Papers & Books

Blogs and hot takes are fun but the good stuff hides in primary sources. I like to read computer science papers and books cover to cover and write about what holds up in production and what doesn't.

You get the insights without wading through 40 pages of LaTeX. And when a famous book doesn't survive contact with real code, I'll tell you that too.

Papers and books

8 articles from 2023 show all

December 2023

What I learned from Do Hard Things

Do Hard Things is a recent book from an author of my favorite book about burnout (Peak Performance). It talks about why our traditional view of toughness is wrong.

October 2023

Halfway there

Realizing I'm statistically halfway through life at 36. Time is the one thing you can't get more of

July 2023

What I learned from Team Topologies

You can't escape Conway's Law. Might as well use it for good.

June 2023

Why taming architectural complexity is paramount

Unravel the hidden costs of architectural complexity in software engineering and learn practical strategies to tackle it. Boost productivity, reduce defects, and improve staff retention with insights from an MIT PhD thesis.

May 2023

Two types of complexity and their impact

Complicated code slows down junior devs, while complex systems impact senior devs more. Focus on managing system complexity & dependencies, not just simplifying code.

You can't fix the wrong abstraction

Unlock the secrets to combating architectural complexity in software development and learn to identify and fix the wrong abstraction. Boost productivity, reduce bugs, and retain more staff.

Eight things to know about LLMs

eightthings.pdf is the best paper I've read on what's going on in AI right now and why everyone is excited. Here's my summary.

April 2023

Insights for interviews from Kahneman's Noise

everything people say is bad about modern tech interviews is actually good 馃く