On this episode, I talk to Matt Kirkland, Founder and Designer at Brand New Box. We talk about how to get good clients, the utility of reminding people that you exist, reading science fiction, ChatGPT as highly advanced autocomplete, reading history, The limits of ChatGPT-style AI as compared to AGI, and Matt's Dracula read-through newsletter Dracula Daily. Philip K. Dick on Goodreads François Chollet on Sean Carroll's Mindscape Podcast Dracula Daily Matt Kirkland.com Brand New Box Matt Kirkland...
Sep 04, 2024•51 min
On today's episode I talk with Nate Clark, founder and principal software engineer of Brand New Box. We discuss Brand New Box's early days and what it's like to found an agency, the different ways Nate and I think about acquiring new business, marketing yourself, how big picture thinking can sharpen your day to day plans, deciding to build a product, the difficulty of finding a problem to solve where it makes financial sense to do so, and how personal relationships beget opportunities. Million D...
Aug 27, 2024•1 hr 4 min
On today's episode, I talk with Alex Bunardzic about TDD (Test Driven Design), separating IO from business logic, configurable dependencies, TCR (Test and Commit or Revert), making many small commits rather than trying to write the whole program right the first time, distributed cognition, order dependency and imperative vs declarative programming, coding speculatively, and coding without shipping. The Agile Manifesto Alex Bunardzic on Substack Software Breakthroughs for the 21st Century Coding ...
Aug 06, 2024•1 hr 24 min
On today's episode, I'm joined by Alan Ridlehoover and Fito von Zastrow for a deep dive on flaky tests. Code with Jason - Testing Anti Pattern: Merged Setup Data Code with Jason - Duplication Code with Jason - W hy Duplication is More Acceptable in Tests A Brewer's Guide to Filtering out Complexity and Churn Fito von Zastrow on LinkedIn Fito von Zastrow on Twitter Alan Ridlehoover on LinkedIn Alan Ridlehoover on Twitter The Code Gardener Cisco Meraki Jobs at Cisco Meraki...
Jul 30, 2024•1 hr 5 min
Today Rich Steinmetz returns for a discussion that touches on switching between languages, both spoken and programming, structuring tests, getting the most out of reading a book, buying an existing business, struggles with CircleCI and GitHub Actions, my project SaturnCI, and the need for better APIs. The Beginning of Infinity by David Deutsch The SaaS Playbook by Rob Walling Start Small, Stay Small by Rob Walling Acquire.com Flippa.com Rich Steinmetz on Twitter Rich Stone.io...
Jul 24, 2024•1 hr 17 min
On this episode, I talk with Paul Campbell, co-founder and CEO of Tito. We discuss the origins and early days of Tito, trends in current web design, Parkinson's Law, my project SaturnCI, using LLMs in the coding process, the need to understand universal programming principles rather than superficialities, and the quest for dejankification. We Are Developers World Congress XOXO Festival The Beginning of Infinity by David Deutsch The Fabric of Reality by David Deutsch Tito Io Paul Campbell on Mast...
Jul 23, 2024•1 hr 4 min
In today's episode, I'm joined by Ciaran Lee, founder and Chief Engineer of Intercom for a discussion that touches on the genesis of Intercom and factors that enabled their success, scaling challenges when you're dealing with double-digit growth month to month, load balancers, canary deployment, the benefits of making many small deployments, how a robust testing environment benefits the hiring process, and the benefits of in-person vs remote work. The DevOps Handbook by Gene Kim et al. The Phoen...
Jul 09, 2024•1 hr
On today's episode, Matthew Kaliara joins me for a conversation on his work with his startup Rescale Supply. We also discuss React, ViewComponent, system testing, looks vs usability in design, flat design, the value of convention in design, usability testing, the inseparability of good UI design and good code, the importance of appropriate names in core components, and how good code can help with hiring. Rescale.Supply Matthew Kaliara on LinkedIn Matthew Kaliara on Twitter Kaliara.com...
Jun 25, 2024•57 min
It must be both hot dogs and buns, not just the hot dogs themselves. Preparation (e.g. skipping meals beforehand) is allowed. Guests: Peter Cai, Brandon Casci.
