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Object-Oriented Software Construction

book by Bertrand Meyer

Manuscripts, fine bindings, an engraving plate and preserved performance ephemera
Arts and lettersInterpretive dossier study · Crown Archives visual atlas
Record originEnglish Wikipedia
Text licenseCC BY-SA 4.0
Source revisionAug 21, 2026
Entity authorityQ7075001
Source-derived summary

Object-Oriented Software Construction, also called OOSC, is a book by Bertrand Meyer, widely considered a foundational text of object-oriented programming. The first edition was published in 1988; the second edition, extensively revised and expanded (more than 1300 pages), in 1997. Many translations are available including Dutch (first edition only), French (1+2), German (1), Italian (1), Japanese (1+2), Persian (1), Polish (2), Romanian (1), Russian (2), Serbian (2), and Spanish (2). The book has been cited thousands of times. As of 15 December 2011, The Association for Computing Machinery's (ACM) Guide to Computing Literature counts 2,233 citations, for the second edition alone in computer science journals and technical books; Google Scholar lists 7,305 citations. As of September 2006, the book is number 35 in the list of all-time most cited works (books, articles, etc.) in computer science literature, with 1,260 citations.

The book won a Jolt award in 1994. The second edition is available online free.

Unless otherwise indicated, descriptions below apply to the second edition.

Focus

The book presents object technology as an answer to major issues of software engineering, with a special emphasis on addressing the software quality factors of correctness, robustness, extendibility and reusability.

Editorial summary

The public source identifies “Object-Oriented Software Construction” as book by Bertrand Meyer. This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around Object-Oriented, Software and Construction.

Editorial reviewBest approached as a cultural-object dossier: authorship and date matter, but circulation and reception often explain the wider significance. The current lead gives the account dated anchors—1988, 1300, 1997, 2011—that can be checked directly. The linked authority record independently contributes the date 1988. Its value is orientation rather than verdict, with Object-Oriented, Software and Construction providing the first useful test.
Editorial analysis

Why this record matters

A short description can identify a subject without explaining its stakes. For “Object-Oriented Software Construction”, the useful work is to connect “book by Bertrand Meyer” to the records capable of establishing context and consequence.

Evidence profile

Reception evidence should be dated and situated: later canonical status may differ sharply from the work’s initial circulation. The source revision retrieved here is dated Aug 21, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q7075001. 1 of 1 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1988, 1300, 1997 and 2011.

Critical limits

Titles can refer to several editions, objects or performances, making precise identification essential before interpretation. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.

How to read it

Separate the work, its editions or performances, and its later reception. Catalogue records, publication histories and object files often preserve different parts of that story.

Best used for
  • Identifying works and editions
  • Tracing reception history
  • Finding collection records
Verify next

The original object or edition, catalogue raisonné, performance record, rights file and holding institution.

Three-step research path

  1. Establish the record: confirm the title “Object-Oriented Software Construction”, its source revision and the description used here.
  2. Expand the search: follow Object-Oriented Software Construction primary sources, Object-Oriented Software Construction archive and Object-Oriented research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
  3. Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.

Questions for further research

  1. Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Object-Oriented Software Construction”?
  2. Where is authorship, date or provenance documented?
  3. How did later circulation or interpretation alter the work’s reception?
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Source & attribution

This entry incorporates text from Object-Oriented Software Construction” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.