books:

	A Pattern Language: Towns, Buildings, Construction (Center for Environmental Structure Series) Christopher Alexander Oxford University Press, USA, 1977 - 1216 pages average customer review:based on 78 reviews view larger image
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highly recommended

The format of the book is effective in that it allows one to follow the connections between various design rules/patterns that might otherwise not be obvious. The use of these "links" within the book could have been a source of inspiration for web designers. This book will appeal just as much to the lay person as it does to the legions of architectural professionals who use it as a guide on a frequent basis.

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A Classic

This book is well-reviewed here, and I won't repeat the details of the many things recommending the work. It is, however, one of the 10 best books I've ever read, and serves as a political statement as well as it does as a manifesto of human-environmental theories. Our separationist, consumer-oriented, alienated culture would do well to consider its many premises and suggestions for human life.


Spiritual and Liberating

I really love Alexander's view of architectural design. Although this book has serious biases towards Western culture, and despite the fact that the patterns didn't work as well as he expected when applied Mexico, I really feel that there is a wonderful quality to it all.

It's also pretty clear what Alexander values in design: community, sprituality, connection, nature, growth, and beauty. But after reading through a lot of these patterns, I can't help but agree with him. I hope that designers of all substances and forms will read this book and take up and continue evolving his ideas.

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A must-read for all who live or work in buildings

This book changed how I looked at homes, workplaces, and public spaces, and more fundamentally, how I thought about my life in relation to the larger community. My new perspective led me to discover the cohousing movement, and to my current residence in an evolving ecovillage. Whether you're an architect, a big-city planner, or just looking to renovate your kitchen, this book is an invaluable guide and inspiration!


Brilliant work but not the most useful book on design

I first read this book over 6 years ago when I was doing a course on Permaculture. My lecturer had a whole heap of books that he was willing to borrow to his students while they where doing this course, this was one of the books that I borrowed from him. I found the book to be the second best book I have ever read on design. The reason why the book only rates second is due to its largely social outlook and its focus on human interactions instead of a wholistic approach integrating all the major sciences. "Permaculture, a designers manual" is the only book on the face of this planet that successfully does just that. Bill Mollison come up with a couple of books on design of human settlement called Permaculture one and Permaculture two just prior to the release of this book in 1977. Bill Mollisons seminal work is "Permaculture, a designers manual" which supersedes 1 and 2 and has whole chapters devoted to patterns, design methods and how to develop anthropicentric ecosystems in any climate. It is the worlds first book on design and I would highly recommend it as a companion to "A pattern language". As Matt Holberts reveiw so aptly points out the way this book links from macro subjects down to more minor and detailed subjects is quite often used as a model for deseingning navigation for websites. Permaculture a designers manual has a whole chapter devoted to such design concepts such as the above concept of a decision tree in the chapter "methods of design".

If you are an urban or rural planner or a computer software designer wishing to learn the basic principles of good design, then I would highly recommend that you get "Permaculture, a designers manual" first and "A pattern language" afterwards. If you are just a website designer especially someone who builds virtual communities then I would recommend you get "A pattern language" first and "Permaculture, a designers manual" afterwards. Newsflash; "Permaculture, a designers manual" is no longer for sale on Yahoo as of August of 2001, this book can only be obtained over the web through its publishers "Tagari.com.au".

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reviews: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, page 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16

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