This book is aimed at the working Rails developer who is looking to grow and evolve Rails projects while keeping them flexible, maintainable, and robust. The focus is on pragmatic solutions which tread a “middle way” between the expedience of the Rails “golden path”, and rigid OO purity.

    This is a hands-on guide to mastering Objective C - the language every MAC OS X and iPhone/iPod Touch developer needs to know.

    This is the first book that introduces Lisp as a language for the real world.Practical Common Lisp presents a thorough introduction to Common Lisp, providing you with an overall understanding of the language features and how they work. Over a third of the book is devoted to practical examples, such as the core of a spam filter and a web application for browsing MP3s and streaming them via the Shoutcast protocol to any standard MP3 client software (e.g., iTunes, XMMS, or WinAmp). In other "practical" chapters, author Peter Seibel demonstrates how to build a simple but flexible in-memory database, how to parse binary files, and how to build a unit test framework in 26 lines of code.

     By the time you finish this book you'll be able to do everything from checking your grammar, to creating an infographic, to driving free traffic to your blog or website, all using free tools, sites and downloads. The book contains links to all resources mentioned. A handy little reference guide you'll keep on your Kindle or other device to refer back to again and again.

    They think that UI design is like graphic design--the mysterious process by which creative, latte-drinking, all-black-wearing people produce cool-looking, artistic pieces. Most programmers see themselves as analytic, logical thinkers instead--strong at reasoning, weak on artistic judgment, and incapable of doing UI design.In this brilliantly readable book, author Joel Spolsky proposes simple, logical rules that can be applied without any artistic talent to improve any user interface, from traditional GUI applications to websites to consumer electronics. Spolsky's primary axiom, the importance of bringing the program model in line with the user model, is both rational and simple.In a fun and entertaining way, Spolky makesuser interfacedesign easy for programmers to grasp. After reading User Interface Design for Programmers, you'll know how to design interfaces with the user in mind. You'll learn the important principles that underlie all good UI design, and you'll learn how to perform usability testing that works."

    Yet, not many people understand how payment systems in the US work. Those that do "get it" are unlocking multi-billion dollar opportunities. If you've ever wondered what happens when you actually swipe/dip/tap your credit card or debit card then The Anatomy of the Swipe breaks down the details in the simplest manner possible. Here are some questions answered within these pages:How does money move from my credit card to my favorite coffee shop? How can I build a neo-bank? How can I build my own debit or credit card? How can I accept card based payments? The Anatomy of the Swipe speaks to software developers and entrepreneurs who are looking at implementing card-based payments for the first time, merchants who want to be able to accept payments for a website or store, or those who want to issue their own debit/credit card. This book walks beginners through modern innovations created because of card-based payments, as well as the motivations and revenue models of each party in the payments ecosystem.

    With its simple commands, flags, and parameters, a well-formed command-line application is the quickest way to automate a backup, a build, or a deployment and simplify your life. With this book, you'll learn specific ways to write command-line applications that are easy to use, deploy, and maintain, using a set of clear best practices and the Ruby programming language. This book is designed to make any programmer or system administrator more productive in their job. Now updated for Ruby 2.Writing a command-line application that's self-documenting, robust, adaptable and forever useful is easier than you might think. Ruby is particularly suited to this task, because it combines high-level abstractions with "close to the metal" system interaction wrapped up in a concise, readable syntax. Plus, Ruby has the support of a rich ecosystem of open source tools and libraries.Ten insightful chapters each explain and demonstrate a command-line best practice. You'll see how to use these tools to elevate the lowliest automation script to a maintainable, polished application. You'll learn how to use free, open source parsers to create user-friendly command-line interfaces as well as command suites. You'll see how to use defaults to keep options simple for everyday users, while giving advanced users options for more complex tasks. There's no reason why a command-line application should lack documentation, whether it's part of a help command or a man page; you'll find out when and how to use both. Your journey from command-line novice to pro ends with a look at valuable approaches to testing your apps, and includes some fun techniques for outside-the-box, colorful interfaces that will delight your users.With Ruby, the command line is not dead. Long live the command line.

    You could spend years discovering solutions to them all, step by step as you encounter them. Or you can just look in here. All successful database applications are destined to eventually run into issues scaling up their performance. Peek into the future of your PostgreSQL database's problems today. Know the warning signs to look for, and how to avoid the most common issues before they even happen. Surprisingly, most PostgreSQL database applications evolve in the same way: Choose the right hardware. Tune the operating system and server memory use. Optimize queries against the database, with the right indexes. Monitor every layer, from hardware to queries, using some tools that are inside PostgreSQL and others that are external. Using monitoring insight, continuously rework the design and configuration. On reaching the limits of a single server, break things up; connection pooling, caching, partitioning, and replication can all help handle increasing database workloads. The path to a high performance database system isn't always easy. But it doesn't have to be mysterious with the right guide. This book is a clear, step-by-step guide to optimizing and scaling up PostgreSQL database servers. - Publisher.

