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Issue 311: Your line on information in the new year

Can you believe you haven't read an Overflow since last year? Fine, fine, we'll keep our corny jokes about "not showering since last year" in 2025. We're closing out our top ten blog countdown with five more stories for you on everything from documentation to vibe coding to the Developer Survey. One of the biggest reads of the year for our community was a blog written by our CEO Prashanth Chandrasekar and our CPTO Jody Bailey on this new era at Stack Overflow, which feels particularly fitting for all the "new year, new me" posts you're probably seeing on social media. You can check that one out on the blog—plus other top posts from the year like a technical look at how we built Question Assist and why documents are a software architect's best friend.

Speaking of new year, new era, new you, if you're looking to start your 2026 off right, we've got everything you need. Want to become a better developer? Check out our conversation with LaunchDarkly's Tom Totenberg about the software corners you should definitely not be cutting. Want to build a better community? We spoke with MIT and Stanford professor Alex "Sandy" Pentland on how you can use AI to do just that. Want to be disaster prepared or have fun with web development again? We've got two stories from the web that get you started on all such self-improvement endeavors.

And what list of New Year's resolutions would be complete without "get smarter" on it? Our bevy of questions and answers is the best place to start. Where else could you learn about the safety of decade-old honey, exploding synthetic gloves, or the fastest way to make thousands of files at once so you can bulk delete them? Ah, only in the Overflow. All of that and much more is in the links below.

From the blog

The most dangerous shortcuts in software

Ryan sits down with Tom Totenberg, head of release automation at LaunchDarkly, to discuss the perils of taking too many shortcuts in software development, how business pressures and AI code tools have contributed to dangerous corner cutting, and the importance of balancing speed with sustainability to maintain system integrity.

How AI is helping us build better communities

MIT and Stanford professor Alex “Sandy” Pentland joins the show to explore the power of communities for shared knowledge and how AI could hurt or help the growth of these communities.

A new worst coder has entered the chat: vibe coding without code knowledge

In the age of AI, being able to make applications and create code has never been easier. But is it any good? Here's what vibe coding is like for someone without technical skills.

Documents: The architect’s programming language

Senior developers know how to deploy code to systems made of code. Architects know how to deploy ideas to systems made of people.

A look under the hood: How (and why) we built Question Assistant

Evaluating question quality and determining the appropriate feedback required some classic ML techniques in addition to our GenAI solution.

A new era of Stack Overflow

Live from the stage of WeAreDevelopers, we’re unveiling our new vision and mission for the future of Stack Overflow and our community.

Developers remain willing but reluctant to use AI: The 2025 Developer Survey results are here

No need to bury the lede: more developers are using AI tools, but their trust in those tools is falling.

Interesting questions

Should I reveal to a potential employer that I am leaving my job due to a relationship not working out

Why have one breakup when you could have two?

Is wearing synthetic gloves an explosion risk when refueling at freezing temperatures?

Note to self: don't rub a balloon on your hair at the gas station, otherwise you might explode.

Is 30+ year old honey ok to eat?

Eat first, ask questions later.

Fastest way to make thousands of files

The actual fastest way to create thousands of unnecessary files and delete all your important ones is to let your kid play on your computer for ten minutes.

Links from around the web

Attention is Bayesian inference

And for AI's next "magic trick," it's going to use Bayes' Theorem to write your next LinkedIn post for you.

Using Hinge as a command & control server

"Babe, I promise I only have Hinge on my phone to distribute unassuming abstract expressionist pixel art."

Web development is fun again

Really, debating whether AI helps or hurts web development is one of the funnest parts.

During Helene, I just wanted a plain text website

Disaster preparedness is sometimes as easy as a bulleted list.

Onboard, organize, and bring your team up to speed in a jiffy. Try Stack Overflow Internal.