The Mythical Man-Month

Fred Brooks' observations on software engineering and project management remain shockingly relevant decades later. It explores the complexities of managing large-scale software projects.

Key Concepts

• Brooks's Law: "Adding manpower to a late software project makes it later."
• The Second-System Effect: The tendency to over-engineer the successor to a successful system.
• No Silver Bullet: Software engineering is inherently complex, and there is no single tool or technique that can provide an order-of-magnitude improvement in productivity.
• Conceptual Integrity: A system should follow a single set of design principles, controlled by a small number of people.