Beej's Guide to Network Programming
Beej's Guide to Network Programming by Brian Hallby Brian Hall
Hacker ApprovedRanked 2 of 24 online tutorials by recommenders
A free, quick-read guide to socket and network programming that people credit with getting them into networking and systems work. Critics note it does not cover BGP.
A free, quick-read guide to socket and network programming that people credit with getting them into networking and systems work. Critics note it does not cover BGP.
17 people gave an opinion
- recommend it
- 16
- criticize it
- 1
- approval share
- 94%
Recommended in 7 of 13 months
- November 2025: recommended
- December 2025: recommended
- January 2026: recommended
- February 2026: recommended
- March 2026: not recommended
- April 2026: not recommended
- May 2026: not recommended
- June 2026: recommended
- July 2026: recommended
- August 2026: not recommended
- September 2026: not recommended
- October 2026: recommended
- November 2026: not recommended (month in progress)
Owned for 23 years
Median of the 3 owners who said how long they have had it.
Each square is one year.
Why it carries the badge
- 16 people recommend itNeeds 10 or more, met.
- 16 recommenders for every criticNeeds 2 to 1 or better, met.
- Recommended in 7 of 13 monthsNeeds 4 or more, met.
The same three rules apply to every product, and the badge can’t be bought. How the badge works
What people say about it
The reasons people give, with the number of comments that give each one. Open a reason to read what they said.
Why people recommend it
Each mark is one comment
Gets you up to speed
“it was invaluable. It gets you up to speed without overwhelming you with detail.”
Comment from 2 Dec 2025 in “Beej's Guide to Learning Computer Science” “He dives into code and actual network function so well for such a quick read.”
Comment from 2 Dec 2025 in “Beej's Guide to Learning Computer Science” Clear, practical code examples
“you'd be better off following Beej's guide to socket programming instead of 100 g4g pages”
Comment from 3 Feb 2026 on Hacker News “He dives into code and actual network function so well for such a quick read.”
Comment from 2 Dec 2025 in “Beej's Guide to Learning Computer Science” Helped careers and jobs
“Because of it I got into networking, systems programming, my first job and all that followed.”
Comment from 24 Oct 2026 in “Move Slow and Fix Things (2024)” “His guide to network programming was instrumental to both my understanding and career.”
Comment from 2 Dec 2025 in “Beej's Guide to Learning Computer Science” “By applying the knowledge gained in his networking guide, I've won many contracts”
Comment from 2 Dec 2025 in “Beej's Guide to Learning Computer Science” Still kept up to date
“Beej has really done the world a solid, it's also making me happy that they're still around and being kept up to date”
Comment from 2 Dec 2025 in “Beej's Guide to Learning Computer Science” “Your networking guides have long been a great contribution to everybody”
Comment from 17 Feb 2026 in “Show HN: Scanned 1927-1945 Daily USFS Work Diary”
What people warn about
Each mark is one comment
Does not cover BGP
“probably not the best point to start. The article discuses BGP protocol, which is totally absent in the linked guide.”
Comment from 8 Jan 2026 in “A closer look at a BGP anomaly in Venezuela”
Other online tutorials people recommend
The four most recommended other online tutorials, with the same counts for each, so you can compare like for like. The tick on each bar marks the 2 to 1 line the badge needs.
| Product | Recommend | Criticize | Approval | Months | Owned | Badge |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CSS-Tricks | 23 | 3 | 88% | 4 | — | Approved |
| Beej's Guide to Network Programmingby Brian HallThis page | 16 | 1 | 94% | 7 | 23 yrs3 owners | Approved |
| Learn OpenGL | 15 | 3 | 83% | 3 | — | — |
| Let's Build a Compilerby Jack Crenshaw | 12 | 1 | 92% | 5 | — | Approved |
| Patterns.dev | 12 | 7 | 63% | 1 | — | — |
What people said
17 of the 18 comments that mention it, newest first. Each links to the original comment.
“Because of it I got into networking, systems programming, my first job and all that followed.”
“I was consulting Beej's Guide to Network Programming daily”
“I loved your guide to network programming in undergrad”
“Your networking guides have long been a great contribution to everybody”
“you'd be better off following Beej's guide to socket programming instead of 100 g4g pages”
“Most underlying technology is timeless”
“probably not the best point to start. The article discuses BGP protocol, which is totally absent in the linked guide.”
“thanks again for the networking guide”
“A++ human being who's contributed so much to our field.”
“He dives into code and actual network function so well for such a quick read.”
“By applying the knowledge gained in his networking guide, I've won many contracts”
“Beej has really done the world a solid, it's also making me happy that they're still around and being kept up to date”
“it was fantastic, I learnt a lot, and it was easy enough that I was able to do it in Rust”
“His guide to network programming was instrumental to both my understanding and career.”
“it was invaluable. It gets you up to speed without overwhelming you with detail.”
“Beej's guide to network programming is an all-time classic”
“Beej's guide to network programming was invaluable.”
Counts come from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026. How we count. Report a mistake.