    "

    With this guide, pioneering Go programmer Mark Summerfield shows how to write code that takes full advantage of Go's breakthrough features and idioms. Both a tutorial and a language reference, "Programming in Go" brings together all the knowledge you need to evaluate Go, think in Go, and write high-performance software with Go. Summerfield presents multiple idiom comparisons showing exactly how Go improves upon older languages, calling special attention to Go's key innovations. Along the way, he explains everything from the absolute basics through Go's lock-free channel-based concurrency and its flexible and unusual duck-typing type-safe approach to object-orientation. Throughout, Summerfield's approach is thoroughly practical. Each chapter offers multiple live code examples designed to encourage experimentation and help you quickly develop mastery. Wherever possible, complete programs and packages are presented to provide realistic use cases, as well as exercises. Coverage includes:-- Quickly getting and installing Go, and building and running Go programs -- Exploring Go's syntax, features, and extensive standard library -- Programming Boolean values, expressions, and numeric types -- Creating, comparing, indexing, slicing, and formatting strings -- Understanding Go's highly efficient built-in collection types: slices and maps -- Using Go as a procedural programming language -- Discovering Go's unusual and flexible approach to object orientation -- Mastering Go's unique, simple, and natural approach to fine-grained concurrency -- Reading and writing binary, text, JSON, and XML files -- Importing and using standard library packages, custom packages, and third-party packages -- Creating, documenting, unit testing, and benchmarking custom packages

    Learn Java Programming Fast with a unique Hands-On Project. Book 4 of the Learn Coding Fast Series. Covers Java 8. Have you always wanted to learn computer programming but are afraid it'll be too difficult for you? Or perhaps you know other programming languages but are interested in learning the Java language fast? This book is for you. You no longer have to waste your time and money trying to learn Java from boring books that are 600 pages long, expensive online courses or complicated Java tutorials that just leave you more confused and frustrated. What this book offers... Java for Beginners Complex concepts are broken down into simple steps to ensure that you can easily master the Java language even if you have never coded before. Carefully Chosen Java Examples Examples are carefully chosen to illustrate all concepts. In addition, the output for all examples are provided immediately so you do not have to wait till you have access to your computer to test the examples. Careful selection of topics Topics are carefully selected to give you a broad exposure to Java, while not overwhelming you with information overload. These topics include object-oriented programming concepts, error handling techniques, file handling techniques and more. In addition, new features in Java (such as lambda expressions and default methods etc) are also covered so that you are always up to date with the latest advancement in the Java language. Learn The Java Programming Language Fast Concepts are presented in a "to-the-point" style to cater to the busy individual. You no longer have to endure boring and lengthy Java textbooks that simply puts you to sleep. With this book, you can learn Java fast and start coding immediately. How is this book different... The best way to learn Java is by doing. This book includes a unique project at the end of the book that requires the application of all the concepts taught previously. Working through the project will not only give you an immense sense of achievement, it’ll also help you retain the knowledge and master the language. Are you ready to dip your toes into the exciting world of Java coding? This book is for you. Click the BUY button and download it now. What you'll learn: Introduction to Java - What is Java? - What software do you need to code Java programs? - How to install and run JDK and Netbeans? Data types and Operators - What are the eight primitive types in Java? - What are arrays and lists? - How to format Java strings - What is a primitive type vs reference type? - What are the common Java operators? Object Oriented Programming - What is object oriented programming? - How to write your own classes - What are fields, methods and constructors? - What is encapsulation, inheritance and polymorphism? - What is an abstract class and interface? Controlling the Flow of a Program - What are condition statements? - How to use control flow statements in Java - How to handle errors and exceptions - How to throw your own exception

    This hands-on guide introduces you to AngularJS, the open source JavaScript framework that uses Model–view–controller (MVC) architecture, data binding, client-side templates, and dependency injection to create a much-needed structure for building web apps.Guided by two engineers who worked on AngularJS at Google, you’ll walk through the framework’s key features, and then build a working AngularJS app—from layout to testing, compiling, and debugging. You’ll learn how AngularJS helps reduce the complexity of your web app.Dive deep into Angular’s building blocks and learn how they work togetherGain maximum flexibility by separating logic, data, and presentation responsibilities with MVCAssemble your full app in the browser, using client-side templatesUse AngularJS directives to extend HTML with declarative syntaxCommunicate with the server and implement simple caching with the $http serviceUse dependency injection to improve refactoring, testability, and multiple environment designGet code samples for common problems you face in most web apps

