Books... All Fleeting Clouds

Last night, I finally finished the last two courses of this semester, “Computer Networks” and “Hardware Basics.” Now I’m free again. I can finally read some of the books I’ve been wanting to read but never had time for.

Back in the dorm, I was shocked to see the pile of unread books on my desk — accumulated over half a semester. Some I bought, some I was gifted, some I picked up :) … All classics.

“COM Mastery” — I’ve wanted to study COM technology for a long time. After working at Microsoft for half a year and writing numerous ActiveX and COM sample code, I finally feel like I’m getting it. This book is a must-read!

“.NET Assembly Programming” — C# and VB.NET are simple enough with MSDN, but to really study .NET, you have to study IL. This book is a must-read!

“C++ Standard Template Library” — An 800-page tome detailing the usage of C++ STL. After studying “C++ Object Model,” I feel I’ve finally entered the door of C++. How can I miss STL and generic programming, the hallmark of Modern C++? This book is a must-read!

“STL Source Code Analysis” — I have a habit of getting to the bottom of things. Just knowing how to use STL isn’t enough; I need to see the internal implementation. Must read!!

“ATL Internals” — To quote a master: only narcissists write COM in C. The best tool for COM is ATL. How does ATL generate standard COM components? I’ve always wanted to know. Must read, must read!

“Introduction to Algorithms” — Need I say more? MIT’s textbook. My algorithms and math have always been weak. This book is my salvation.

“Refactoring” — This book is said to be as famous as “Design Patterns,” and translated by jjhou. Must read.

“The Design and Evolution of C++” — By the father of C++ himself, in English. Enough said.

“.NET Essentials” — Another Don Box masterpiece. I bought the English version as soon as it came out. A classic.

“Writing Secure Code 2” — BillG recommends every Microsoft employee read this. Even though I was just an intern, I had to support boss Bill.

Counting them one by one, stacked on the desk, at least 0.3 meters thick. If I read each one carefully, repeatedly, it would probably take all three years of grad school. If I just skim them, I won’t feel I got my money’s worth…

Books… all fleeting clouds.