Podcast Maintainable by Robby Russell Episodes

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	Title	Pub. Date	Duration
	Saron Yitbarek: The Balance Between Maintainable Code and Multiple Streams of Income	24 Sep 2024	00:41:20
In this episode of the Maintainable Software Podcast, Robby sits down with Saron Yitbarek, founder and CEO of DiscoLink, to explore the challenges of maintaining early-stage software while balancing multiple streams of income. Saron shares her journey from being a solo developer to hiring her first teammate and the lessons learned along the way about code maintainability and business logic. Episode Highlights [00:05:32] Introduction to Saron's Background: Robby and Saron discuss her startup, DiscoLink, and the initial development of its MVP. [00:10:50] The Importance of Context in Code: Saron emphasizes why understanding the business decisions behind code is crucial for maintainability. [00:15:10] Onboarding a New Developer: Saron shares her experience hiring her first developer and how it changed her approach to software maintenance. [00:20:32] Multiple Streams of Income: Saron explains her motivation behind building DiscoLink to help professionals manage different revenue streams. [00:25:40] Transparency Around Money: A candid conversation about developers’ fears around charging for their work and how to overcome them. [00:30:45] Ethics and Side Projects: Robby and Saron discuss ethical considerations when working on side projects while employed full-time. [00:35:12] How Podcasting Shaped Saron's Career: Saron talks about how being a podcast host impacted her career growth and networking. Key Takeaways Maintainability Beyond Code: Saron highlights the importance of documenting not just the code but also the business rationale behind decisions. Onboarding Challenges: Bringing a new developer into a solo-built project requires strong communication, context sharing, and flexible documentation practices. The Power of Multiple Income Streams: Saron’s vision with DiscoLink focuses on helping tech professionals build financial security through various revenue channels. Confronting Money Anxiety: Many developers struggle with charging for their work, but transparency and community conversations help break down those barriers. Ethical Side Projects: It's important to consider the ethical implications of using work-learned skills for personal projects. Resources Saron Yitbarek on LinkedIn Saron Yitbarek on Twitter DiscoLink Website Book Recommendation: Formerly Known as Food by Kristin Lawless Links: My newsletter: https://themultihyphenate.ck.page/newsletter Thanks to Our Sponsor! Turn hours of debugging into just minutes! AppSignal is a performance monitoring and error-tracking tool designed for Ruby, Elixir, Python, Node.js, Javascript, and other frameworks. It offers six powerful features with one simple interface, providing developers with real-time insights into the performance and health of web applications. Keep your coding cool and error-free, one line at a time! Use the code maintainable to get a 10% discount for your first year. Check them out! Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Keep up to date with the Maintainable Podcast by joining the newsletter.
	Lutz Hühnken: Crafting Resilient Systems with Event-Driven Design	10 Sep 2024	00:44:45
Introduction In this episode of Maintainable, Robby speaks with Lutz Hühnken, Head of Engineering Excellence at Upvest, about the transformative power of event-driven architecture in software development. Lutz brings his extensive experience to the table, discussing how breaking down complex systems into manageable modules and leveraging event-driven design can lead to more resilient and maintainable software. Topics Discussed [00:05:32] Introduction to Well-Maintained Software: Lutz shares his thoughts on the key characteristics of maintainable software, emphasizing modularity and simplicity. [00:10:24] Challenges with "Magic" in Code: The pitfalls of relying too much on frameworks and ORMs, including examples from Lutz’s experience with Hibernate. [00:11:16] Understanding Event-Driven Architecture: Lutz explains the fundamentals of event-driven architecture and its advantages over traditional command-driven approaches. [00:13:50] The Role of Promises in Event-Driven Systems: How clear design-time responsibilities ensure reliability in event-driven communication. [00:15:43] Choreography vs. Orchestration: The debate between these two approaches to managing workflows and why Lutz favors choreography for most systems. [00:17:57] Onboarding Developers in Event-Driven Systems: Tips for effectively integrating new team members into an event-driven architecture. [00:26:52] The Role of Engineering Excellence at Upvest: Lutz discusses his new role and the importance of systems thinking in guiding architectural decisions. [00:34:55] Managing Technical Debt: Lutz offers insights into balancing feature development with addressing technical debt, emphasizing the importance of a healthy investment distribution. Key Takeaways Breaking down large systems into smaller modules with clear boundaries can significantly enhance maintainability. Event-driven architecture offers a powerful way to decouple system components, making them more resilient and scalable. Developers should be cautious of "magic" in code, such as heavy reliance on ORMs, which can obscure underlying complexities and hinder maintainability. Choreography often provides a more scalable and maintainable approach than orchestration in managing complex workflows. Technical debt should be managed proactively, with regular investments in refactoring and productivity enhancements to maintain long-term software health. Resources Mentioned Lutz Hühnken's Blog Event-Driven Architecture by Martin Fowler The Open Society and Its Enemies by Karl Popper Event-Driven Architecture Reading List Connect with Lutz Hühnken LinkedIn Mastodon Bluesky Thanks to Our Sponsor! Turn hours of debugging into just minutes! AppSignal is a performance monitoring and error-tracking tool designed for Ruby, Elixir, Python, Node.js, Javascript, and other frameworks. It offers six powerful features with one simple interface, providing developers with real-time insights into the performance and health of web applications. Keep your coding cool and error-free, one line at a time! Use the code maintainable to get a 10% discount for your first year. Check them out! Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Keep up to date with the Maintainable Podcast by joining the newsletter.
