Jan 30How to Feel Organized with To Do Lists: A Software Engineer’s GuideI am not, by nature, an organized person. I was the kid whose bedroom looked like a tornado had gone through, but could pull anything you needed out at a moments notice. Until one day, I couldn’t. Life had become too complex to find the things I needed. …Organization4 min readOrganization4 min read
May 22, 2022Customer Support: The Unsung Hero of Software DevelopmentCovid-19 forced companies to make leaps forward in software development just to stay afloat. The companies that did it well cemented their roles for years to come. The companies that forgot customer support? Pushed their customers into the waiting arms of their competitors. When Covid-19 lock-downs kept people indoors, they…Software Development3 min readSoftware Development3 min read
Apr 13, 2022Software Engineers: Vote with Your MoneyA lot of software engineers today make above average salaries. Many of them over six figures. And yet for many of them, this money is a new and often unfamiliar world. I’m not going to talk here about financial planning and smart money habits, although they are incredibly important for…Software Engineer Life3 min readSoftware Engineer Life3 min read
Apr 9, 2022How to Calculate Contractor’s Annual SalaryFor a lot of software engineers your first job offer will be a contract position, or contract to hire. The most important part of accepting any job offer is being able to accurately calculate your annual salary. Some might think that calculating annual salary goes something like this: Hourly Rate…Salary Negotiations4 min readSalary Negotiations4 min read
Apr 3, 2022Unpacking the Underlying Assumptions of Automationautomation: n. the technique of making an apparatus, a process, or a system operate automatically A major buzzword in the software engineering space is automation. “Can we automate this task?” is a refrain frequently heard around the office. It even makes a frequent appearance on Reddit’s r/programmerhumor: If we’re going…Automation4 min readAutomation4 min read
Feb 19, 2022Organizing Your Job SearchI talk to a lot of Web Dev Bootcamp graduates who are actively seeking their first job in the software engineering field. Everyone wants to know what they should do to optimize their job search. My biggest suggestion? Stay organized. Where to Store Your Info When I was a recent Bootcamp grad, I kept an…Job Search2 min readJob Search2 min read
Sep 14, 2021It’s Time to Duck, Duck, Go!If you’re still using Google as your default search engine? You’re not a user, you’re a commodity. If you’re already convinced, feel free to scroll down where I show you how to change your default search engines in Firefox, Chrome, and Safari. You are worth $15 Google just paid Apple $15 billion dollars to…Privacy2 min readPrivacy2 min read
Jul 11, 2021How to Unit Test Express Controllers with Mocha and ChaiMost unit tests? Aren’t unit tests. They’re integration tests. Anytime you see someone spin up a mongodb memory server? They’re checking to make sure that their controllers integrate with MongoDB. This is great. But it’s not a unit test. Unit tests utilize spies, stubs, and mocks to test ONLY a…Unit Testing4 min readUnit Testing4 min read
Jun 11, 2021The Definitive Guide to IoT Smart Home in 2021It’s 2021, and despite all the adversities that brings, there are still some bright spots in this technological era. We’re still shy of the “Smart House” envisioned by the Disney channel original movie by the same name. …Smart Home11 min readSmart Home11 min read
Jun 7, 2021CI/CD Basics — Why and When?You’re browsing job listings, trying to get your first role as a Junior Developer when you see it, “Experience with CI/CD.” It’s enough to make your stomach drop, especially if you’re a bootcamp graduate. See, most bootcamps don’t teach CI/CD, or if they do, they teach it poorly, trying to…Software Development6 min readSoftware Development6 min read
