The Manuscripts of Edsger W. Dijkstra
The Manuscripts of Edsger W. Dijkstra by Edsger W. Dijkstraby Edsger W. Dijkstra
Ranked 8 of 10 essay collections by recommenders
Recommended for Dijkstra's clear thinking on simplicity and structure in code, which people say is still completely relevant. One mixed reader found the writing emotionally charged and closed to other views.
Recommended for Dijkstra's clear thinking on simplicity and structure in code, which people say is still completely relevant. One mixed reader found the writing emotionally charged and closed to other views.
3 people gave an opinion
- recommend it
- 3
- criticize it
- 0
- approval share
- 100%
Recommended in 1 of 13 months
- November 2025: recommended
- December 2025: not recommended
- January 2026: not recommended
- February 2026: not recommended
- March 2026: not recommended
- April 2026: not recommended
- May 2026: not recommended
- June 2026: not recommended
- July 2026: not 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
- 3 people recommend itNeeds 10 or more, not met.
- Nobody criticizes itNeeds 2 to 1 or better, met.
- Recommended in 1 of 13 monthsNeeds 4 or more, not 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
Clear thinking on code simplicity
“His clarity of thought on simplicity and structure in code still sets a standard we rarely reach.”
Comment from 10 Nov 2025 in “The Manuscripts of Edsger W. Dijkstra” Still completely relevant today
“still completely relevant”
Comment from 9 Nov 2025 in “The Manuscripts of Edsger W. Dijkstra”
What people warn about
Each mark is one comment
Emotional tone, little open-mindedness
“there is a lot of emotion baked in and little room for being open minded”
Comment from 9 Nov 2025 in “The Manuscripts of Edsger W. Dijkstra”
Other essay collections people recommend
The four most recommended other essay collections, 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Slouching Towards Bethlehemby Joan Didion | 8 | 1 | 89% | 3 | — | — |
| Why I Writeby George Orwell | 6 | 0 | 100% | 3 | — | — |
| Letters to a Young Poetby Rainer Maria Rilke | 5 | 0 | 100% | 5 | — | — |
| Paul Graham essays | 5 | 7 | 42% | 3 | — | — |
| The Manuscripts of Edsger W. Dijkstraby Edsger W. DijkstraThis page | 3 | 0 | 100% | 1 | — | — |
What people said
All 3 comments that mention it, newest first. Each links to the original comment.
“His clarity of thought on simplicity and structure in code still sets a standard we rarely reach.”
“there is a lot of emotion baked in and little room for being open minded”
“still completely relevant”
Counts come from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026. How we count. Report a mistake.