Jun 13, 2024•2 min
On today's episode, Brad Pauly and I dig into the five causes (raised conditions, fixed time dependency, randomness, leaky state, and network or third party dependency) of flaky tests. We also discuss diagnosing flaky tests, common pitfalls of fixing flaky tests, and things that do work for fixing flaky tests. Brad Pauly on Twitter Brad Pauly on GitHub
Jun 10, 2024•1 hr
On this episode, I talk with Verda Korzeniewski about going into programming straight out of high school. We also discuss Verda's experience in 3D printing, problems in modern manufacturing, and problem solving skills that transcend programming. Verda Korzeniewski on LinkedIn Verda Korzeniewski on Instagram
Jun 03, 2024•1 hr 10 min
On today's episode, Trae Robrock joins me for a discussion of his new Rails project Translated and his hotel management software Comfort.ly. We also talk about managing a hotel, investing in real estate, internationalizing a Rails app, investing in assets that give you income, investing in your personal brand, marketing Comfort.ly, connecting with potential clients in person, the importance of having a comfortable working environment, reading to enrich yourself, and taking care of your health. T...
May 28, 2024•49 min
On today's episode, Andrew Atkinson joins me once again for a recap of events at Sin City Ruby 2024. We also talk about Andrew's new Postgres consulting venture, his upcoming book High Performance PostgreSQL for Rails and what he learned in the process of writing the book, deciding how to communicate what you do as a consultant, naming things appropriately, how poor decision making in the early stages in the creation of an app can make it prohibitively expensive to fix later, how consulting jobs...
May 06, 2024•1 hr 12 min
In this episode, Tom Henrik Aadland joins me for a conversation about learning languages, life as an ex-pat in small town Argentina, starting a company focused on quality control in Norwegian fish farming, microservices, object oriented design, learning from Fred George, and instilling a healthy testing culture. Tom Henrik Aadland on LinkedIn Tom Henrik Aadland on Twitter EG Fred George on Twitter...
Apr 23, 2024•1 hr 1 min
On this episode, Rich Steinmetz returns once again for a conversation on working with and testing APIs. Rich Steinmetz on Twitter Rich Stone.io
Apr 08, 2024•43 min
In this episode I talk with Andy Croll about Brighton Ruby Conference, RailsConf, and why attending a conference is an investment in your career. RailsConf Brighton Ruby Conference Andy Croll on Twitter Andy Croll on Mastodon AndyCroll.com First Ruby Friend CoverageBook...
Mar 26, 2024•38 min
In this episode, Ran Craycraft, Managing Director at Thoughtbot and I discuss consulting at Thoughtbot, the process of finding new clients, setting rates as a consultant, consulting vs becoming a full-time employee, earning a positive reputation as a consultant through thought leadership and referrals, the enduring popularity of Ruby on Rails, and work-life balance. Thoughtbot.com Thoughtbot on LinkedIn Ran Craycraft on LinkedIn Sin City Ruby...
Mar 04, 2024•46 min
On today's episode, I talk with Erik Cameron of The Gnar Company. We discuss containerization, WASI, the possibilities of AI-generated binaries, the iterative process of AI-assisted programming, potential professional and social changes from AI-assisted programming, the mismatch between the stock of currently available programmers and the needs of the current programming industry, and the granularity of the work that is output by AI. The Gnar Company Erik's profile on The Gnar Company site The G...
Feb 25, 2024•51 min
Avo founder Adrian Marin returns for a discussion about our experience at Friendly.rb and how to get the most out of your time at a conference. We also talk about Adrian's work with Avo, my upcoming Sin City Ruby conference and the possibilities for extracurricular activities, the Code with Jason World Tour, and my consulting work. Friendly.rb How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie EuRuKo 2024 The Rails 7 Way by Obie Fernandez et al. Nonsense Monthly, my newsletter Adrian Marin...
Feb 19, 2024•39 min
On today's episode, Andrew Maier joins me for a discussion of usability testing and models. We define usability testing and by using examples, we explore how it can make you a more efficient and effective developer. The Design of Everyday Things by Don Norman Stuck? Diagrams Help by Abby Covert How to Make Sense of Any Mess by Abby Covert Gamestorming by Dave Gray, Sunni Brown, and James Macanufo About Face by Alan Cooper, Et al. 3 Lessons From Teaching A Course On UX Design by Andrew Maier Flag...
Feb 12, 2024•40 min
On today's episode Jim Remsik, CEO of Flagrant joins me for a discussion that touches on finding clients as a freelancer or consultant, building word-of-mouth, networking at conferences, design in the development life cycle, gathering data to assist with the design process, and welcoming new members into the development community. Flagrant Jim Remsik on Ruby.social Jim Remsik on Twitter Madison Ruby - August 1 & 2, 2024 Sin City Ruby...
