, particularly the different colours used to organise the sections, make it very easy to access specific parts of each chapter, making this a very practical text for students. This book is an invaluable resource for anyone studying Software Engineering at university level. I would definitely recommend this text to both students and lecturers alike.