Jimali Software Engineering

This book brings together a number of key practices used in Agile development into a concise, easy to read book. The authors have divided the book into a number of key practice areas which allows new adopters to select the practices that suite their situation. The book uses a little devil to represent the represent the temptation to use poor habits, and an angel to represent advice that the authors believe should be followed. These two graphics plus the accompanying paragraph, allow the reader to appreciate the intent of the practice. I think this is an excellent idea, especially for people new to Agile development, because it will allow readers to quickly find solutions to the problems they are facing without having to read the whole book. In terms of content, this book has a lot of information that could be found on the Internet and other books; however it does collate them into a single tome making the information easier to find. This also allows the book to be given to people to read, leaving the reader with a reasonable understanding of the benefits of the Agile practices. I have been using Agile methods for some time, so much of the information in the book is not new to me. This is not to the detriment of the book. The book also has a pull-out card containing a summary of each of the practices and the page on which they start. Like the angel and devil, I think this is an excellent idea; not only for beginners but also for experienced Agile developers. The book seems to be well researched and references work done by a number of leading figures within the Agile and Software Engineering ranks. The book has much to like about it; although at one point I got the feeling that the authors believe, or perhaps would like to believe, that Agile developers don't take it personally when problems are found with their code. In my experience the opposite is the case and developers get most defensive in this case. Still, the sentiment expressed is one worth striving for. What I liked

• Collated series of practices taking the hassle out of finding the information.
• The writing style made the book easy to read.
• Each practice has a section entitled "Keeping your balance" which gives guidelines for how to use the practice without getting too carried away.
• "Agile practices" card summarising each practice.
• Angel and devil icons.

What I disliked

• The book seems expensive given its size and content.
• A little optimistic when it comes to the personal interaction of developers.

Should you read this book? Do not buy this book if you are not:

• Interested in Agile development practices.
• Interested in improving your development skills.
• Interested in mentoring other Software Engineers.

I borrowed the copy of the book that I'm reviewing. Will I be buying a copy? The answer is a resounding YES. I ordered the book for the following reasons:

1. I can give the book to someone to read to promote Agile practices.
2. I can use the book as a reference to improve Agile practices where I work.
3. I can use the book as a reference when promoting or defending the use of Agile methods.
4. The book's size allows me to keep it in my brief case for easy access.