	Paola Ducolin: Building Trust and Communication in Engineering Teams	10 Jul 2024	00:45:30
In this episode of Maintainable, Robby chats with Paola Ducolin, Staff Engineer at Datadog. Paola shares her insights on the characteristics of well-maintained software, the common struggles teams face, and effective strategies for working with stakeholders to prioritize refactoring. Key Topics Discussed: Characteristics of Maintainable Software: Paola explains the importance of well-documented code and having tests that automatically detect breaks. Challenges in Maintaining Software: The impact of business pressures on maintaining code quality and how teams can navigate these challenges. Working with Stakeholders: Strategies for communicating the importance of refactoring and measuring the impact of technical debt on business objectives. Role of Staff Engineers: Paola’s journey to becoming a staff engineer and the responsibilities that come with the role, including coordination and networking. Documentation and Design Systems: The power of documentation and how design systems can serve as a model for well-documented and maintainable code. Observability and Monitoring: An overview of Datadog's tools for observability and monitoring, and how they help in maintaining software quality. Resources Mentioned: Datadog My Path to Staff Engineer Sarah Drasner: The Art of Code Comments Book Recommendations Radical Candor Crucial Conversations Be sure to follow Paola on LinkedIn and stay tuned for more insightful conversations on Maintainable. Thanks to Our Sponsor! Turn hours of debugging into just minutes! AppSignal is a performance monitoring and error tracking tool designed for Ruby, Elixir, Python, Node.js, Javascript, and soon, other frameworks. It offers six powerful features with one simple interface, providing developers with real-time insights into the performance and health of web applications. Keep your coding cool and error-free, one line at a time! Check them out! Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Keep up to date with the Maintainable Podcast by joining the newsletter.
	Helen Scott: Strategies For Measuring Developer Experience (DX)	24 Feb 2021	00:38:17
Robby speaks with Helen Scott, Java Developer Advocate at Jet Brains. They discuss tips on how to measure team satisfaction, what is/isn't technical debt, and the impact of being remote during a pandemic. Helen also talks about her background as a software engineer and being a technical writer. Helpful Links Helen on LinkedIn Helen on Twitter Helen's Website [Book Recommendation] Word Perfect: Curious Coinages and Etymological First Aid For Every Day of the Year, Susie Dent Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Overcast Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Join the discussion in the Maintainable Discord Community Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Keep up to date with the Maintainable Podcast by joining the newsletter.
	Robert Kaufman: Running a Consultancy and a Coding School	16 Feb 2021	01:11:34
Robby speaks with Robert Kaufman, Senior Partner at Notch8 and Cofounder of LEARN Academy. They discuss the importance of treating software development as a craft, tips on helping peers troubleshoot via pairing, and how technical debt can be used as an excuse. Robert also talks about keeping a healthy junior to senior ratio (2:1) and how to be a good guest in another team's codebase. Helpful Links Learn Academy Notch8 Blog Robert on Twitter Robert on GitHub [Book Recommendation] Brain Rules, John Medina Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Overcast Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Join the discussion in the Maintainable Discord Community Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Keep up to date with the Maintainable Podcast by joining the newsletter.
	Heidi Helfand: The Art and Wisdom of Changing Teams	08 Feb 2021	01:01:11
Robby speaks with Heidi Helfand, Director of Product & Technology Excellence at Procore Technologies. They discuss how to reduce fear when making changes, understanding the importance of supporting roles for technical teams, and why we should all keep a living document that lists all of our accomplishments. Heidi also talks about different ways to benchmark a team and how to build alliances. Helpful Links Heidi's book Heidi on Twitter Heidi's Website [Book Recommendation] Crucial Conversations Tools for Talking When Stakes Are High, Kerry Patterson and Joseph Genny Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Overcast Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Join the discussion in the Maintainable Discord Community Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Keep up to date with the Maintainable Podcast by joining the newsletter.
	Jutta Eckstein: How Software Impacts Our Planet	02 Feb 2021	00:54:14
Robby speaks with Jutta Eckstein; coach, consultant, trainer, speaker, and author. They discuss the importance of being able to deliver continuously, the difference between technical debt and gold plating, and the challenges of synchronous vs asynchronous communication during a global pandemic. Jutta also talks about why teams need to consider the carbon footprint of their cloud infrastructure and doing what we can to reduce e-waste. Helpful Links Jutta's Website Jutta on LinkedIn Jutta on Twitter [Book Recommendation] Invisible Women: Data Bias in a World Designed for Men, Caroline Criado Perez Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Overcast Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Join the discussion in the Maintainable Discord Community Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Keep up to date with the Maintainable Podcast by joining the newsletter.
	John Cech: How To Mentor Interns On Software Projects	25 Jan 2021	00:43:40
Robby speaks with John Cech, Senior Ruby on Rails Engineer at Planet Argon. They discuss examples of technical debt, how John catapulted his professional development via mentoring, and the benefits of having consistent coding conventions as a team. John also talks about how he helped a software project increase test coverage while also reducing the speed to run them. Helpful Links More About John [Book Recommendation] 1Q84, Haruki Murakami Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Overcast Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Join the discussion in the Maintainable Discord Community Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Keep up to date with the Maintainable Podcast by joining the newsletter.
	Theresa Neate: Testing != Quality	19 Jan 2021	00:48:55
Robby speaks with Theresa Neate, Director of Quality Engineering at Slalom Build Australia. She shares an overview of the Quality Engineer role, why quality isn't something you can assure in software, and why we shouldn't hire junior developers and toss them into a testing role. Helpful Links [Book] The DevOps Handbook by Gene Kim, Jez Humble, Patrick Debois, and John Willis [Book] 97 Things Every Cloud Engineer Should Know: Collective Wisdom from the Expert Follow Theresa on Twitter Theresa's website Connect with Theresa on LinkedIn Testing and Quality: Correlation does not equal Causation Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Overcast Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Join the discussion in the Maintainable Discord Community Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Keep up to date with the Maintainable Podcast by joining the newsletter.
	Michael Springer: Vetting External Dependencies	11 Jan 2021	00:50:43
Robby speaks with Michael Springer, Software Engineer at JazzHR. They discuss the importance (and challenge) of naming things in your code, how to adopt a package vetting procedure as a team, and strategies to simplify comprehension for new team members. Michael also shares the long-term impact on all dependencies and their dependencies. Helpful Links Michael on Twitter Sprngr.com [Book Recommendation] Deep Work: Rules for Focused Success in a Distracted World, Cal Newport Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Overcast Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Join the discussion in the Maintainable Discord Community Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Keep up to date with the Maintainable Podcast by joining the newsletter.
