So, let's see what we've learned so far.
"A.I." coding assistants produce better results ("value earned/tokens burned") when you:
* prompt with tests
* work in small feedback cycles with continuous testing, code review, refactoring and integration
* cleanly separate concerns in your code
LOL
Spending some time doing a little art and design for the first time in years.
I’d forgotten how awesome it is to try a couple of cheap experiments and stumble on a new effect that really slaps.
This is what iteration should feel like.
That sounds really rude of your colleagues. Sorry you have to deal with that.
A squirrel perched on top of a branch surrounded by sticks and rocks, nibbling on an evening meal and looking towards the camera.
Went out walking a couple of weeks ago and found this character.
Complete menace, assaulted another squirrel and nicked their food!
Very photogenic though.
#squirrel #wildlife #nature #dusk #photography
Lower cognitive load supports a happier and more sustainable worklife.
Always on top! 💯
Or if using VS code, I'll drag a terminal window into the main editor and tab through terminal sessions alongside files.
Two wallabys facing right on a beach. In the background, there is the ocean and in the distance a rocky island. A Joey's head protrudes from the pouch of the wallaby on the left.
Wallabys.
I always wonder why so many of those ads don't actually get built into real games...
The publisher who effectively "tricks" someone into downloading the games behind the ads must realise that people want to play the thing they've teased them with. 🤔
5/
I get to rest my tired brain a little sooner and leave it with an easy way to start up again.
A simple way, that I can be a little kinder to myself.
4/
I'll already have context on what the problem is to solve, which means once my tests are green, I find myself in "flow"
When I get tired and want to stop work, I'm not straining myself either.
Instead, I'm doing what Lazy Shaun does best: Leave myself the problem to deal with later.
3/
My brain engages with an incomplete task much faster than an unstarted one.
So I leave myself a nice red test. When I get back, I have a clear place to start and a specific mechanical thing to do.
2/
Starting something from scratch is hard.
Getting in the right headspace, building context, finding a rhythm, etc, etc.
Picking up a failing test or an incomplete task feels much less daunting to me than trying to drop into something completely new from a cold start.
A fun heuristic I've adopted when coding. (If you're into that sort of thing.)
Leave the tests red.
1/
I used to make a point of "finishing" a commit/ticket/test/whatever before stopping work. More recently, I try to leave something *unfinished* before stopping. (Ideally with a red test!)
🧵
At the moment I have a couple of posts I might respond to. I've copied links to them into a notes file on my device.
It's that behaviour in particular that bookmarks once automated for me on the old site. (Before they became an enagement hook)
Excited to see what happens. Thanks for looking at it!
Do you like stories? I have a story.
1/
As the oldest grad student in my lab a long time ago, I was also the default system administrator. None of us knew anything about system administration, but I was the lucky one tasked with sorting it out.
🧵
Oh, damn. That really sucks, I'm sorry you have to deal with that.
I truly hope you kick its arse all the way!
I'm intrigued that melatonin helps, I'm gonna go do some reading.
Melatonin used to be the best part of bedtime! Luckily, I don't seem to need it these days. 🤞
While I was taking it, I came across stuff suggesting lower doses might actually be a better way to go:
slatestarcodex.com/2018/07/10/m...
Never got around to trying it, 3mg did the trick for me!
I've heard from colleagues that adding abstractions in code makes their work too complicated. I want them to be empowered to make design decisions, but not have DTOs in the business logic.
I find this stuff fun. I'd love to try and infect them with that enthusiasm, but I'm not sure how...
AI generated image. - A man sat at a computer. a ukulele hangs on the wall. A framed photo of a motorcycle hangs on the wall above a scape of paper with the word "FOOBAR" on it. another picture of a motorcycle sits on the floor by the window. A banjo that looks like it might be a motorcycle wheel sits under the window. A guitar sits on a floor stand next to the man. Behind the man a campfire is going on a rug.
"based on what you know about me. draw a picture of what you think my current life looks like"
For the sake of my neighbors, lets hope not!
Once, I relied on Google maps to plan a walk around a loch in Scotland.
I was used to it being "slower" than my walking speed.
Turns out it was ridiculously optimistic. What was meant to be a one day hike turned into two!
"A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. Once you take that step home is behind you and the rest of the world stretches out before you."
I've met multiple BAs who would write system requirements referencing exclusively *completed* GUI design artefacts.
Ime, where someone on a team isn't empowered to connect with a user, there's a tendency to find a "next-best-thing".
If that persists it becomes a habit, then a practice.
I'm a technical lead at a UK based consultancy working on a smorgasbord of problems.
Passionate about many things, especially TDD, XP, CD and collaborative ways of working.
I'd love to hear about the economics of tech in the public sector.
How does funding flow into tech within a public org?
What are some great spending patterns, and what are the worst anti-patterns?
A table filled with postit notes and empty beer bottles.
Had a lovely time yesterday at readingtechfolk.org
Engaging conversations on topics like automated architecture testing, organizing Terraform in projects, and the future of open source.
