Most conversations about best practices in software development focus on personal preferences: Vim versus emacs, static versus dynamic typing, Java versus C#. Other domains use research to settle such questions. Couldn’t software development benefit from science as well?
Felienne Hermans, assistant professor at Delft University of Technology, had a very engaging talk at I T.A.K.E. Unconference 2014 about experiments designed and run to answer questions such as:
- What is the best programming language?
- Do design patterns help in any way?
- Is Linus’ law correct?
- Are spreadsheets code?
Watch her talk @ I T.A.K.E. Unconference 2014 edition to find out the results.
Check out more about I T.A.K.E. Unconference 2015 or see directly the Schedule.
Brutal Building Constraints
Enjoy the following series of interviews with the speakers, top-notch software crafters from across Europe, joining I T.A.K.E Unconference, Bucharest, 11-12 May. Discover the lessons learned and what drives them to challenge the known path in their field.
Peter Kofler is a software developer since 17 years and still enthusiastic about writing code. At I T.A.K.E Unconference, he will share more about Brutal Coding Constraints.
#1. Please share with us 5 things you did that helped you grow & become the professional you are today
1. The biggest thing I did that changed me was a Journeyman Tour. For three months I visited different companies in Vienna and paired with their developers. See here for more information. (Three Month Journeyman Tour)
2. This included a lot of pair programming with strangers. I like pair programming and make use of it to learn from others. (Pair Programming)
3. I did (and still do) a lot of Code Katas to practice and experiment with code, patterns, and design. (Code Katas)
4. Try to continuously improve.
5. Read technical books.
#2. What challenges will the participants find solutions to during your session at I T.A.K.E Unconference 2017?
Yes, my session, the Brutal Coding Constraints, is a real challenge. It challenges our perception of Object Orientation and aims to deepen our understanding.
#3. Recommend for the participants 3 sources you find inspiration from and would help them better understand you
* Michael Feathers – The Deep Synergy Between Testability and Good Design
* Bryan Liles – TATFT – Test All the F…in Time
* J.B. Rainsberger – The Worlds Best Introduction to TDD
Want to join Peter and ~300 software crafters from around Europe?
Register now for I T.A.K.E Unconference 2017!
Docker & Zero Downtime Deployment rules
#1. Share with us 5 things you did that helped you grow & become the professional you are today
- Read and try stuff
- Be part of the software community
- Ask questions
- Coding outside the work (side projects, open source contributions, etc.)
- Learn by teaching (speaking at conferences, writing blogs posts, etc.)
#2. What challenges will the participants find solutions to during your session at I T.A.K.E Unconference 2016?
Both of my talks are overcoming the challenges of modern software products. Zero-downtime deployment session will empathize on the possibility of always-up systems and making continuous deployment more adoptable. There are a few things to watch out on this space and I am hoping to highlight on that by giving examples and demos on my real world experiences.
The docker session will get you a higher level on how a tool can make a difference on developing and releasing products, in this case microservices.
#3. What else would you like to share with participants
I like to be part of the software community. So, I produce a lot. You can follow my activity on my blog and GitHub account.
I love traveling and discovering new places. I am a huge Formula 1 fan.
Want to join Tugberk and many more software crafters from around Europe?
Node.JS OSS
#1. Share with us 5 things you did that helped you grow & become the professional you are today
- I got the chance to work with technology from a very early age (think ZX Spectrum, Intel 8088) and also with assembly language. This taught me to appreciate constraints and never ignore optimization or be lazy.
- Discovering OSS via the Allegro game library lead me to a wealth of code to analyze and learn from.
- Getting a job in the IT department at the university while being a student there leading to four years of experimenting with whatever I wanted to.
- Teaching at the same university.
- Getting involved in the Drupal community, taking part in the creation of Romanian branch, organizing various camps and teaching Drupal.
#2. What challenges will the participants find solutions to during your session at I T.A.K.E Unconference 2016?
#3. What else would you like to share with participants
- I am a very bad theremin player. The theremin was the first electronic instrument ever invented and you play it by not touching it. Check it out, it’s pretty cool.
- I am passionate about synthesizers, old hardware and horror movies.
- I am an amateur musician using Gameboys, Commodore 64 sound chips and other retro things. I once played music in the Gara de Nord railway, at the info panel.
- I like to ride statues (usually of pigs) while pretending to be Bastian from the Neverending Story.
Want to join Alexandru and many more software crafters from around Europe?