You heard this before: “The code should be its own documentation”. I don’t like this phrase. There is some truth to it, but I don’t feel it’s completely accurate. It misses some cases where the code is not, and should not, be its own documentation. When the code is the documentation? Documentation adds complexity to […]
How to never miss an important email
Email is almost universally required. But, it can quickly feel overwhelming. It is not uncommon to get hundreds of emails per day. And amongst those hundreds of emails, only a handful are truly important. You have to stay on top of your emails. Missing an important email does not leave a nice impression on your […]
Tell me you’re a senior software developer without telling me you’re a senior software developer
How do you recognize a senior software developer. It’s not like they all wear badges or have custom-made cups. Well, some do, but not all of them. I think the easiest way to recognize a senior software developer is by the stories they have. You can judge one’s level of seniority quite well by how […]
You’re not shipping your computer
Not all computers are the same. Here, you are entitled to go Duuuh!, but bear with me. What works on some computers, does not always work on the others. Why does it happen ? And more importantly, what can you do to protect yourself ? Over the years I spent a lot of time on […]
Your estimates are probably wrong, but you should do them anyway
We have all been there: There is so much task left at the end of the time. Why is that ? And if this is usually the case, why do we even bother estimating in the first place? Why estimates are wrong Whenever I look back on a task that took longer than expected, the […]
How to ask questions
But you know how to ask questions! Right ? You’ve been doing that your whole life. How hard can it be ? Literally, a child can do it.
Linux command line – things a programmer can learn in a day
If you’re doing software development, chances are you had to do with Linux. It’s nearly impossible to go around it. Even Windows has linux now. Although getting good with Linux it’s more than I can do in a single blog post, I find that it’s quite easy to get working knowledge. Just enough to make […]
Frontend and Backend and beyond
There is a lot of talk going around in programming circles about the fabled full-stack developers. What are full-stack developers ? What do they do, and why is everyone talking about them? Let’s try and find out what full stack developer does, and what skills they need in their day-to-day job. To put it simply, […]
What do I need to build an application ?
If you have been a programmer for a time, you might have thought, at some point: “I’m going to build my own app!”. I have given this a bit of though. In this article I will try to answer the question “Should I build my own app ?”, highlight the trade-offs and, hopefully, leave you […]
Learn about transaction isolation levels
Databases are everywhere and they’re here to stay. If you’re a bit familiar with relational databases you are probably familiar with transactions. Transactions are pretty powerful tools when working with databases. They allow multiple users to play nicely with each other while working on the same database. However, with more and more users connecting to […]