	Jason Swett: Refactoring Is Necessary to Keep Your Blade Sharp	04 Jan 2021	00:44:25
Robby speaks with Jason Swett, Software Engineer at Meadows Eye. They discuss the value of understandability, differences between loose and tight coupling in code, and creating a shared vision as a team. Jason also discusses how teams struggle to retain quality engineers and how to teach testing to Ruby on Rails developers. Helpful Links Jason on Twitter Jason's Website The Rails with Jason Podcast [Book Recommendation] How to Win Friends & Influence People, Dale Carnegie Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Overcast Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Join the discussion in the Maintainable Discord Community Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Keep up to date with the Maintainable Podcast by joining the newsletter.
	Sudhir Reddy: Don't Be Afraid to Slash and Burn	28 Dec 2020	00:39:59
Robby speaks with Sudhir Reddy, VP of Engineering at Chef / Progress. They discuss what Sudhir calls "legacy debt", some challenges of managing open source projects with over 500 Github repositories, and how Chef built cohesive governance and EOL programs for open source contributions. Sudhir also shares advice for developers who are looking for a way to begin introducing automated tests in environments where that's not yet considered a valuable practice by the team. Helpful Links Sudhir on Twitter Chef's Website [Book Recommendation] What Customers Crave: How to Create Relevant and Memorable Experiences at Every Touchpoint, Nicholas Webb Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Overcast Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Join the discussion in the Maintainable Discord Community Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Keep up to date with the Maintainable Podcast by joining the newsletter.
	Monica Lent: Progress Is More Important Than Perfection	21 Dec 2020	00:50:16
Robby speaks with Monica Lent, Software Engineer, Founder, Speaker, and Travel + Technical blogger. They discuss the importance of clear boundaries between teams, Monica's participation in the 12 startups in 12 months challenge, and why it is okay to say "I don't (yet) have an opinion on that." Monica also shares advice for developers on coming up with topic ideas for blogging, and introduces us to her free email course. Helpful Links Monica on Twitter Blogging for Devs Monica's Website [Book Recommendation] The Compound Effect, Darren Hardy Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Overcast Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Join the discussion in the Maintainable Discord Community Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Keep up to date with the Maintainable Podcast by joining the newsletter.
	Robin Heinze - React Native and the Art of Flexibility	18 Jun 2024	00:40:35
In this episode, Robby welcomes Robin Heinze, Director of Engineering at Infinite Red, to discuss the intricacies of building and maintaining robust software systems. Key topics covered include: Characteristics of Maintainable Software: Robin shares insights from her team on what makes software maintainable, emphasizing the need for clear documentation, robust setup scripts, and ongoing code refinement. Technical Debt: They delve into managing technical debt, particularly in a consultancy setting, and how to balance client expectations with software quality. React Native: Robin explains the advantages of using React Native for cross-platform development, highlighting its efficiency and accessibility to a broader range of developers. Consultancy Challenges: The conversation also covers the unique aspects of working in a consultancy, including how to embed standards while respecting client processes. Major Takeaways: Effective communication and a proactive approach to maintenance are crucial in software development. Visual elements like graphics can significantly enhance the accessibility and appeal of open source projects. Book Recommendation: A Thursday Murder Club Mystery Series by Richard Osman Helpful Links: React Native Infinite Red Chain React Conference React Native Radio Podcast For more insights, make sure to follow Robin on: LinkedIn Twitter Thanks to Our Sponsor! Turn hours of debugging into just minutes! AppSignal is a performance monitoring and error tracking tool designed for Ruby, Elixir, Python, Node.js, Javascript, and soon, other frameworks. It offers six powerful features with one simple interface, providing developers with real-time insights into the performance and health of web applications. Keep your coding cool and error-free, one line at a time! Check them out! Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Keep up to date with the Maintainable Podcast by joining the newsletter.
	Trae Robrock: Understanding Your Risk Tolerance As An Engineer	14 Dec 2020	00:50:22
Episode Notes Robby speaks with Trae Robrock, Software Developer Engineer at GoDaddy. They discuss why readability matters (and how Ruby on Rails aligns well with this), the importance of implementing good team processes and communication channels, and the differences between explicit and non-explicit tradeoffs. Trae also share stories of successful and not-so-successful software rewrites. Helpful Links Trae on Twitter Trae on LinkedIn Trae's Website Green Bits [Book Recommendation] Atomic Habits [Book Recommendation] The 4-Hour Workweek Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Overcast Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Join the discussion in the Maintainable Discord Community Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Keep up to date with the Maintainable Podcast by joining the newsletter.
	Mark Erikson: Accidentally Becoming an Open Source Maintainer	07 Dec 2020	00:47:22
Robby speaks with Mark Erikson, Software Engineer at Northrop Grumman and Redux Maintainer. They discuss common characteristics of well-maintained software code, documentation best practices, and advice for developers on how to begin contributing to open source projects. Helpful Links Mark on Twitter Mark on LinkedIn Mark's Blog Redux Site Divio Site Vue.js Site [Article] 7 Pieces of Information to Include in Technical Blog Posts Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Overcast Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Join the discussion in the Maintainable Discord Community Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Keep up to date with the Maintainable Podcast by joining the newsletter.
	Bonnie Brennan: Building Community	30 Nov 2020	00:48:08
Robby speaks with Bonnie Brennan, Angular GDE and Founder of Angular Nation. They discuss the importance of keeping things modular, avoiding large files, and embracing DRY. Bonnie also shares her journey as a single mom and making a career change in her 30s, along with tips on how to ask for help within technical communities. Helpful Links Bonnie on Twitter Bonnie on LinkedIn Angular Nation Hack Your Future [Book Recommendation] A New Earth: Awakening to Your Life's Purpose Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Overcast Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Join the discussion in the Maintainable Discord Community Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Keep up to date with the Maintainable Podcast by joining the newsletter.
