Operating Systems: Three Easy Pieces
Remzi H. Arpaci-Dusseau & Andrew C. Arpaci-Dusseau
The best book on operating systems. I did not appreciate the condescending humor and assumptions of what constitutes an "astute" reader.
This page serves as a personal archive of my reading list. It began as a carefully crafted bottom-up sequence in order to achieve Linux kernel contributor-level proficiency, but eventually became a medium of realizing the greater purpose and joy of learning.
Being a recovering completionist, it strictly features literature that I have read completely and comprehensively (appendices and other extraneous sections included). If you can help it, don't do this to yourself. Summaries are formed retrospectively.
Technical books are a special kind of fun, and I sincerely hope this page helps seekers make more educated book purchasing decisions.
Happy reading!
Data Structures in C: First Edition
Noel Kalicharan
A fine primer that I wouldn't personally recommend.
Contains a handful of excellent expositions on essential data structures, poor examples, and an overwhelming amount of sub-par exercises. Second edition might be improved but I wouldn't count on it; ordered the first edition on accident.
Still very much worth the read for my purposes (going from near zero awareness to toy implementations).
The C Programming Language: Second Edition
Brian W. Kernighan & Dennis M. Ritchie
The best technical book ever written, on the best programming language ever designed, by the best technical writer of all time.
Programming from the Ground Up
Jonathan Bartlett
Assembly by a brother in the Faith. Super friendly and free!
Inside The Machine: An Illustrated Introdution to Microprocessors and Computer Architecture
Jon Stokes
The self-proclaimed natural follow-up to Code. Zooms out ever so slightly to provide a much more detailed overview of core CPU functionality and how it interfaces with other hardware. I don't think there's a viable alternative to the topic without diving into an otherwise dense undergraduate-level textbook.
But How Do It Know?
J. Clark Scott
An excellent complement to Code. The chapter entitled "Philosophy" is wonderful and incredibly relevant.