    "Programming Entity Framework, 1st Edition" offers experienced developers a thorough introduction to Microsoft's core framework for modeling and interacting with data in .NET applications. This hands-on tour provides a deep understanding of Entity Framework's architecture and APIs, and explains how to use the framework in a variety of applications built with Visual Studio 2008 and .NET 3.5.From the Entity Data Model (EDM) and Object Services to EntityClient and the Metadata Workspace, this highly acclaimed first edition covers it all.Understand the core concepts you need to make the best use of the Entity Framework (EF) in your applicationsLearn to query your data, using either LINQ to Entities or Entity SQLCreate Windows Forms, WPF, and ASP.NET applicationsBuild ASMX web services and WCF servicesUse Object Services to work directly with your entity objectsDelve into model customization, relationship management, change tracking, data concurrency, and moreOne important note: while many of the lessons from this book will continue to be valuable as you move to .NET 4, the thoroughly revised second edition of "Programming Entity Framework" (August 2010) specifically targets Visual Studio 2010 and .NET 4 -- where there have been many advancements and additions to the framework.

    You'll learn how to: - Plan, organize, and maintain your stylesheets more effectively- Apply the secrets of liquid, elastic, and hybrid layouts- Create flickr-style image maps, remote rollovers, and other advanced CSS features- Lay out forms using pure CSS- Recognize common browser bugs, and how to fix themWhile CSS is a relatively simple technology to learn, it is a difficult one to master. When you first start developing sites using CSS, you will come across all kinds of infuriating browser bugs and inconsistencies. It sometimes feels like there are a million and one different techniques to master, spread across a bewildering array of websites. The range of possibilities seems endless and makes for a steep and daunting learning curve. By bringing all of the latest tips, tricks, and techniques together in one handy reference, this book demystifies the secrets of CSS and makes the journey to CSS mastery as simple and painless as possible. While most books concentrate on basic skills, this one is different, assuming that you already know the basics and why you should be using CSS in your work, and concentrating mainly on advanced techniques. It begins with a brief recap of CSS fundamentals such as the importance of meaningful markup, how to structure and maintain your code, and how the CSS layout model really works. With the basics out of the way, each subsequent chapter details a particular aspect of CSS-based design. Through a series of easy-to-follow tutorials, you will learn practical CSS techniques you can immediately start using in your daily work. Browser inconsistencies are the thorn in most CSS developers' sides, so we have dedicated two whole chapters to CSS hacks, filters, and bug fixing, as well as looking at image replacement; professional link, form, and list styling; pure CSS layouts; and much more. All of these techniques are then put into practice in two beautifully designed case studies, written by two of the world's best CSS designers, Simon Collison and Cameron Moll. Summary of Contents: - Chapter 1: Setting the Foundations- Chapter 2: Visual Formatting Model Recap- Chapter 3: Background Images and Image Replacement- Chapter 4: Styling Links- Chapter 5: Styling Lists and Creating Nav Bars- Chapter 6: Styling Forms and Data Tables- Chapter 7: Layout- Chapter 8: Hacks and Filters- Chapter 9: Bugs and Bug Fixing- Case Study 1: More Than Doodles- Case Study 2: Tuscany Luxury Resorts

    J. Hank Rainwater introduces new and not-so-new managers to concepts that will encourage them and help them become a strong leaders for their teams. You�ll learn about the varieties of programmer personality traits and be able match personnel to projects for maximum productivity. You�ll also learn how to manage your strengths and weaknesses as you improve your leadership skills, which will result in dramatic improvements to your team�s success. In this �how-to� manual that�s both practical and thought- provoking, you�ll find several chapters devoted to administrative aspects of your job, such as managing meetings, hiring and firing, and principles of organizing your job for success. Rainwater also describes task management software he built that you can use to organize project assignments. (The source code for this software is available for download once you own the book.) The chapter on technical leadership, which highlights the importance of architecture, design, and code reviews, not only illustrates practical applications of leadership, but also digs deep into concrete methods you must employ. Rainwater shows why things can go wrong for a leader and how to correct career-derailing problems as they arise. One chapter is devoted to the working relationship that you as a manager have with your boss, and it guides you into the best way to respond to the pressures of software project deadlines. Numerous other topics are discussed that are a necessity for anyone seeking to manage the �peopleware� aspects of software development. "Herding Cats: A Primer for Programmers Who Lead Programmers" is the definitive guide to the challenges and obstacles facing anyone who manages programmers. Author Information Hank Rainwater leads programmers who build software for the insurance industry at Risk Sciences Group in Atlanta, Georgia. His career in science and engineering has spanned over three decades and has included writing Fortran programs on punch cards; teaching college mathematics; conducting research in radio astronomy, missile guidance systems, and remote sensing technologies; and managing the building of embedded digital control systems. As a software professional, Hank has served as a consultant, mentor, and teacher of programming languages and has led development teams in several industries.