April 2020

Welcome to ISSUE #15 of The Overflow, a newsletter by developers, for developers, written and curated by the Stack Overflow team and Cassidy Williams. We weren’t kidding, this newsletter runs weekly from here on out. And this week, we’re doubling our podcast output, building models of molecules at home, and comparing Class vs. Struct in iOS and Swift.

From the blog

Building dark mode on Stack Overflow stackoverflow.blog
On March 30, 2020, we enabled folks to opt into a beta dark mode on Stack Overflow. The work we put into it sets us up for the future.

Ways to help the fight against COVID-19 from home stackoverflow.blog
COVID-19 is reshaping how we live. Many of us are now home to help flatten the curve. We’re doing our best to work from home and juggling family care on top of it all. While self-isolation and social distancing are, according to many experts, the best way to address this pandemic, there are a few other things you can do—just from your home with your laptop.

Podcast: Right back at ya stackoverflow.blog
We are stuck inside and raring to go. This week, you get double the usual Stack Overflow podcast!

Couchbase – Power of SQL with the flexibility of JSON promotion
Couchbase is an open source NoSQL database that gives developers unmatched flexibility. It supports SQL and analytical queries for JSON data and technologies including Kubernetes, Java, .NET, JavaScript, Go, and Python. Start using it for free now.

Interesting questions

Found a good question or answer? Tweet us with the hashtag #StackOverflowKnows or leave a comment on Facebook. We’ll include our favorites in the future.

What is the earliest use of the “this” keyword in any programming language? cs.stackexchange.com
Where did this come from?

Where did ChaCha20 and Salsa20 stream ciphers get their names from? crypto.stackexchange.com
Are all crypto algorithms just dances in disguise?

How can you build a model of tetrahedral coordination from objects found at home? chemistry.stackexchange.com
For when you want to give your kids a little more advanced homeschool lessons.

Can you be immune to a coronavirus? biology.stackexchange.com
Our biology community offers some measured thoughts on a difficult question. No perfect answers yet, but plenty of good discussion.

Links from around the web

Class vs Struct in memory | iOS & Swift dev.to
Ever wondered why some iOS codebases have objects as classes, and other objects as structs? Here’s a great explanation on the differences between them!

A stopgap measure to treat respiratory distress news.mit.edu
It’s no secret that ventilators are in short supply in the US (and all over the world) right now with the pandemic. Research has found the potential ability to reduce the need for them with a stroke drug, which could save resources and lives.

Why you need to start using a decision journal blog.trello.com
If you have trouble making big decisions, a “decision journal” can help you get your thoughts and and make choices smarter, and better thought-out.

The impact of coronavirus on global activity blog.fitbit.com
FitBit did a fascinating study on how the global pandemic reduced physical activity around the world. The data’s worth looking at, after taking a little walk around the room.

Tags: announcements, newsletter, stackoverflow, the overflow