The software development industry is an exciting and challenging one. Software developers regularly deal with complex issues such as code optimization, effective user interface design, working with the myriad of programmable devices on the market and ensuring that the products of their efforts are error free and work to specification.
Many perceive the role of the software developer as one that is both solitary and mechanical. This could not be further from the truth. Software development is an art. It is a highly creative field in which programmers strive for innovative solutions to problems that range in complexity, scope and application. It is a rare project that is undertaken by a single software developer as many projects are large enough in scale to require teams of programmers working on aspects that need to be integrated at a later stage. There are of course a number of stakeholders involved in the software development process – the key one being the client. A good software developer needs to have communication skills that will enable them to marry the client’s needs to the product and a mechanism by which the solution can be refined.
This text book examines the core techniques employed by software developers across the world and serves as an excellent introduction to this exciting field.
