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the dragon book is how to write a production grade thing i guess. it has all the interesting concepts very elaborated on which is great but it dives quickly into things that can clutter a project if its just for fun..


It’s academic and comprehensive, that’s the issue. It’s not about writing a production grade compiler, though, in my humble opinion. There are more things to learn for that, unfortunately… is just a pretty big topic with lots of stuff to learn.


the dragon book is all i have on the topic. it was a big investment for me.

it taught me to think very differently but i am sure i am still not ready to write a compiler :D


'Engineering a Compiler' by Cooper & Torczon is a great resource. It gives context on each topic, explains them clearly, and at the same time, I think, it is a really good resource from an academic point of view. It still requires some investment in terms of time and effort, but I found it more approachable than the Dragon book. I would say that both cover more or less the same introductory stage to compilers construction. If you have read the Dragon book, I have the feeling that you are perfectly well prepared to write your own compiler.



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