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, 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 Sticking Around
This is a guest post from Kiah Imani. Enjoy. Dear new developer, There are a lot of things that I wish I had known during my first year as a software developer. If I could go back and give my younger self some advice, here is what I would tell her. Join a developer community … Continue reading No developer is an island: Getting help as a new developer
This is a guest post from Jay Miller. Enjoy. Dear Developer, I just wrote this 300 word unintentional brag piece for you trying to convince you that putting yourself in the right places in front of the right people would have a spinoff effect of more important people knowing who you are. I decided not … Continue reading Make It Impactful or Fun (or Both)
Dear new developer, As a new developer, you have a lot of flexibility when looking for a job. This is great in some ways, but makes it difficult to hone in on particular a job opportunity. What should you do when you are looking for a position? After all, if you are open to any … Continue reading What should you look for in a job?
This is a guest post from Ben Greenberg. Enjoy. Dear New Developer, Welcome to the wonderful and exciting world of software development! You may have chosen this field for any combination of innumerable reasons. No matter the reasons that brought you into this space, I am so delighted you are here. You are embarking on … Continue reading Principles Over Syntax
Dear new developer, It's a crazy market right now for developer talent. But I still see plenty of new developers struggling. I also see some mid and senior developers struggling. "What? I thought senior developers had it made!" you might be saying to yourself. Unfortunately, one can fall into the trap of the expert beginner. … Continue reading What To Change If You Aren’t Getting The Offers You Want
Dear new developer, Caching is a common architectural pattern that helps with performance and scalability. Spending some time learning about this will help you build better systems and understand existing architectures. What is a Cache? At the most fundamental level, a cache is a secondary store of a set of values which pulls values from … Continue reading Learn caching
This is a guest post from Dan Walkes. Enjoy. Dear developer, I was thinking this week about my Great Uncle, Bob Van Gerpen, who died of pancreatic cancer in 2011. Bob was my Grandma’s youngest brother and similar in age to my Dad. He was a big part of my parent’s life as they experienced … Continue reading Uncle Bob’s Ski School
This is a guest post from Jerrin Samuel. Enjoy. Dear new developer, Software development is a field that evolves quickly and constantly. These changes keep things exciting and interesting, but can also make you feel like you are falling behind all the time. Engaging in continuous learning is one of the solutions you can look … Continue reading Why Developers Should Engage in Continuous Learning
Letters To A New Developer 