The previous two episodes of our sister podcast, This Old App, discussed the rapid development of React and its possible side effects on the development community. For this CTO Think episode, we run our first "crossover" and discuss how tech leaders and management-level folks might view the JavaScript frontend debate regarding the growth of React use, its backwards compatibility issues, and whether a tech leader can afford to "keep up with the Joneses" in the dev world.
Nov 20, 2018•31 min
Last week's episode about the speed of React development either struck a nerve, had enough keywords for a Google SEO explosion, or involved a prominent member of the React dev team (cough, Mr. Abramov) for us to hit our highest ratings, yet. So we continue to try and milk that traffic with a reasonable review of Dan Abramov's Twitter thread about the show and a few noteworthy corrections we thought it was fair to talk about for clarity.
Nov 20, 2018•28 min
During Randy's interviewing stint, he spoke to a good number of firms that had needs for different stacks, but one particular framework stood out: React. Startups, small firms, and enterprise firms, alike, all seemed to have projects involving flavors of React running in development or production. This week Don and Randy discuss why React has caught fire and if it matters or not.
Nov 13, 2018•1 hr 2 min
Don and his company, AspirEDU, decided to open source a small bit of code for the first time for the Django community. We discuss the various considerations--across proprietary, support, and licensing questions--the company made to push forward the release, and why their first contribution is really a big deal.
Nov 07, 2018•29 min
Don continues to work on his Azure-backed PDF processing application and describes his process to fix a number of blockers. After making progress, Randy asks him about widget pipeline options, like IFTTT and Zapier, and then attempts to invoice Don for the time he was just saved.
Oct 30, 2018•43 min
Randy is moving to Kansas City and exploring new job opportunities both local and remote, which has him in the thick of a variety of interviewing processes. Don and Randy discuss the good and bad about some of the firms' approaches and how Randy is still a bit stubborn about the esoteric coding tests. Don leans towards a less-is-more philosophy regarding interviews, while Randy thinks hiring an exceptional recruiter is step number one.
Oct 23, 2018•1 hr 10 min
In another effort to prevent Don and Randy from working on the same stack, Don wanders off into Microsoft land to build a web app on Azure, and promptly runs into trouble. Through a little troubleshooting, they figure out the problem while discussing the complexities around cloud platforms, coding alone, and ego-driven development.
Oct 16, 2018•47 min
After a two-week break, we return to discuss how Randy's buying a house and is thinking about all the new tech and gadgets he can add to it. We discuss home automation, the unnecessary features added to some appliances, and the cool stuff being added to others. Don discusses the new Alexa hardware and how his Ring front-door cam was hacked by a wise thief.
Oct 09, 2018•30 min
We're back after a couple-week break! Don and Randy discuss the ever-debated strategy of building versus buying your software solutions. But they up the ante by discussing how existing workflows and processes are perhaps a bigger consideration than SaaS fees or software development costs
Oct 09, 2018•41 min
Do you practice test-driven development or feel left out of the "cool-kids" club of folks that swear testing is a necessity to develop quality code? We discuss our history with testing, how we haven't always used it, the struggle to learn it, and how everyone tests, regardless of the method chosen.
Sep 18, 2018•50 min
Don's firm recently underwent its first major platform upgrade and we discuss the various ways they prepared, tested, and worked through the changes, all the way up to the dreaded "point of no return."
Sep 11, 2018•56 min
We discuss the state of development around iPhone and Android development, mainly with using non-native code bases. Randy makes valid complaints about Apple. Don wonders why he isn't allowed to complain about Apple. The subjects of ReactNative, JavaScript, Flutter, Dart, Swift, Java, and Objective-C are discussed, including how Steve Jobs envisioned the Progressive Web App, yet money changed Apple's focus towards native development. Please leave a rating for This Old App on iTunes! https://itune...
Aug 28, 2018•46 min
Pulled from the media, Don and Randy discuss Elon Musk's interview regarding the personal toll that his attempt to run three companies, perhaps poorly, is taking upon himself. Moreso, they talk about what it means to be in a leadership position and how leading-by-extremes can take a toll on the whole team (or company). Oh, yeah, they also bring in a discussion about college football coaches, Urban Meyer, Nick Saban, and even Mark Richt. And for that, they sincerely apologize to those of you who ...
Aug 21, 2018•1 hr 1 min
Don runs into a problem with a podcast app as he launches a new podcast of his own, Friday Night Stripes, and wants to deploy his show on Overcast. The issue? Don is not an iOS user and cannot find a way to sign into the Overcast website, which . . . disappoints . . . him. As a happy iOS user, Randy doesn't feel Don's pain and congratulates Marco Arment on making millions of dollars while also ticking off Android folks.
