general

I read this book as a text book for an Introduction to Software Engineering course. The book starts with the planning and requirements stages of software development and progresses through develop, test, and implementation. Terms, processes, and procedures are described. A thorough introduction for a new engineer, or an overview of current trends and buzzwords for seasoned professionals.

This book is an encyclopedic volume of knowledge about Software Engineering, and proceeds from the beginning of the process to the end, with tangents being in the last few chapters. It has the feel of a textbook, with exercises and Key Points at the end of each chapter.

That said, it isn't very entertaining and if it hadn't been my course book, I would have chosen a different Software Engineering text. This book is a great supplemental reference to get more detailed information. I keep it on my shelf at work as a handy reference.

I used this book for an introductory course on software engineering. Although the book gives an expansive view of the field, there isn't enough detail or in-depth examples to make it anything more than an academic treatise. I don't feel that I could use much of what I've learned in an actual project - I would have to resort to more specific references.

Now, the premise of having an entire book on software engineering may be more to blame than the clarity or presentation of the material. But software engineering is a practical field, and a software engineering text that doesn't provide practical information isn't useful. For this reason, I cannot give the book a passing grade.