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A revolutionary concept-based approach to thinking about, designing, and interacting with software As our dependence on technology increases, the design of software matters more than ever before. Why then is so much software flawed? Why hasn't there been a systematic and scalable way to create software that is easy to use, robust, and secure? Examining these issues in depth, The Essence of Software introduces a theory of software design that gives new answers to old questions. Daniel Jackson explains that a software system should be viewed as a collection of interacting concepts, breaking the functionality into manageable parts and providing a new framework for thinking about design. Through this radical and original perspective, Jackson lays out a practical and coherent path, accessible to anyone from strategist and marketer to UX designer, architect, or programmer⁰́₄for making software that is empowering, dependable, and a delight to use. Jackson explores every aspect of concepts⁰́₄what they are and aren⁰́₉t, how to identify them, how to define them, and more⁰́₄and offers prescriptive principles and practical tips that can be applied cost-effectively in a wide range of domains. He applies these ideas to contemporary software designs, drawing examples from leading software manufacturers such as Adobe, Apple, Dropbox, Facebook, Google, Microsoft, Twitter, and others. Jackson shows how concepts let designers preserve and reuse design knowledge, rather than starting from scratch in every project. An argument against the status quo and a guide to improvement for both working designers and novices to the field, The Essence of Software brings a fresh approach to software and its creation.

Software architecture. --- Computer software. --- Architecture, Software --- Computer software --- Computer software architecture --- Software, Computer --- Computer systems --- Architecture --- Design --- Development. --- Development of computer software --- Software development --- Abstraction (software engineering). --- Agile software development. --- Application programming interface. --- Assertion (software development). --- Authentication. --- Axiomatic design. --- Body of knowledge. --- Cognitive dimensions of notations. --- Command language. --- Component-based software engineering. --- Computer-aided design. --- Computing. --- Concept. --- Concepts (C++). --- Conceptual model. --- Cursor (user interface). --- Data model. --- Data set. --- Data type. --- Design knowledge. --- Design pattern. --- Design thinking. --- Design tool. --- Design. --- Designer. --- Diagram. --- Discoverability. --- Dropbox (service). --- Email. --- Engineering. --- Explanation. --- Functional requirement. --- GRASP (object-oriented design). --- Gmail. --- Graphical user interface. --- HTTPS. --- Implementation. --- Information infrastructure. --- Information processor. --- Infrastructure. --- Instance (computer science). --- Interaction design. --- Java (programming language). --- JavaScript. --- Macintosh. --- Metadata. --- Microsoft PowerPoint. --- Motivation. --- OS X. --- Obfuscation (software). --- Object Oriented Role Analysis and Modeling. --- Paragraph. --- Parameter (computer programming). --- Pixel. --- Plug-in (computing). --- Principle. --- Problem domain. --- Programmer. --- Programming idiom. --- Programming language. --- Programming style. --- Programming tool. --- Raw image format. --- Recursion (computer science). --- Rendering (computer graphics). --- Requirement. --- Semantics. --- Server (computing). --- Software architect. --- Software design. --- Software developer. --- Software development. --- Software engineer. --- Software engineering. --- Software industry. --- Software quality. --- Software requirements. --- Software system. --- Software. --- Specification language. --- Stash (software). --- Structuring. --- Subdomain. --- Synchronization (computer science). --- System administrator. --- Theorem. --- Turing Award. --- Twitter. --- Ubiquity (software). --- Uniform Resource Locator. --- Usability. --- Use case. --- User interface design. --- User interface. --- Variable (computer science). --- Version control. --- Website. --- Widget (GUI). --- Workaround. --- Workstation.