Aug 14, 2018•1 hr 2 min
Don and Randy get back from a couple weeks of trips and projects and discuss a grab-bag of subjects of things they've worked on or learned.
Aug 07, 2018•56 min
Covering everything from Rails for Zombies to Code School to Vue Mastery, we talk with one of the original online tutorial creators, Gregg Pollack, and how he decided to invest in the Vue.js community and a new front-end open source project. Gregg also throws in a number of great suggestions for folks that have thought about creating their own tutorials and why CTOs might choose Vue JS among the frameworks out there.
Aug 01, 2018•58 min
We speak with Renee Lahoff, content editor for Moms Can: Code, who began a career years ago as a game developer, left the industry to start a family, and found that a return to the business wasn't as difficult as expected. Topics covered: Unity, Game Jam, Teaching Code Online, and Unix/Terminal Tutorials
Jul 24, 2018•41 min
We discuss the inevitable issue of bosses, owners, managers, and clients not listening to every bit of advice we offer up. From ignoring the frustration, the psychological reaction, and avoiding a passive-aggressive response, to the maturation of our process and quitting of the pointing fingers and getting stuff done. We talk about why every decision doesn't need to come from you. But never forget: We told you so!
Jul 17, 2018•54 min
Jesse Weigel talks about being a self-taught developer, how he got started live-streaming his code on FreeCodeCamp and YouTube, and how creating a coding community makes him a better developer.
Jul 10, 2018•47 min
How do you get things back on track when everything from the engine to the caboose is falling off? We discuss steps to take when everything and anything is spiraling downward on a tech project.
Jul 03, 2018•52 min
After giving birth to her fourth child, and suffering a serious medical issue in the process, Bekah Hawrot Weigel coped by finding a new path in life as a software developer. We talk about how she joined Moms Can: Code, founded by Erica Peterson, and began a new career as both a mother and a developer. We discuss how she got started with Etherium, Solidity, and coaching other folks to follow her path.
Jun 26, 2018•52 min
We discuss the various types of stakeholders that a technology leader may need to deal as being part of a company or a particular product. We discuss the various motivations and communication techniques necessary across Executives, Investors, Regulators, Managers, Engineers, Current Users, and Potential Users.
Jun 26, 2018•1 hr 2 min
We discuss the asynchronous nature of JavaScript, the old-person method of callbacks, the evolution to Promises, and then the shiny new car of Async/Await. We whine about the learning curve of all three approaches and try to figure out why so many blog posts teach it all wrong.
Jun 19, 2018•29 min
We yell at document datastores to get off our lawns! We talk about the joys of SQL and 50-year-old relational databases we grew up with, trying to make sense of why MongoDB, Firestore, and Dynamo are necessary, and Randy's unhealthy love for Materialized Views. In addition, Lotus 1-2-3 is a database, no matter what Don says.
Jun 12, 2018•52 min
What are the considerations do you need to make regarding third-party services and software? We talk about relying on Github after the Microsoft purchase, using AWS or Firebase, and the world of JavaScript, Node, and NPM. And Randy talks about his pet peeve of co-located servers sitting under an upstairs office kitchen.
Jun 12, 2018•1 hr 3 min
We yell at document datastores to get off our lawns! We talk about the joys of SQL and 50-year-old relational databases we grew up with, trying to make sense of why MongoDB, Firestore, and Dynamo are necessary, and Randy's unhealthy love for Materialized Views. In addition, Lotus 1-2-3 is a database, no matter what Don says.
Jun 12, 2018•52 min
What are the considerations do you need to make regarding third-party services and software? We talk about relying on Github after the Microsoft purchase, using AWS or Firebase, and the world of JavaScript, Node, and NPM. And Randy talks about his pet peeve of co-located servers sitting under an upstairs office kitchen.
Jun 12, 2018•1 hr 3 min
We talk about Alexa development, the strong developer ecosystem Amazon is investing for it, some of the privacy problems it's facing, and a few quips about Apple, Google, Microsoft, and even Samsung.
Jun 08, 2018•54 min
We speak with Griffin Caprio of Dante32 about his experiences building trust and psychological safety, accepting failure in a positive way, and creating a learning-based culture on teams from the top-down.
Jun 05, 2018•1 hr
We discuss our prototype of Chasms as it's used in the wild, successfully supporting a real business.
Jun 05, 2018•41 min
