software development concepts
Every programmer ever born thinks whatever idea just popped out of their head into their editor is the most generalized, most flexible, most one-size-fits all solution that has ever been conceived. We think we’ve built software that is a general purpose solution to some set of problems, but we
programming languages
I get a surprising number of emails from career programmers who have spent some time in the profession and eventually decided it just isn’t for them. Most recently this: I finished a computer science degree last year, worked about a year in the Java EE stack. I liked requirements
touchscreens
I’m a little embarrassed to admit how much I like the Surface RT. I wasn’t expecting a lot when I ordered it, but after a day of use, I realized this was more than Yet Another Gadget. It might represent a brave new world of laptop design. How
software development concepts
When you’re hired at Google, you only have to do the job you were hired for 80% of the time. The other 20% of the time, you can work on whatever you like – provided it advances Google in some way. At least, that’s the theory. Google’s 20
programming languages
Stack Overflow – like most online communities I’ve studied – naturally trends toward increased strictness over time. It’s primarily a defense mechanism, an immune system of the sort a child develops after first entering school or daycare and being exposed to the wide, wide world of everyday sneezes and coughs
software development concepts
If I had to make a list of the top 10 things I’ve done in my life that I regret, “writing a book” would definitely be on it. I took on the book project mostly because it was an opportunity to work with a few friends whose company I
operating systems
I’d argue that the last truly revolutionary version of Windows was Windows 95. In the subsequent 17 years, we’ve seen a stream of mostly minor and often inconsequential design changes in Windows – at its core, you’ve got the same old stuff: a start menu, a desktop with
php
Look at this incredible thing Ian Baker created. Look at it! What you’re seeing is not Photoshopped. This is an actual photo of a real world, honest to God double-clawed hammer. Such a thing exists. Isn’t that amazing? And also, perhaps, a little disturbing? That wondrous hammer is
programming languages
The whole “everyone should learn programming” meme has gotten so out of control that the mayor of New York City actually vowed to learn to code in 2012. A noble gesture to garner the NYC tech community vote, for sure, but if the mayor of New York City actually needs
software development concepts
Fair warning: this is a blog post about automated cat feeders. Sort of. But bear with me, because I’m also trying to make a point about software. If you have a sudden urge to click the back button on your browser now, I don’t blame you. I don’
programming languages
In What You Can’t See You Can’t Get I mentioned in passing how frustrated I was that the state of the art in code editors and IDE has advanced so little since 2003. A number of commenters pointed out the amazing Bret Victor talk Inventing on Principle. I
pagination
What do you do when you have a lot of things to display to the user, far more than can possibly fit on the screen? Paginate, naturally. There are plenty of other real world examples in this 2007 article, but I wouldn’t bother. If you’ve seen one pagination