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I've found reading to be one of the most beneficial things in my life. There was a point when I could barely read. Finally, in the 3rd grade, with the help of a wonderful teacher, my reading ability soared. Ever since then I always have a book I'm reading (usually more than one). In all kinds of subjects.

It especially helps in a software development career. It gives you diverse perspectives and background knowledge to help you find solutions that you might not otherwise think of. You certainly can't gain the perspectives and knowledge just from working at your job. Reading is THE most important habit in keeping on top of your career and in improving your life.

Your local bookstore doesn't carry all the books that are out there, especially some of the really good ones. They don't always have the just released books. That's why I love Amazon. Any book you want as soon as they are released and better prices than physical book stores. Delivery time isn't too bad either. Although, I can't wait for those Star Trek replicators ;)

Here are some books I strongly recommend. They are linked right to Amazon, so you can quickly review the book yourself and if you like it, buy it right away! You also help support this site and infiniteNIL Software. If you don't see a book you like, you can still click on the Amazon logo in the top right corner and we'll still get some credit. Thank you very much for your support.


	About Face: The Essentials of User Interface Design by Alan Cooper A great book on user interface design. Maybe the best. If you're a developer this will open your mind to the possiblities of making things better for your users.

	Building Cocoa Applications : A Step by Step Guide by Simson Garfinkel, Michael K. Mahoney Originally written for NeXTSTEP, now for Mac OS X. You need this book and Aaron's if you want to write Cocoa apps. You'll have a blast.

	Cocoa Programming for Mac OS X by Aaron Hillegass This book and the Building Cocoa Applications book are must have's for learning to write Mac OS X apps. Aaron's style is nice and personable. A fun read.

	Code Complete: A Practical Handbook of Software Construction by Steve C. McConnell The encyclopedia of how to write good, maintainable code.

	Debugging the Development Process: Practical Strategies for Staying Focused, Hitting Ship Dates, and Building Solid Teams by Steve Maguire An excellent book on the development process. If you read this one you'll probably be better at managing than your manager ;) Don't let him catch you timing your meetings like I did. They don't like that.

	Design Patterns: Elements of Reusable Object-Oriented Software by E. Gamma, R. Helm, R. Johnson, J. Vlissides The book that started it all. Template object-oriented solutions to common problems.

	Dynamic HTML: The Definitive Reference (2nd Edition) by Danny Goodman The title is not your standard hype. This is THE book to have when you're developing a web page.

	Extreme Programming Installed by Ron Jeffries, Kent Beck, etc. The most practical book of the XP series. Gives you all the details on how to practice XP.

	No Bugs! Delivering Error-Free Code in C and C++ by David Thielen Tricks of the trade for tracking down all those bugs YOU put there. This book will change the way you write your code.

	Paradigms of Artificial Intelligence Programming: Case Studies in Common Lisp by Peter Norvig One of the best AI books around. Lots of useful techniques for difficult problems. And if you don't know Lisp, go learn it. It will expand your mind.

	Programming Ruby: A Pragmatic Programmer's Guide by David Thomas, Andrew Hunt The first english book about a delightful programming language. If you're not familiar with Ruby, you owe it to yourself to check it out. You'll be happy you did.

	Refactoring: Improving the Design of Existing Code by Martin Fowler Simple and practical ways to fix that horrible code you wrote or inherited from someone else without messing everything up.

	Remarkable Healings: A Psychiatrist Discovers Unsuspected Roots of Mental and Physical Illness by Shakuntala Modi, M.D. An incredible look at what really causes illness. Reads like a novel. This book will have you imitating Keanu Reeves and going 'Whoa!'

	The First $20 Million Is Always The Hardest: A Silicon Valley Novel by Po Bronson Finally, a good, serious novel about Silicon Valley. This one also has a movie in the works.

	The Inmates Are Running the Asylum : Why High Tech Products Drive Us Crazy and How To Restore The Sanity by Alan Cooper A follow-up to Cooper's great About Face.

	The Millionaire Next Door: The Suprising Secrets of America's Wealthy by Thomas J. Stanley, Ph.D., William D. Danko, Ph.D. Most people's idea of what being a millionaire is all about is totally out of sync with reality. This book will clear it up and also show you that being a millionaire is within anyone's grasp.

	The Non-Designer's Design Book by Robin Williams A great book that gives you some simple techniques to dramatically improve your resume, user interfaces, web pages, or anything else you layout.

	The Pragmatic Programmer: From Journeyman to Master by Andrew Hunt, David Thomas A wonderful book about the craft of programming. You'll be inspired and Thomas and Hunt are fun to read. How many times can you say that about a programming book?

	The Truth Machine by James L. Halperin One of my all-time favorite sci-fi books. A near future story about a boy, his quest, and how it changes the world. How would you act if anybody could tell you are lying? In anyway whatsoever? Talk about a stock market crash. I've heard a movie is in the works.

	Writing Solid Code: Microsoft's Techniques for Developing Bug-Free C Programs by Steve Maguire Another excellent book by Steve Maquire. Similar to Thielen's book. If you can find this book, get it.

	Your Money or Your Life: Transforming Your Relationship with Money and Achieving Financial Independence by Joe Dominguez, Vicki Rubin This book will show you how to break free of the "requirements" of modern life and take control of your life. If you so desire.