Full-Stack Tao: Practical lessons on software design with React.js and Node.js (The Tao Programming Books)

Master Software Design & ArchitectureThis is a book about writing good code with examples written in JavaScript. Software development is about more than shipping features - it's about building code that stands the test of time and remains adaptable to changing requirements.This book teaches principles of maintainable software design, demonstrating how key patterns apply across REST APIs, front-end state, lambda functions, or even tiny scripts.You’ll see domain logic, data access, and transport layers in action, and learn to manage clarity and flexibility. Through practical examples like splitting monolithic handlers or extracting front-end logic, you'll learn to handle complexity with confidence.We cover duplication, reusability, and more, showing why some repetition may beat overkill abstractions. By the end, you’ll refine your taste in code, knowing how to create maintainable software in any environment.WHO IS THIS BOOK FOR?Aspiring full-stack developersExperienced developers looking to expand their skill setComputer science students seeking practical knowledgeSelf-taught programmers aiming to fill knowledge gapsWHAT TECHNOLOGIES ARE COVEREDFull-Stack Tao uses popular technologies like React, Express, React-Query, and TypeScript to explain key concepts.However, the principles and rules discussed in this book are applicable across all programming languages and technology stacks. The goal is to teach you timeless software design principles that you can apply throughout your career, regardless of the specific tools you're using.TABLE OF CONTENTSThe book is made of 6 sections, starting from the code-level details, and gradually increasing the level of abstraction to design patterns, principles, architecture, and goes all the way to fundamental product-level decisions like picking your tech stack.Chapter 1 - The importance of principles.Chapter 2 - Code-level best practices, loops, conditionals, variables, and functions.Chapter 3 - The SOLID principles in practical examples.Chapter 4 - Practical clean architecture, modules, forms, and state management.Chapter 5 - Designing a lambda, a script, ORMs, DB complexity, testing.Chapter 6 - Setting up the project, picking a tech stack, how to build features.ABOUT THE AUTHORAlex Kondov is a seasoned software developer with over a decade of experience, building applications and managing teams for early-stage startups and large corporations. Tired of rewriting codebases and dealing with messy legacy code, Alex set out to learn the principles of good software design and obsessed over maintainability. This book is a collection of "druid knowledge", all the ideas that have proven to work in his career. Read more