	Khaled Souf: Track Down Dead Code and Delete it	23 Nov 2020	00:49:15
Robby speaks with Khaled Souf, Software Crafter and Software Coach at Zenika Montreal. They discuss the importance of tracking down dead code and deleting it, the benefits of a reliable automated test suite, and Khaled's journey of becoming a coach. Helpful Links Khaled on Twitter Khaled on LinkedIn Khaled's Website [Book Recommendation] Thinking in Systems, by Donella Meadows Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Overcast Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Join the discussion in the Maintainable Discord Community Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Keep up to date with the Maintainable Podcast by joining the newsletter.
	Adrianna Chang: Using the Strangler Fig Pattern at Shopify	16 Nov 2020	00:41:07
Robby speaks with Adrianna Chang, Software Developer at Shopify. They discuss the benefits of using SOLID principles. Adrianna also shares how Shopify has been turning a Ruby on Rails monolith into a module monolith, along with an overview of Shopify's Dev Degree Program and her experience through it. Helpful Links Adrianna on Twitter Adrianna on LinkedIn Article: Refactoring Legacy Code with the Strangler Fig Pattern [Book Recommendation] The Art of Learning: An Inner Journey to Optimal Performance Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Overcast Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Join the discussion in the Maintainable Discord Community Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Keep up to date with the Maintainable Podcast by joining the newsletter.
	Mark Downie: Balancing The Promises That Open Source Projects Make	09 Nov 2020	00:41:18
Robby speaks with Mark Downie, Program Manager at Microsoft. They discuss the benefits of frameworks and approaches to making your open source project accessible and welcoming to new contributors and users. Mark also shares how Visual Studio's workflow for navigating customer requirements and getting early feedback, along with an introduction to what a Program Manager role is responsible for on the Visual Studio team. Helpful Links Mark on Twitter Mark's Blog [Book Recommendation] The Customer-Driven Playbook Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Overcast Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Join the discussion in the Maintainable Discord Community Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Keep up to date with the Maintainable Podcast by joining the newsletter.
	Glenn Vanderburg: Don't Ask For Small Things	02 Nov 2020	00:42:04
Robby speaks with Glenn Vanderburg, Executive Director of Software Development at RE/MAX. They discuss what types of documentation should go in the repository vs external content tools and the importance of acknowledging how helpful older code was to get you to here. Glenn also shares the benefits of hiring developers who had made a career change prior to becoming a developer, along with the challenges for software engineers and organizations during COVID with everyone being distributed. Helpful Links Glenn on Twitter Glenn’s Website [Book Suggestion] Style: Lessons in Clarity and Grace Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Overcast Join the discussion in the Maintainable Discord Community Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Keep up to date with the Maintainable Podcast by joining the newsletter.
	Suzan Bond: Embracing Discomfort and Navigating Transitions	26 Oct 2020	00:43:10
Robby speaks with Suzan Bond, Leadership Coach. They discuss how to advocate for your growth within your existing teams and the responsibilities of the individual and the organization. Suzan also shares how COVID is resulting in the fear of burnout and indicators that you might be nearing it yourself, along with advice to managers and developers on how to approach their next one-on-ones. Helpful Links Suzan on Twitter Suzan’s Website [Book] Transitions: Making Sense of Life's Changes, William Bridges Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Overcast Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Join the discussion in the Maintainable Discord Community Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Keep up to date with the Maintainable Podcast by joining the newsletter.
	Nicolas Carlo: Changing Messy Software Without Breaking It	19 Oct 2020	00:47:27
Robby speaks with Nicolas Carlo, Senior Tech Lead at BusBud. They discuss the tradeoffs when testing out new features and the benefits of using feature toggling/flags to keep code getting merged into main branches. Nicolas also shares how Busbud has quarterly sustainability weeks to work on improving things, along with advice for listeners who might feel like they are at a loss for how to get stakeholder buy-in on dealing with technical debt challenges. Helpful Links Nicolas on Twitter Nicolas's Website Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Overcast Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Join the discussion in the Maintainable Discord Community Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Keep up to date with the Maintainable Podcast by joining the newsletter.
	Brittany Martin: How to Quit Your Job and Leave Your Code in Good Hands	12 Oct 2020	00:47:43
Robby speaks with Brittany Martin, Engineering Lead at TextUs. They discuss the mistakes that developers make when discussing technical debt with stakeholders and why it is important to write automated tests against a live/production API. Brittany also shares how she became the host of the 5by5 Ruby on Rails podcast, along with her recent journey of changing jobs and passing technical knowledge over to peers and a future replacement. Helpful Links Brittany on Twitter Brittany's website 5by5 Ruby on Rails podcast Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Overcast Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Join the discussion in the Maintainable Discord Community Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Keep up to date with the Maintainable Podcast by joining the newsletter.
