Want To Build Your Own Apps? Read Getting Real by 37signals
After reading and reviewing 37signals’ new book, REWORK, I decided to pick up their first book, Getting Real. Although a few people told me the books were very similar, I actually found a lot of differences between the two.
It seems that REWORK was written more for business owners in general, but Getting Real was aimed more towards app developers. Since I’m still in the middle of development for Codesnipp.it, I’ve been trying to pick up every book on successful application development (I promise to stop talking so much about app development soon!).
Getting Real contained more of 37signals’ business philosophy and could really apply to any business owner or freelancer. Just like REWORK, the book contained a collection of short essays, but also contained several essays and quotes from other application developers and successful business owners. I give the book a solid 5 out of 5 for being both a quick read and full of witty and potent information.
I’m keeping this review short and sweet because besides being a must-read, you can also read it for free! Head on over to the site where you can either buy the book, buy the PDF or read it completely online for free.
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About the author
Amber Weinberg specializes in clean and semantic XHTML, CSS and WordPress development. She has over 10 years of coding experience and is pretty cool to work with. Amber is available for freelance work, so why not hire her for your next project?
Hey Amber, I feel like the last man on the train, but I am just now becoming aware of the work of 37 signals. I am a business consultant and my parter is a webdesigner, he introduced my to their philosophy and simple online tools to increase our productivity and organization. I’ll definitely check out their books soon.
Have an awesome Monday!
~Mike
I knew you had written something about REWORK but I couldn’t remember exactly what it was. Since the person who wrote our company’s blog post left, our blog has been pretty dormant in the last few months so I was considering writing a post about REWORK and how it can be applied to our customer base (Banks and Credit Unions)…particularly the “Meetings are toxic” chapter. I’ve actually passed rework on to the other employees in my company too for the same reason. No matter what the industry or profession, I highly recommend REWORK.
@Amber being a developer, I also picked up Getting Real right after I finished REWORK. I thought it was good but found it to be a little redundant after reading REWORK. I know it was written for a niche group of individuals but at some points I almost felt I was reading the same exact book over again. Even with that being said, I do highly recommend it for anyone who plays or plans to play a part in web application development in the future. It’s a short and easy read too.
Jeff
Getting Real was their first book and they’ve said that both books are really similar, that REWORK was an improvement on the first book and meant more towards business people.