The Art of Computer Programming
#30 of 644 all-time
The Art of Computer Programming
Donald Knuth
23 people recommended it in 8 threads, 2011–2024.
What people on Hacker News said
Anyone who doesn't want to learn MIX can just ignore those few parts of TAOCP; there's enough value in those books without them.
Have read only parts of Knuth / CLRS - They are good, but for real problems analysis , would prefer Sienna
TAOCP is more than an algorithms book, Knuth even have strategies for writing lengthy programs from scratch, how to build test libraries, how to optimize a program to make it cache memory friendly ect.
It’s machine language for a fictional machine, but there exist emulators for the machine. The code is runnable.
I generally go to Knuth when I'm really stuck--not just how to do something but sometimes how to frame the problem so it can be solved.
For years I've had the textbooks of CLRS and Skiena at home (and a pdf of Dasgupta) but they are used only in the event I need to drill down to understand a particular algorithm to solve a particular problem.
Where it comes up
- A Comparison of Four Algorithms Textbooks (2016) 2017 · 10 recommendations
- Ask HN: Which books do you consider real gems in your field of work/study? 2022 · 5 recommendations
- Ask HN: Mind bending books to read and never be the same as before? 2020 · 2 recommendations
- Must Read CS Books For Self Self-Taught Programmers 2011 · 2 recommendations
- Ask HN: What's the "best" book you've ever read? 2024 · 1 recommendation
- Ask HN: Books you wish you had read earlier? 2017 · 1 recommendation
- Ask HN: Book Recommendations? 2016 · 1 recommendation
- What is the single most influential book every programmer should read? 2011 · 1 recommendation