	Scott Hanselman - The Fear Factor in Maintainable Software	11 Jun 2024	00:36:35
In this episode of Maintainable, Robby welcomes Scott Hanselman, VP of Developer Community at Microsoft and host of the Hanselminutes Podcast, to discuss the emotional side of maintainable software. Scott shares his thoughts on fear as a common thread in poorly maintained software, the importance of building a team culture of trust, and how finding a good work-life balance helps create better software. The Role of Fear in Technical Debt Scott believes that if you fear the software you work on, it's a tell-tale sign that it has maintainability issues. Technical debt is rooted in fear--either fear of making a change that will break something or fear of being unable to change something when needed. He encourages teams to talk openly about their fears and anxieties regarding the software and to consider what things give them confidence in the codebase. Building a Team Culture of Confidence Scott emphasizes the importance of empathy in overcoming technical debt and making software more maintainable. Senior engineers and team leads have a responsibility to make junior developers feel safe enough to speak up and ask questions. He advocates for providing new hires with small, achievable tasks to build their confidence and trust in the software. Scott encourages teams to use "inner loop" and "outer loop" thinking. Inner loop - The cycle of making a change, hitting f5, and seeing changes immediately. Outer loop - Things like deploying the codebase, getting it tested, ensuring production stability. Both experienced and junior engineers have their own inner and outer loops as individuals, and continuous improvement at all levels is key. Overcoming Fear, Embracing Maintainability, and Finding Balance Scott shares stories about Microsoft's journey with open-source software and how that process has shaped the company's culture around maintainable code. He talks about the importance of striking a balance between source-opened and open-source software and finding the sweet spot for a project or organization. Scott warns against the trap of striving for unattainable perfection. Aiming for good, solid repeatable work over perfection ultimately yields better results. He uses his own projects, like the Hanselminutes podcast, as examples of focusing on consistent outputs and utilizing a simple workflow. Scott advocates for using AI tools to transcribe coding sessions, freeing up developers from extensive note-taking. Book Recommendation: The Daily Stoic By Ryan Holiday Scott Hanselman - Personal Website Hanselminutes Podcast .NET Open Source History: .NET Core \| Microsoft Learn Helpful Links: Scott Hanselman - Personal Website Hanselminutes Podcast .NET Open Source History: .NET Core \| Microsoft Learn Thanks to Our Sponsor! Turn hours of debugging into just minutes! AppSignal is a performance monitoring and error tracking tool designed for Ruby, Elixir, Python, Node.js, Javascript, and soon, other frameworks. It offers six powerful features with one simple interface, providing developers with real-time insights into the performance and health of web applications. Keep your coding cool and error-free, one line at a time! Check them out! Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Keep up to date with the Maintainable Podcast by joining the newsletter.
	Luke Redpath: User Stories Should Prompt Conversations	05 Oct 2020	00:52:12
Robby speaks with Luke, experienced software developer and consultant. They discuss the challenges of being an iOS developer and what effective user stories should look like. Luke also shares how he is navigating the world of looking for full-time employment after a decade of freelancing. For interview practice, Robby asks Luke an interview question that Planet Argon asks prospective Ruby on Rails developers — hear his response! Helpful Links Luke on Twitter Luke's Website Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Overcast Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Join the discussion in the Maintainable Discord Community Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Keep up to date with the Maintainable Podcast by joining the newsletter.
	Hampton Lintorn Catlin: Only Add Complexity When Necessary	28 Sep 2020	01:09:24
Robby speaks with Hampton Lintorn Catlin, CEO at Veue. They discuss how to reframe technical updates as investments and lessons learned from collaborating in open source. Hampton also shares how why he avoids the phrase "technical debt", along with his first-hand story of how he helped invent the open-source projects Haml and Sass. Helpful Links Hampton on Twitter Hampton's website Veue Hampton's Wikipedia [Book] Cryptonomicon [Book] Snow Crash Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Overcast Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Join the discussion in the Maintainable Discord Community Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Keep up to date with the Maintainable Podcast by joining the newsletter.
	Pat Kua: The Challenges that Come with Becoming a Tech Lead	21 Sep 2020	00:34:44
Robby speaks with Pat Kua, Advisor, Mentor, and Coach at Patkua.com. They discuss good documentation and the consequences of the hero culture. Pat also shares how he transitioned from an individual contributor to his current role, along with the benefits of finding mentors and seeking advice from people in other fields. Helpful Links Pat on Twitter Pat on LinkedIn Pat's Website Level Up Newsletter Courses [Book] Drive [Book] Thinking in Systems Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Overcast Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Join the discussion in the Maintainable Discord Community Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Keep up to date with the Maintainable Podcast by joining the newsletter.
	Aaron Blohowiak: The Myth of the Sufficiently Smart Engineer	14 Sep 2020	00:51:13
Robby speaks with Aaron Blohowiak, Senior Software Engineer at Netflix. They discuss mistakes teams make when refactoring too much before finding a product-market-fit and how Netflix deals with technical debt. Aaron also shares some early era Ruby on Rails stories, along with reasons why developers might be intimidated to apply at top-tier organizations like Netflix. Helpful Links Aaron on Twitter Aaron on LinkedIn [Book] Radical Candor [Book] Thinking in Systems Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Overcast Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Join the discussion in the Maintainable Discord Community Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Keep up to date with the Maintainable Podcast by joining the newsletter.
	Magda Miu: Building a Technical Leadership Career Around Teaching	07 Sep 2020	00:58:32
Robby speaks with Magda Miu, Squad Leader Developer at Orange. They discuss the benefits of a healthy pull-request & review process and the unique challenges of mobile device app development. Magda also shares how she transitioned from being a day-to-day code contributor to team leader, as well as her strategies for keeping her technical skills sharp when she is not coding on a regular basis. Helpful Links Magda on Twitter Magda on LinkedIn Magda's Website Magda on dev.to Magda on Medium [Books] Why Motivating People Doesn't Work . . . and What Does: The New Science of Leading, Energizing, and Engaging Practices of an Agile Developer: Working in the Real World Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Overcast Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Join the discussion in the Maintainable Discord Community Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Keep up to date with the Maintainable Podcast by joining the newsletter.
	Gant Laborde: Technical Debt — Trading Risk for an Advantage	31 Aug 2020	00:45:16
Robby speaks with Gant Laborde, CIO of Infinite Red. They discuss the unique challenges of maintaining React Native apps and the importance of sync points in an asynchronous work environment. Gant also shares an overview of the types of projects that Infinite Red focuses on and his experience being an open-source maintainer. Helpful Links Gant on Twitter Infinite Red on Twitter Gant's Website AI-FYI Website [Book] The War of Art Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Overcast Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Join the discussion in the Maintainable Discord Community Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Keep up to date with the Maintainable Podcast by joining the newsletter.
