Code for a Living Archives

code-for-a-living May 8, 2020

The Overflow #20: Sharpen your skills

May 2020 Welcome to ISSUE #20 of The Overflow! That feels like a milestone to us, and we’re gonna celebrate by giving you a newsletter by developers, for developers, written and curated by the Stack Overflow team and Cassidy Williams at Netlify. We’re skilling up, putting breadcrumbs down, and virtually speaking out. From the blog…

Ryan Donovan

code-for-a-living May 4, 2020

Learning to work asynchronously takes time

Whether you have worked in a traditional office or work remotely, software development has always had an asynchronous nature to it. But now that almost all of us are working remotely, it’s important to define exactly what it means to work asynchronously and look at some specific tips for folks that are new to it.…

Mark Locklear

code-for-a-living May 1, 2020

The Overflow #19: Jokes on us

April 2020 Hey nineteen! Welcome to ISSUE #19 of The Overflow, a newsletter by developers, for developers, written and curated by the Stack Overflow team and Cassidy Williams at Netlify. We can’t dance together, but we can fill our heads with delightful information. This week, COBOL rides again, random sampling to determine infection rates, and…

Ryan Donovan

code-for-a-living April 30, 2020

Have better meetings—in person or remote

Engineers hate meetings, but they can be an effective way to get things done. With everyone working remotely, it can be even harder to get anything accomplished. Here's tips on how to have better meetings either way.

Matthew Gaiser

code-for-a-living April 27, 2020

Build your technical skills at home with online learning

Looking to expand your expertise as you stay home and safe? We’ve compiled a list of online technical training and certification programs to help you sharpen your skills, chart a new career path, or earn a certification. Bonus: Many are running special offers and promotions during this time.

Ben Popper Director of Content

code-for-a-living April 23, 2020

The final Python 2 release marks the end of an era

For you Python users who have been unwilling (or unable) to upgrade to version 3, there’s yet another reason to get motivated: python.org has released Python 2.7.18, the absolute last official release for Python 2. While it doesn’t add much in terms of features, it does act as a milestone. This release comes after official…

Ryan Donovan

code-for-a-living April 20, 2020

Brush up your COBOL: Why is a 60 year old language suddenly in demand?

The suddenly strained unemployment systems often run on a 60-year-old programming language, COBOL. So, how can you learn it, make big bucks, and save lots of state agencies that need new code to deal with all the new government stimulus programs?

Charles R. Martin

code-for-a-living April 15, 2020

Reading the spec: COVID-19 Contact tracing from Apple and Google

Culture and science are happening in real-time during the worldwide COVID-19 epidemic, which means that Apple and Google are working together in collaboration with health and governmental organizations and rapidly publishing specifications and standards.

Paul Ford

code-for-a-living April 13, 2020

Socializing with co-workers while social distancing

As we increase our social distancing efforts and have fewer people around us, building connections and socializing becomes ever more important for our mental health. We spend a lot of time at work and a decreasing amount of time socializing outside of it, so turning some of that work time into a social time can serve two purposes. For it to be effective, though, you can’t just push socializing initiatives alone.

Ryan Donovan

code-for-a-living April 6, 2020

A practical guide to writing technical specs

Writing a technical spec increases the chances of having a successful project, service, or feature that all stakeholders involved are satisfied with. It decreases the chances of something going horribly wrong during implementation and even after you’ve launched your product.

Zara Cooper