Excellent exposition of the software development process, specifically the author examines the software construction process itself, based on common commercial practices with a strong emphasis on quality, workflow and scheduling improvements. This practical guide presents effective software development practices for problem definition, requirement analysis, implementation planning, design, construction and integration. Indeed the practical aspects of the entire development cycle are analyzed and explained including testing, maintenance and enhancement. Focuses on data control, quality improvement and craftsmanship, that elusive state that distinguishes professional competence from hacking. Source code is in C and Pascal, replete with "key point" notes and more importantly with "coding horror" analysis. Emphasizes code optimization, testing and troubleshooting for constant quality improvement.