Linker and Libraries Guide

Linker and Libraries Guide is a great volume about object files, the process of linking a program, loading it into memory, finding symbols, processing relocations, etc, etc.

Not only it can be used as a reference when you need to decode some ELF structure by hand (in which case you might want to google the latest version as ELF does grow), it can be read as a book that explains how linkers and loaders work.

Other useful articles published on the subject include

• Linkers and Loaders (PDF) by John R. Levine, is a more generic overview of inner workings, history, and place in the industry of linkers and loaders. Covers many operating systems (Windows, OS/390, Solaris, to name a few) and architectures (x86, MIPS, SPARC, and many more).
• A series of posts by the author of gold, Ian Lance Taylor, on linkers, very interesting
• Beginner’s Guide to Linkers
• Linkers and Loaders, an article in Linux Journal