Real-world SCM for real-world developers

This is an outstanding book for software development teams that see software configuration management as a means to an end, not the end itself. The author immediately establishes credibility with me when he says in the preface "Software configuration management is not what I do. I am not a software configuration management person...I build software systems" Exactly! It's obvious throughout the book that the authors develop software systems and use SCM to effectively support their development effort, not the other way around.

The format of the book is very consistent and thus very easy to read. Each pattern has its own chapter and clearly identifies the problem and the solution in a particular context. It doesn't waste any paper and is a quick read and has been a reference I continue to use on a regular basis. The authors have taken something that can quickly become complex and make it easy to understand.

The authors have a very natural writing style and effectively use sidebars to bring their real-world experiences to the pattern. This book is a must read for software developers. I wish I could give it six stars.

Given my background in CI, I was most drawn to the Mainline, Private Workspace, Repository, Private System Build, Integration Build, Regression Test, and Third Party Codeline patterns. But, there is something for all developers and teams here.

Other Reviews

• Simplistic, states the obvious, highly redundant
• Excelent reference on Software Configuration Management
• Print quality lacking
• Real-world SCM for real-world developers