	Karen Lee Rigg: Where Are the Bad Habits Coming From?	24 Aug 2020	00:48:33
Robby speaks with Karen Lee Rigg, Engineering Lead at Permutive. They discuss being a good guest in another team's code base and dealing with imposter syndrome. Karen also shares how she moved from the consulting world to a startup working on a product, along with her journey from being a code contributor to a team lead. Helpful Links Karen on Twitter Karen on LinkedIn [Book] How to Win Friends & Influence People Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Overcast Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Join the discussion in the Maintainable Discord Community Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Keep up to date with the Maintainable Podcast by joining the newsletter.
	Gianluca Arbezzano: Technical Debt Beyond Code & Your First Contributions to Open Source	13 Jul 2020	00:44:23
Robby speaks with Gianluca Arbezzano, Sr Staff Software Engineer at Packet. They discuss the value of consistent documentation (and why deciding where to document something is so difficult for developers!), how Gianluca began contributing to open source projects early in his career, and share tips for those who are intimidated about the idea of contributing to open source. Helpful Links Follow Gianluca on Twitter Gianluca's website Connect with Gianluca on LinkedIn [Book] Obsessed: Building a Brand People Love from Day One by Emily Heyward Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Overcast Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Join the discussion in the Maintainable Discord Community Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Keep up to date with the Maintainable Podcast by joining the newsletter.
	Ali Spittel: Junior Developers and Helping Unlock Their Potential	06 Jul 2020	00:47:10
Robby speaks with Ali Spittel – podcast host at Ladybug Podcast, writer, and Faculty Lead at General Assembly. They discuss mentoring Junior Developers, how she built a community around her written content and daily coding puzzles, how to build your writing as a developer, and her experience being a digital nomad. Helpful Links Follow Ali on Twitter Follow We Learn Code on Twitter Ali Spittel's website Zen of Programming Ladybug Podcast Follow General Assembly on Twitter What Productivity Looks like to Me Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Overcast Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Join the discussion in the Maintainable Discord Community Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Keep up to date with the Maintainable Podcast by joining the newsletter.
	Robby Russell: Turning the Mic Around with Kayla Reopelle	29 Jun 2020	01:11:05
The mic is turned around on Robby for this special episode of Maintainable. Robby is interviewed by guest host Kayla Reopelle, a Ruby on Rails Developer at Planet Argon. They discuss the need for more conversations about improving existing code in the community, learning to manage client expectations as a consultant, and when he learned he was a mender, not a maker. Helpful Links: Robby's Maintainable Rails email course Planet Argon's Rails Upgrade service [Book] Never Split the Difference by Chris Voss Oh My Zsh Follow Robby on Twitter About Robby Russell Connect with Robby on LinkedIn Connect with Kayla on LinkedIn Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Overcast Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Join the discussion in the Maintainable Discord Community Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Keep up to date with the Maintainable Podcast by joining the newsletter.
	Stig Brautaset: Understanding Alien Artifacts in Legacy Code	04 Jun 2024	00:46:04
In this episode of Maintainable, Robby chats with Stig Brautaset, Staff Software Engineer at CircleCI. Stig shares his insights on maintaining well-documented but complex legacy code, the impact of team dynamics on software maintenance, and his experiences with the SBJSON library. Stig discusses the characteristics of well-maintained software, emphasizing the importance of team experience, domain knowledge, and risk appetite. He reflects on his own career journey, highlighting the transition from overconfidence to a balanced approach to risk-taking. A significant portion of the conversation delves into Stig's concept of "Alien Artifacts," which describes highly resistant legacy code written by highly skilled engineers. He explains the challenges of modifying such code and shares examples from his own experiences. Stig also talks about his work on the SBJSON library, addressing the complexities of handling multiple versions and dependency conflicts. He advocates for developers maintaining the software they ship and discusses the balance between shipping features quickly and maintaining long-term code quality. Key Takeaways The influence of team dynamics on software maintenance Understanding the concept of "Alien Artifacts" in legacy code Strategies for handling multiple versions of a software library The importance of developers being on call for the software they ship Managing different types of technical debt Book Recommendation: The Scout Mindset by Julia Galef Stig Brautaset on LinkedIn Alien Artifacts Blog Post SBJSON Library CircleCI The Confident Commit Podcast Helpful Links: Stig Brautaset on LinkedIn Alien Artifacts Blog Post SBJSON Library CircleCI The Confident Commit Podcast Want to share your thoughts on this episode? Reach out to Robby at robby@maintainable.fm. Thanks to Our Sponsor! Turn hours of debugging into just minutes! AppSignal is a performance monitoring and error tracking tool designed for Ruby, Elixir, Python, Node.js, Javascript, and soon, other frameworks. It offers six powerful features with one simple interface, providing developers with real-time insights into the performance and health of web applications. Keep your coding cool and error-free, one line at a time! Check them out! Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Keep up to date with the Maintainable Podcast by joining the newsletter.
	Ryan Cromwell: Is the Juice Worth the Squeeze?	22 Jun 2020	00:48:00
Robby speaks with Ryan Cromwell, Technical Director at Sparkbox. They discuss the importance of simplifying deployments, technical debt in the client-services industry, and the traits to seek when hiring software engineers for client-services based work. Helpful Links Follow Ryan on Twitter Sparkbox [Book] Accelerate: The Science of Lean Software and DevOps Michael Feathers on Maintainable [Book] Working Effectively with Legacy Code Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Overcast Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Join the discussion in the Maintainable Discord Community Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Keep up to date with the Maintainable Podcast by joining the newsletter.
	Camille Fournier: How Does a Developer Become a Manager?	15 Jun 2020	00:46:46
Robby speaks with Camille Fournier, Head of Platform Engineering at Two Sigma and author of The Manager's Path. They discuss the importance of avoiding overly clever code, onboarding developers to existing software projects and teams, and how to start approaching mentoring others and be a good mentoree. They also discuss topics from her book, like determining if a path toward management is right for you and navigating career growth in a technical role. Helpful Links Follow Camille on Twitter Camille on Medium The Manager's Path: A Guide for Tech Leaders Navigating Growth and Change Camille's Blog: Elided Branches [Book] What Got Your Here Won't Get You There by Marshall Goldsmith and Mark Reiter 97 Things Every Engineering Manager Should Know: Collective Wisdom from the Experts Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Overcast Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Join the discussion in the Maintainable Discord Community Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Keep up to date with the Maintainable Podcast by joining the newsletter.
