57. Imposter Syndrome

Today on the show we are joined by none other than our host, Michael Nuñez’s brother, Steven Nuñez! Steven will be helping us in our discussion about a very special topic and one that is very common amongst developers, imposter’s syndrome! Sound familiar? Feel familiar? Well, chances are at some point in your professional career (and beyond) you have probably felt like an imposter.

56. Comments Considered Harmful, Comments Considered Helpful

Today, we’ll be talking about whether comments are considered harmful or helpful. We’re pretty sure that there are many different comments you may have run into in your careers. Comments are something that is really common to every programmer, everyone can relate to them – whether they’ve been tormented or blessed by them. We’ve come across some pretty funny comments in the past like, “Holy crap, WTF is this?” or “Drunk, will fix later,” or “Magic, do not touch,” or just the standard, “I’m sorry.” Aside from their entertainment value, comments can be useful for a multiple of other reasons – such as documentation and setting to do reminders for a team. But how can we utilize comments most effectively to avoid the shame game? In this episode, we discuss how best to use comments for to-tasks, writing tests, the value of user stories, the dangers of tech debt and the almighty perils of the copypasta driven development boys. In addition, we will also discover how scout’s honor applies to code (as well as to developers from the Bronx), why a comment is the only code that can lie to you and how you can quite simply avoid comments altogether.

55. Organizing a Conference - Saron Yitbarek

Today on the podcast we welcome the awesome and the infamous, Saron Yitbarek. If you haven’t heard of her before, Saron is a developer, speaker, the Founder of Code Newbie and is heading up the 2018 Code Land Conference kicking off in May this year in NYC.

54. The Terror of Public Speaking

In today’s episode, we’re speaking about the terror of public speaking. Public speaking is scary for a lot of people, ourselves included. Almost everyone has had a universally bad experience with public speaking – maybe yours happened in college where you froze up in front of the entire lecture hall.

53. Dope Python Tools - Darlin from Mighty.com Guest Stars!

On today's show’s we talk about a few great tools that you can use with Python. We are joined by Darlin Alberto from mighty.com to help us unpack some of these tools and break down what’s good and what’s not. We look through a list of current tools and compare and critique their utility for your listening pleasure. We also chat about the latest update to version 3.0 from 2.7 and how this might affect compatibility and unity among developers. We are sadly missing William Jeffries today but we hope we can make up for this with our great guest and discussion. Without further ado let’s get down to business! Listen in to hear all about it!

52. Is 2018 the year GraphQL kills REST?

The focus of today’s episode is GraphQL. The team break down the language and how it might just be the way to go for the foreseeable future. Dave shares much of his experience and opinions on using GraphQL and we look at how it can fit into the rest of your operations. During the show we also look at instances in which GraphQL may not be the best query language and why this may be. In addition to the usual teach and learn section, we give you the best overview of GraphQL, covering all angles and imagining its utility in different settings. So, let’s get into it!

51. Why bother with 1-on-1 meetings?

Today we’ll be talking about how to have effective one on one meetings and why you should bother having them. There’s nothing worse than a manager cornering you at the coffee station and saying, “We need to talk”. One on one meetings are scary enough, but the truth is they don’t have to be if they are initiated and conducted right. One on one’s are a vital way to get to know your team, check in with their individual needs and aspirations and give constructive feedback without the pressure of a group. But how do you go about them

50. Refactoring

On today’s show we talk about refactoring. As most of us know, refactoring can be a very important part of tidying code and making it more useable in the future. But for a few reasons it is not always the highest priority on a project, which can lead to the process being neglected.

49. Machine learning with Tom Benham

On today’s episode we talk to Tom Benham about machine learning. Tom has worked in finance and risk services and has studied data science machine learning. Although the term seems to be used widely and frequently it can also be an area in which information is not always readily available. Tom gives us some insight into how algorithms are becoming useful in his field of work as well as some other professional examples. We chat about the positive sides of this,  such as the reduced chance of human error, as well as looking at the shortcomings of present configurations such as data biases. If you want an introduction to a vital concept and area of the contemporary world as well as a gateway to more info on the subject, we got you! Listen in to hear all about it!

48. Context Switching

On today’s show we discuss context switching. We all know how much time can be spent on changing between projects and how distracting arising issues can be. The data around just how much time is wasted is quite startling, but how do we manage the multi-project nature of most of our work? We break down a few different strategies for minimizing wasted time and the ensuing frustration. Whether the distractions are internal, external, necessary or not, we could all do with a bit more control of what we afford our attention at what time and for how long. Listen in to hear all about it!

47. DevOps with Brian Guthrie

Today’s show deals with the sometimes confusing, sometimes misleading term ‘DevOps’. We chat to Brain Guthrie who has worked at a host of different big companies including Soundcloud and ThoughtWorks and has many years of experience in and around the fields that the term DevOps is supposed to bridge. Is DevOps a goal? Is it a job description? Is it a part of the work of both the development and operations teams? We try break this down and get to the core of the idea. During the episode we also try to imagine how DevOps can fit into a more holistic approach in companies and Brain gives us great insight into the way he envisaged the subject being useful. So jump right into The Rabbit Hole, let’s go!

46. The Last Responsible Moment

On today’s episode we break down the idea of ‘The Last Responsible Moment’. We talk about the benefits of leaving certain decisions to the latest possible time before finalizing them. Although this might sound like a bad idea and perhaps slightly irresponsible there really are times when only doing what is absolutely necessary at any give point can work in your favor. During this chat we try to figure when that is and when that is not. We also go down the rabbit hole on the concept of ‘You Ain’t Gonna Need It’, or YAGNI, which is helpful in understanding The Last Responsible Moment. On top of this the chat veers into shaving yaks, Yik Yak and some other things that do not involve yaks. Listen in to hear all about it!

45. Resolutions and How to Keep them

Today we have a very special New Year edition of the podcast! We chat about the idea of new year tech resolutions and the things we hope to achieve in the coming 12 months. Everyone knows that it can be hard to stick to and measure your success with resolutions, so we have a few suggestions in keeping yourself on course. The main suggestion is the the SMART goals approach which we discuss and unpack that a bit during the episode. We even apply the system to our own personal goals for 2018 for your entertainment and educational benefit. So happy new year and tune in to hear all about this and more!

44. Onboarding with Ben Jackson

Our guest today on the show is Ben Jackson. Ben works in people operations and runs a company called for the win which helps companies to better their culture and create an optimized working environment for its employees.

43. Editor Picks of 2017