Managing a large-scale software development project requires not only a sound understanding of software development techniques, programming languages, and other "micro" issues. It requires a grasp of larger management and planning issues which, while closely tied to the technical aspects of development, include a dimension which programmers who are suddenly called upon to manage large-scale projects may have little or no experience with.

This is the book for all who are managing or creating large-scale software, such as databases, file systems, operating systems, and compilers. To date, no C++ book has been published that demonstrates how to develop large-scale programs. Likewise, few software development books are based on the C++ environment. John Lakos-who works with the company (Mentor Graphics) that has written more large-scale programs in C++ than anyone else--shows how to decompose a large program into a number of smaller, more easily manageable components. A single 12,000-line code example runs throughout the book which shows the reader how to build a complex project-a database-which the professional can use later in actual work.