The Elements of Computing Systems
The Elements of Computing Systems by Nisan and Schockenby Nisan and Schocken
Shares rank 11 of 28 computer science textbooks by recommenders
People recommend it for building a computer from logic gates up, which clarifies how computers, assemblers and compilers work. No recurring criticism was raised.
People recommend it for building a computer from logic gates up, which clarifies how computers, assemblers and compilers work. No recurring criticism was raised.
5 people gave an opinion
- recommend it
- 5
- criticize it
- 0
- approval share
- 100%
Recommended in 4 of 13 months
- November 2025: not recommended
- December 2025: recommended
- January 2026: not recommended
- February 2026: recommended
- March 2026: not recommended
- April 2026: recommended
- May 2026: not recommended
- June 2026: not recommended
- July 2026: recommended
- August 2026: not recommended
- September 2026: not recommended
- October 2026: not recommended
- November 2026: not recommended (month in progress)
Why it doesn’t carry the badge
- 5 people recommend itNeeds 10 or more, not met.
- Nobody criticizes itNeeds 2 to 1 or better, met.
- Recommended in 4 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
Clarifies how computers, assemblers, compilers work
“It is probably the best thing I've done, in terms of understanding how computers, assemblers and compilers work”
Comment from 18 Apr 2026 in “I'm Coding by Hand”
Other computer science textbooks people recommend
The four most recommended other computer science textbooks, 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Structure and Interpretation of Computer Programsby Abelson and Sussman | 55 | 5 | 92% | 12 | — | Approved |
| The Art of Computer Programmingby Donald E. Knuth | 28 | 6 | 82% | 10 | — | Approved |
| Structure and Interpretation of Computer Programsby Abelson and Sussman | 12 | 0 | 100% | 9 | — | Approved |
| Quantum Computation and Quantum Informationby Nielsen and Chuang | 12 | 0 | 100% | 3 | — | — |
| The Elements of Computing Systemsby Nisan and SchockenThis page | 5 | 0 | 100% | 4 | — | — |
What people said
3 of the 5 comments that mention it, newest first. Each links to the original comment.
“It is probably the best thing I've done, in terms of understanding how computers, assemblers and compilers work”
“read "The Elements of Computing Systems" by Nisan and Schocken.”
“and the associated textbook The Elements of Computing Systems”
Counts come from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026. How we count. Report a mistake.