What do snakes and coffee have to do with programming, anyway? — You may have heard the saying that there are only two hard things in computer science, one of which is naming things. Some programming language names make a lot of sense, like Google naming their language Go(lang). Other names — like Python and Java — are not so obvious. Let’s…

Inexplicably poor design choices from the music-streaming behemoth. — Spotify was released over 10 years ago, and its core product hasn’t changed much since. They’ve added some features like podcasts, exclusive content and wider platform support, but music-streaming is undoubtedly what Spotify lives and dies by. You’d think that by now, Spotify would have a carefully fine-tuned user experience…

A better, smarter way to organize your browser bookmarks — Your browser bookmarks are a cluttered, disorganized mess. They’re a mishmash of reviews for a phone you don’t want and cookie recipes that you’re never going to try. A hodgepodge of not-so-funny cat videos and not-so-useful guides on how to be successful. You’ve bookmarked some sites that you visit frequently…

The future is wireless, and it’s closer than you think — Three years ago, to the horror of consumers, reviewers and investors alike, Apple pulled the plug on the headphone jack. Was this the beginning of the end for Apple? How could they make such a senseless, boneheaded decision? Yet when the dust settled and the smoke cleared, it was obvious…

Django on Rails in a Flask with a Vue of Laravel and Hadoop — Some of you may be able to guess where libraries like React or Vue got their names from, but what about the likes of Django or Laravel? Did you know that Flask was originally created as an April Fool’s joke? Let’s explore the history of some of the most influential…

The 20 biggest headlines from an otherwise forgettable year — From COVID-19 to racial inequality, the Beirut explosion to the passing of Kobe Bryant, and the US election to Brexit, 2020 has been a year to forget. It’s been filled with uncertainty, grief, and misery as the pandemic has turned our lives upside down. Yet, in the face of adversity…

Some more tips and tricks for everyone’s favorite editor — It seems like there’s a new list of undiscovered, “revolutionary” VS Code goodies every other week. I’m sure you know what I’m talking about: 26 Miraculous VSCode Tools, Super secret VS Code hacks, 7 VS Code Extensions that will make your life significantly easier, etc… But here’s the thing: For…

Inspired by the infamous left-handed oil test — The other day, I stumbled across these fascinating YouTube videos where a design and usability expert, Dan, reviews a variety of novelty kitchen gadgets. The first thing he evaluates is effectiveness. This is straightforward — he puts each contraption to the test to see if it performs as advertised. Is…

Oh, how times have changed… — Apple released the AirPods Pro yesterday, as of the time of writing. Do you remember when the original AirPods were first released? I remember as if it were yesterday. They were mocked. Ridiculed, actually. Reviews were heavily critical, skeptical at best. …