	Gonçalo Silva: How A Fully-Remote Team Builds and Maintains Software	01 Jun 2020	00:44:33
Robby speaks with Gonçalo Silva, CTO at Doist. They discuss embracing continuous improvements, having a healthy level of skepticism about rewrites. Gonçalo also shares how Doist onboards new engineers to their team, along with the challenges of hiring remote junior developers. Helpful Links Gonçalo on Twitter Laws of software evolution Doist Doist's blog Open positions at Doist Twist App [Book] Atomic Habits [Book] The Art of Learning Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Overcast Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Join the discussion in the Maintainable Discord Community Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Keep up to date with the Maintainable Podcast by joining the newsletter.
	Tudor Girba: Moldable Development and Software Environmentalism	25 May 2020	00:44:07
Robby speaks with Tudor Girba, CEO and Co-Founder at Feenk. They discuss how engineers work in the decision-making business, what skills are essential to build in engineers, and get an introduction to the concept of Moldable Development and the Glamorous Toolkit. Helpful Links Glamorous Toolkit Follow Girba on Twitter Follow feenk on Twitter Glamorous Toolkit on Github [Book] Man's Search for Meaning Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Overcast Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Join the discussion in the Maintainable Discord Community Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Keep up to date with the Maintainable Podcast by joining the newsletter.
	Jeff Haynie: How Can We Make Software Development Better for Dev Teams?	18 May 2020	00:52:13
Robby speaks with Jeff Haynie, Co-Founder and CEO at Pinpoint. They discuss boundaries around APIs and contracts, useful and less-useful metrics for development teams to focus on, and more. Jeff also gives an introduction to Pinpoint's tooling for software development teams and stakeholders, and shares a story about how he had to reverse-engineer a proprietary application in under 24hours to keep the trains running on time. Helpful Links Follow Jeff on Twitter Follow Jeff on Medium Pinpoint Connect with Jeff on LinkedIn Pinpoint Insights [Book] Hard Thing About Things Building Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Overcast Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Join the discussion in the Maintainable Discord Community Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Keep up to date with the Maintainable Podcast by joining the newsletter.
	Vladimir Khorikov: 100% Test Coverage is an Artificial Metric	11 May 2020	01:00:49
Robby speaks with Vladimir Khoriko, Tech Lead, Architect & Author. They discuss all things unit tests – what they are, the four pillars of good ones, examples of low-value unit tests, and more. They also discuss the age-old debate of rewrites vs. refactoring, and how to effectively prioritize maintenance work. Helpful Links Vladimir's books: Use promo code: podmaintainable20 for 20% off! Enterprise Craftsmanship Painless Unit Testing Vladimir's Pluralsight courses [Book] Atomic Habit Things You Should Never Do, Part 1 Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Overcast Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Join the discussion in the Maintainable Discord Community Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Keep up to date with the Maintainable Podcast by joining the newsletter.
	Bryan Helmkamp: Don't Let Perfect Be The Enemy of Good	04 May 2020	00:36:20
Robby speaks with Bryan Helmkamp, Founder and CEO at Code Climate. Bryan discusses the use of the term "technical debt" now vs. 15 years ago, what he's learned from having thousands of engineering teams use their tools, and the long-term benefits of choosing to build their main application in Ruby on Rails. You'll also get an overview of Code Climate's main products. Helpful Links Code Climate The Code Climate blog Bryan on Twitter Code Climate on Twitter Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Overcast Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Join the discussion in the Maintainable Discord Community Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Keep up to date with the Maintainable Podcast by joining the newsletter.
	Dr. Aino Vonge Corry: Why Do We Have Retrospectives, Again?	27 Apr 2020	00:45:55
Robby speaks with Dr. Aino Vonge Corry, founder of Metadeveloper, technical conference editor, and agile retrospective facilitator. They discuss effective vs. ineffective communication with stakeholders, how to prepare for retrospectives, and why it's important to focus on "What should we do better?" when reflecting on work. Helpful Links Dr. Aino Vonge Corry on Twitter Metadeveloper [Book] Why We Sleep: Unlocking the Power of Sleep and Dreams by Matthew Walker How to Facilitate Distributed Retrospectives Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Overcast Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Join the discussion in the Maintainable Discord Community Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Keep up to date with the Maintainable Podcast by joining the newsletter.
	Trisha Gee: Developers Should Invest More Time Into Learning Their Tools	20 Apr 2020	00:42:07
Robby speaks with Trisha Gee, Developer Advocate at JetBrains. They discuss Trisha's role as a Developer Advocate, how open source library maintainers are underappreciated, and how developers can overcome their fear of writing, speaking, and contributing back to the community. Helpful Links Follow Trisha on Twitter Trisha's blog IntelliJ IDEA RubyMind [Book] 97 Things Every Programmer Should Know [Book] Programmed Inequality: How Britain Discarded Women Technologists and Lost Its Edge in Computing by Mar Hicks Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Overcast Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Join the discussion in the Maintainable Discord Community Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Keep up to date with the Maintainable Podcast by joining the newsletter.
