What We Mean When We Say “Software Engineer”

Dear reader, Welcome to the last letter. I couldn’t have imagined what would happen when I penned my first letter 5 years ago. (I still think you should learn version control, for the record.) This blog outlasted two jobs. 280+ posts and 220,000+ visitors later, this project has changed my life in so many ways. … Continue reading Thank you →

Dear new developer, When you see a senior engineer who knows the code base like the back of her hand maneuver around it at the speed of thought, it sure looks like magic. When a mysterious bug pops up and you spend a couple of hours trying to replicate it, but then an old hand … Continue reading It’s not magic (part 2) →

Dear new developer, I remember the first time I pulled up MapQuest in the 2000s. I looked for directions to a place I’d never been. A custom map popped up, which was cool. But even more impressive was the turn by turn directions. I printed them both out and followed the instructions. That felt like … Continue reading It’s not magic (part 1) →

Dear new developer, Over the last twenty years, I’ve had two work modes. I’ve either been at a company for a number of years (3, 8, 2, and 3) or been a contractor/consultant working for clients for weeks or months. Both modes have upsides; I wrote before about the benefits of a small consulting company. … Continue reading The Benefits of...

Dear new developer, Sometimes you have to send a difficult or awkward email. But, before you send it, think about whether it should be an email or if an in-person conversation, phone call, or video call is best. If it is an awkward topic, it’ll be an awkward conversation too, but the additional information bandwidth … Continue reading Sending a...