Feb 05, 2024•41 min
On today's episode, I'm joined by Friendly.rb speaker Lorin Thwaits to talk conferences past and future, gauging the intelligence of ChatGPT and its ability to create novel solutions, the evolution of intelligence, evolution's effects on reproduction, AI's potential capacity (or lack thereof) for power-seeking, the economic and societal impacts of AI, the amount of interest purely AI-generated content will be able to command, the power and limits of simulation, machines as synthetic animals and ...
Jan 22, 2024•1 hr 18 min
On today's episode, Katie Langerman and Cameron Dutro of GitHub join me for a discussion of design systems, style guides and GitHub's design system Primer, view components, view-related logic, view testing, and how design changes can pass a system test and yet fail a common sense test. Primer.style Cameron Dutro.com Complementary podcast Katie Langerman on GitHub Katie Langerman on Twitter Katie Langerman on LinkedIn Cameron Dutro on GitHub Cameron Dutro on Mastodon Cameron Dutro on LinkedIn...
Jan 14, 2024•50 min
In this episode, Matt Swanson returns to discuss YAGNI (you ain't gonna need it), Kent Beck's quote "make the change easy (warning: this may be hard) then make the easy change," why educational materials for beginners abound, but that's not the case for intermediate and advanced developers, what drives people to create educational materials, the purpose of testing, and being judicious in what you spend your time thinking about. Matt Swanson on Twitter Matt Swanson on GitHub Matt Swanson on DevTo...
Jan 09, 2024•47 min
On this special episode of Code with Jason, Andy Atkinson returns but this time he's interviewing me. We cover my new consulting venture, the sorts of things my consulting clients are looking for, consulting as a generalist rather than specializing, CTO coaching, using tests to help you plan your project, some of the thinking around my upcoming Sin City Ruby conference, and my Code with Jason World Tour. High Performance PostgreSQL for Rails by Andrew Atkinson Million Dollar Consulting by Alan W...
Jan 01, 2024•48 min
In this episode, Vignesh Rajendran and I discuss his beginnings as a programmer, TDD, structuring your tests, organizing your workflow via testing, managing developers for success, and giving yourself permission to do a bad job in order to progress as a developer. Vignesh Rajendran on Twitter Vignesh Rajendran on LinkedIn Vignesh Rajendran on GitHub TryPeach.io...
Dec 24, 2023•47 min
On today's episode I'm joined by Stefanni Brasil to discuss her experience at Rubyconf in San Diego, what it's like being a maintainer on the open-source Faker-Ruby, her plans for her talk at the upcoming Sin City Ruby, her work with Thoughtbot, using templates to spin up new Rails applications, and we look ahead to 2024's packed conference slate. Testing JavaScript with Kent C. Dodds Jumpstart Pro Rails Bytes Instant_Rails RailsConf RubyConf Rails World Friendly.rb Southeast Ruby Tropical.rb St...
Dec 19, 2023•43 min
In this episode, Mike Stone, co-founder of The Gnar Company and I talk about his journey to becoming a developer and founding a consultancy, finding clients via leveraging personal networks and beyond, marketing as hunting and farming, making sense of freelancing and utilization, using the correct value/pricing model, productized services, and what's next for The Gnar Company. Mike Stone on LinkedIn Mike Stone on Twitter The Gnar Company Sin City Ruby...
Dec 10, 2023•51 min
On today's episode, Simmon Li and I discuss his beginnings as a developer, finding a job, the benefits of attending local developer meetups, being a lifelong learner, and the upcoming Sin City Ruby conference. Toronto Ruby Toronto Ruby on Twitter The Odin Project Otta Sin City Ruby Simmon Li on Twitter Simmon Li on LinkedIn...
Dec 05, 2023•42 min
In this episode, Naijeria Toweett and I chat about her talk at Friendly.rb 2023, her beginnings as a developer, attending a bootcamp as Covid began to spread, how Naijeria came to speak at Friendly.rb, organizing a conference, and her motivation to speak at conferences. RubyConferences.org Sin City Ruby Naijeria Toweett on LinkedIn Naijeria Toweett on Medium Naijeria Toweett on Twitter...
Nov 21, 2023•48 min