	Sandi Metz: Making is Easy, Mending is a Challenge	13 Apr 2020	00:47:07
In this episode of the Maintainable Software Podcast, Robby is joined by Sandi Metz, a renowned programmer, author, and speaker known for her expertise in object-oriented programming and maintainable code. Sandi shares her invaluable insights on various aspects of software development, focusing on writing code that stands the test of time. Episode Highlights Maintaining Readable Code: Sandi emphasizes that the cost of software lies in its readability. She discusses the importance of writing code with good names and gentle organization, making it easier for future developers to understand. Avoiding Clever Code: Sandi warns against writing overly clever code that even the author might not understand later. Instead, she advocates for clear and simple code that conveys the programmer's good intentions to future readers. Documentation and Integration Tests: While Sandi believes in minimal documentation at the object level, she stresses the importance of integration tests and visual aids that show how everything fits together. Common Legacy Code Issues: Sandi identifies common patterns of problematic code in legacy systems, often resulting from neglected complexity and social bargains within teams that lead to unwieldy classes and procedures. Technical Debt vs. Bad Code: She discusses the nuanced difference between technical debt and bad code, emphasizing the need for shared language and understanding between developers and stakeholders. Training and Education: Sandi reflects on the importance of proper training for developers and how educational institutions might better prepare students for the real-world challenges of maintaining existing codebases. Small Pieces, Big Impact: Advocating for the creation of small, manageable pieces of code, Sandi explains how this approach simplifies maintenance and enhances code readability. Refactoring Strategies: Sandi shares strategies for refactoring large classes and objects, often seen in Rails applications, and the benefits of creating service objects and other intermediary classes. Long-Term Framework Viability: Sandi discusses the future of frameworks like Rails, the importance of not being overly reliant on them, and preparing for potential technological shifts. You'll also hear some thoughts on Ruby and Rails and how Sandi uses the phrase "Lambs to the Slaughter." Helpful Links Sandi Metz's LinkedIn Follow Sandi on Twitter Working Effectively with Legacy Code by Michael Feathers Refactoring by Martin Fowler CodeDevotional project Practical Object-Oriented Design 99 Bottles sandimetz.com [Book] Elements of Style by William Strunk Jr. Tune in to this insightful episode and learn from one of the best in the industry about writing maintainable software that your future self will thank you for! Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Keep up to date with the Maintainable Podcast by joining the newsletter.
	Brit Myers - Decoding Product vs. Technical Risk	28 May 2024	00:42:20
Join Robby as he welcomes Brit Myers to the podcast. Brit, currently thriving as the VP of Engineering at System Initiative, discusses the intricacies of maintaining software. She emphasizes the importance of navigable software, where the ease of tracing the code and understanding its structure is paramount. Brit highlights the significance of clear naming conventions and inline documentation, as they help in maintaining a cohesive narrative within the software. The conversation touches on the challenges posed by discrepancies in vocabulary between product management and engineering, and how glossaries can bridge these communication gaps. Brit advocates for the use of glossaries more as a reflective tool rather than a proactive one, given the dynamic nature of software development. She also delves into strategies for managing legacy code and technical debt, proposing a pragmatic approach where wrapping and modularizing legacy components can mitigate risks. She discusses the balance between immediate feature delivery and long-term code health, stressing the importance of aligning technical risks with business objectives. The episode explores the impact of company culture on development practices, the benefits of synchronous work environments, and the evolving landscape of DevOps. Tune in to tap into Brit’s valuable wisdom. Book Recommendation: Crucial Conversations: Tools for Talking When Stakes are High By Kerry Patterson, Stephen R. Covey, Joseph Grenny, Ron McMillan, and Al Switzler Helpful Links: System Initiative Brit on LinkedIn SPACE Framework DORA metrics Thanks to Our Sponsor! Turn hours of debugging into just minutes! AppSignal is a performance monitoring and error tracking tool designed for Ruby, Elixir, Python, Node.js, Javascript, and soon, other frameworks. It offers six powerful features with one simple interface, providing developers with real-time insights into the performance and health of web applications. Keep your coding cool and error-free, one line at a time! Check them out! Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Keep up to date with the Maintainable Podcast by joining the newsletter.
	Clare Sudbery: Refactoring Should Be Part of Your Daily Work	06 Apr 2020	00:50:41
Robby speaks with Clare Sudbery, Lead Engineer with Made Tech. They discuss how to document and prioritize technical debt with a visual tool, trunk-based development patterns, and the importance of getting fast feedback. Helpful Links Follow Clare on Twitter In Simple Terms Clare's upcoming workshops and speaking engagements MadeTech Clare on Medium Refactoring: Improving the Design of Existing Code (2nd Edition) by Martin Fowler Delusions of Gender: How Our Minds, Society, and Neurosexism Create Difference by Cordelia Fine Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Overcast Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Join the discussion in the Maintainable Discord Community Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Keep up to date with the Maintainable Podcast by joining the newsletter.
	Kelly Sutton: Custodians of the Monolith	30 Mar 2020	00:37:42
Robby speaks with Kelly Sutton, Software Engineer at Gusto. They discuss how to deal with technical debt from the pre-product/market fit era, the benefits of monoliths and knowing when to begin abstracting to micro-services, and the challenges of keeping Ruby on Rails applications up-to-date. Kelly also gives advice for developers who want to convince stakeholders to invest in refactoring projects – a common challenge. Helpful Links Follow Kelly on Twitter Kelly's website [Book] Seeing like a State: How Certain Schemes to Improve the Human Condition Have Failed by James C. Scott Talk on Desirable Tests Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Overcast Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Join the discussion in the Maintainable Discord Community Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Keep up to date with the Maintainable Podcast by joining the newsletter.
	Jonathan Abourbih: Creating a Culture Where It's Okay To Take Risks	23 Mar 2020	00:43:53
Robby speaks to Jonathan Abourbih, Engineering Team Lead at the BBC in Voice & AI. They discuss how to conduct blameless post-mortems, what's technical debt vs. bad code, and the challenges of measuring your success as a manager after years of being a developer. Jonathan also shares stories about large Java apps in a pre-Garbage Collection world. Helpful Links Jonathan on Twitter The Prime Directive BBC Careers Google's Project Aristotle Growing Object-Oriented Software Guided by Tests by Steve Freeman and Nat Pryce The Power In Agile Talk by Sarah Mei [Book] The Phoenix Project by Gene Kim Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Overcast Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Join the discussion in the Maintainable Discord Community Subscribe to Maintainable on: Apple Podcasts Spotify Or search "Maintainable" wherever you stream your podcasts. Keep up to date with the Maintainable Podcast by joining the newsletter.

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