Design Patterns: Elements of Reusable Object-Oriented Software product image

Design Patterns: Elements of Reusable Object-Oriented Software

(5/5)
Review by Joshua Morris on
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Review

The foundational text that introduced design patterns to software engineering. This book, written by the Gang of Four (Erich Gamma, Richard Helm, Ralph Johnson, and John Vlissides), catalogs 23 essential design patterns that have become the standard vocabulary for object-oriented design. While the examples are in Smalltalk and C++, the patterns themselves are language-agnostic and apply to modern languages like Java, Python, JavaScript, and more. The book is organized into three categories: creational patterns (like Factory and Singleton), structural patterns (like Adapter and Decorator), and behavioral patterns (like Observer and Strategy). Each pattern includes a detailed explanation, motivation, structure, participants, collaborations, consequences, implementation, sample code, known uses, and related patterns. This book is essential reading for any serious software engineer who wants to understand how to design flexible, reusable, and maintainable software.

✓ Pros

  • ✓Foundational text that introduced design patterns to software engineering
  • ✓Catalogs 23 essential design patterns with detailed explanations
  • ✓Patterns are language-agnostic and apply to modern languages
  • ✓Organized into creational, structural, and behavioral categories
  • ✓Each pattern includes structure, participants, consequences, and sample code
  • ✓Standard vocabulary for object-oriented design
  • ✓Essential for designing flexible, reusable, and maintainable software

✗ Cons

  • ✗Examples are in Smalltalk and C++, though concepts apply universally
  • ✗Dense reading that requires careful study to fully understand
  • ✗Some patterns may be less relevant in functional programming paradigms

Specifications

Pages395
Edition1st
PublisherAddison-Wesley Professional
LanguageEnglish
FormatHardcover
Isbn13978-0201633610
Isbn100201633612

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