Ask HN: How do you read your programming books?

6 points by shuaib 12 years ago | 7 comments

If you are like me, you don't like to carry around a lot of physical books. For the past few years, I have been doing most of my readings off of iPad. But it isn't very easy on the eye, and at least I can't keep on reading off of it for long periods of time without getting eye strain. I hear that even though Kindle and its versions are good for non-tech books, it isn't ideal for tech books. Is that so?

My question to you is: What medium do you find best for heavy tech/programming reads?

valarauca1 12 years ago |

Generally I prefer to read from a book. While they are bulky, heavy, not as fashionable as an E-Reader, I like books. I spent a lot of my childhood in the library, I like their smell, texture, the feeling of turning pages.

Also I've never understood the 'carry around' problem. But then I don't do my reading in public, or outside my home. I have a comfortable chair, or my bed.

:.:.:

If I have to read something related to my programming work (I.E.: Reference Material, papers, manuals), second monitor and it better be in a simple text or pdf format.

grn 12 years ago |

I'm using Kindle (+ Readability) + printouts. I really like books but they have two disadvantages: they are a little bit more expensive (but that's not the rule) and, what's more important, they occupy space on a shelf. I have a small collection of about 60 books and have no more space available.

When I find an interesting article that I'd like to read I add it to Readability. If the article requires more mental effort to understand, or when I want to have a deeper understanding of the presented topic, I print it on A4 paper, one-sided. The back side of each sheet is for my notes. Because I'm not trying to formulate the Fermat Last Theorem the margins are too narrow. ;-)

I think that Kindle is a good choice for tech books, but you may have trouble reading code or complicated diagrams. It all depends on the type of books you intend to read.

I recommend a mixed approach: Kindle + printouts + books. Discover your own preferences for medium for reading about a particular subject.

taternuts 12 years ago |

I prefer to read them as PDF's on my computer monitor. Most of the times, I will either follow along or write simple code snippets to reinforce things and I find it annoying to keep bouncing from hardcopy/tablet to the computer so often. I never really get any eye strain, though I do have horrible vision for what it is worth.

michaelchum 12 years ago |

I prefer the classical paperback, which you can easily highlight/write notes. However, I just carry a programming book to learn low-level details during my daily commute. Most of my learning is done during practice referring to online resources.

asaddhamani 12 years ago |

Since learning programming isn't only about reading, but more about execution, I find it better to just read them on the computer I am using at that moment. A Kindle is fine, I don't see why it wouldn't be acceptable for tech books.

infinii 12 years ago |

I don't read technical books back to back which makes using a Kindle difficult. It's hard to jump sections or utilize the ToC/Index effectively on a Kindle.

segmondy 12 years ago |

good ol regular kindle. email it to my kindle in pdf format. not the best format, but works for most books.