Review By: Scott Brookhart
08/13/2007The Debugger's Handbook is an objective look at the process of preventing, finding, and (to a lesser degree) managing computer software bugs. Debugging for developers is an activity that sometimes occurs as a last thought and due to necessity. In this book, the author presents appropriate measures to implement during the design phase to prevent bugs from getting into the coding process in the first place. The author also mentions a coding process that enhances the prevention of bugs through good documentation, validation of parameters, and adhering to standards.

This book is geared towards Visual Basic .NET and using Visual Studio debugging, but there are additional examples in C# and a few in C++ and Java. There is also a section on debugging using Visual Studio 2005. There are short sections on testing and commenting, and the second half of the book is oriented toward real-world scenarios—typical activities in which many applications would engage such as reading a database, working with objects, and opening files.

I recommend this book to programmers and developers needing a better understanding of debugging and especially to those working with Visual Basic .NET and Visual Studio. The project that focuses on bugs from beginning to end, as this book suggests, will be sure to have fewer bugs.

However, I would have liked it to appeal to a broader audience where possibly even C programmers in Linux may be able to learn more. Some of the techniques are somewhat specialized to the Microsoft Visual Basic platform. I am sure the author contemplated the scope of the book and decided to limit the code examples, but a more limiting title of the book would have better indicated the content. Also, the screen shots are a little difficult to read.

I did thoroughly enjoy the author’s style and found the book very readable and easy to understand. The detailed explanations provide great insight for the reader. I really liked the author’s ability to make the steps very easy to follow while providing meaning and understanding. Overall, I definitely recommend this book.

An organized, seasoned author/developer provides a great book for programmers (mostly oriented to Visual Basic users) interested in gaining a better understanding of the debugging process, taking preventative measures, and limiting bugs in the coding process. Real-world scenarios and debugging practices provide added value.