# Programming the 6502 by Rodnay Zaks

Hacker Approved page: https://hackerapproved.com/p/programming-the-6502/

4 people recommended Programming the 6502 by Rodnay Zaks in Hacker News comments and none criticized it, November 2025 to October 2026. It was recommended in 1 of 12 months, in 1 thread. It does not meet the Hacker Approved badge rule.

4 of the 4 people who recommend it commented in one thread, “Ask HN: Books to learn 6502 ASM and the Apple II”.

**Verdict:** Recommended as a dedicated 6502 assembly book and one of the standard works people used to learn the chip.

Summary written by Claude from 3 comments.

## Why people recommend it

- Standard work for learning 6502 (1 comment in the sample): "one of the "standard works" to learn 6502 back in the day" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46778707))
- Dedicated 6502 assembly programming book (1 comment in the sample): "For actual 6502 programming you'll need a dedicated 6502 assembly programming book, for example the aforementioned Rodney Zaks books." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46779946))
- Readable for young teenagers (1 comment in the sample): "Read it as a young teenager, can recommend." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46780437))

## Other programming books people recommend

- [Crafting Interpreters by Robert Nystrom](https://hackerapproved.com/p/crafting-interpreters/): 55 recommend, 0 mixed, 4 criticize
- [The Pragmatic Programmer by Hunt and Thomas](https://hackerapproved.com/p/pragmatic-programmer/): 25 recommend, 3 mixed, 1 criticize
- [How to Design Programs by Felleisen, Findler, Flatt and Krishnamurthi](https://hackerapproved.com/p/how-to-design-programs/): 15 recommend, 1 mixed, 2 criticize
- [Working Effectively with Legacy Code by Michael Feathers](https://hackerapproved.com/p/working-effectively-with-legacy-code/): 14 recommend, 1 mixed, 1 criticize

## The badge

A product earns the Hacker Approved badge when at least 10 people recommend it, recommenders outnumber critics at least 2 to 1 (mixed feelings count toward neither side), it was recommended in at least 4 of the 12 months and in at least 5 different threads, and no single thread supplies more than half of the people who recommend it. Health and money products are never badged.

## Cite as

Hacker Approved, "Programming the 6502 by Rodnay Zaks", https://hackerapproved.com/p/programming-the-6502/ (4 recommend, 0 mixed, 0 criticize; Hacker News comments, November 2025 to October 2026).

Counts updated 2 Nov 2026, with data through October 31, 2026.