The eli4d Gazette – Issue 072: Stackoverflow’s 2019 Developer Survey and Running BASIC Games

Stackoverflow’s 2019 Developer Survey

Another week…another developer survey 😺. The key results section summarizes the results well: Python is growing and devops jobs have high salaries.

Like all surveys, this one needs to be taken with a large grain of salt. Parts of the survey that I found interesting:

BASIC Computer Games

BASIC was my first programming language. It was a great programming language at the time (even with PEEKs and POKEs).

I came across a Hacker News article that linked to runnable BASIC games 😮. The Vintage Basic site provides a BASIC interpreter that will run on all platforms. Amazing!

You can find the newsletter archive at https://eli4d.com/category/newsletter/ and the blog at eli4d.com.

Thoughts? Feedback? Let me know: @eli4d on Twitter

Quick Post via Twitter: Great episode digging into #Serverless through @zeithq’s #Now.sh 112: Guillermo @rauchg – Building Serverless Applications with Now — @fullstackradio https://t.co/IMaxS1UrQG #qp #Lambda https://t.co/TMMSrbfHgI

Great episode digging into #Serverless through @zeithq’s #Now.sh

112: Guillermo @rauchg – Building Serverless Applications with Now — @fullstackradio https://t.co/IMaxS1UrQG

#qp
#Lambda https://t.co/TMMSrbfHgI

The eli4d Gazette – Issue 071: Warp VPN from Cloudflare and an Open Office Survey

Warp VPN from Cloudflare

This article came out on April 1st, so initially, it was hard to tell if it was for ‘real’. But it’s real and Matthew Prince (Cloudflare’s) CEO wasn’t joking.

So what’s the big deal?

  • The internet by default is insecure. Even worse is the internet that we access through our phones. Besides the usual data aggregators that collect personal data and use it for their advertisement business, phone companies are also in the business of doing this.
  • VPN technology extends privacy from your phone to the specific site that you’re surfing. It prevents snooping by entities like phone companies or any other intermediaries.
  • VPN providers provide a valuable service. The problem is:
    1. Trust – how trustworthy are these companies? What prevents them from packaging your data and selling it? (Answer: nothing; and you wouldn’t know it)
    2. For mobile phones, VPN software typically drains the battery and provides a slower experience.
  • Cloudflare is starting to provide a VPN service named Warp that doesn’t suck from a privacy and performance perspective. The Cloudflare article mentioned above explains the detail

If you care about your data and your privacy you should explore using the 1.1.1.1 service (apps available for iOS and Android) on your mobile phone and placing yourself on the Warp waitlist.

I’ve been using the 1.1.1.1 app since it was announced (to provide DNS privacy) and it’s worked flawlessly.

Open Offices and Lack of Deep Work

I remember reading the book Peopleware a long time ago, and it explained how cubicles were a bad idea for knowledge workers (much less open offices). A recent survey confirms the same thing:

There are many monetary reasons for open office design including the cost for the corporate tenant, and making it easier for the building’s owner to reconfigure the space for leasing to different tenants. The only light at the end of the open office tunnel that I can see is that it may accelerate the adoption of remote work.

You can find the newsletter archive at https://eli4d.com/category/newsletter/ and the blog at eli4d.com.

Thoughts? Feedback? Let me know: @eli4d on Twitter

Quick Post via Twitter: An excellent explanation of the difference between the #OpenWeb and #GooglePlay/#Stitcher/#Spotify when it comes to #podcasts cc @marcoarment #qp Bonus 14: How the Sausage Gets Made — @newrustacean https://t.co/oozdUfzZlU https://t.co/oGaFimHb8S

An excellent explanation of the difference between the #OpenWeb and #GooglePlay/#Stitcher/#Spotify when it comes to #podcasts

cc @marcoarment

#qp
Bonus 14: How the Sausage Gets Made — @newrustacean https://t.co/oozdUfzZlU https://t.co/oGaFimHb8S

Quick Post via Twitter: I’ve published issue 070 of my #newsletter covering: @sarah_edo’s amazing article about #Learning to #Learn and on #startups and #StockOptions – https://t.co/uCStrmVOIq #qp #pedagogy #edu #stock

I’ve published issue 070 of my #newsletter covering: @sarah_edo’s amazing article about #Learning to #Learn and on #startups and #StockOptions – https://t.co/uCStrmVOIq

#qp
#pedagogy
#edu
#stock

The eli4d Gazette – Issue 070: Sarah Drasner’s Amazing Article about Learning to Learn and on Startups and Stock Options

(Pretty) Please read Sarah Drasner’s Amazing article about Learning to Learn

This is absolutely the best article that I have read about learning in a very (very) long time: https://css-tricks.com/learning-to-learn/. The article is excellent because it is comprehensive and actionable. Sarah shows the steps she takes to learn in a very well written and detailed way.

On Startups and Stock Options

I came across an interesting Hacker News thread discussion stock options. It’s an interesting back and forth about the value of stock options and whether it is worth giving up on salary for something that’s not likely to yield anything.

I think that user’s code4tee comment is quite on the mark:

Easiest strategy is to just assume the options are worthless and base your comp assessment on that. Doing otherwise sets people up to get burned badly. Furthermore the risk reward for all but the founders is typically significantly lopsided.

If you can accept the risk great, but again assume you’ll never see a penny from options or far far less than you might think (as the calculator highlights nicely).

If things go well you’ll get a nice bonus. Not life changing for the vast majority of people, but a nice financial surprise.

The mistake most people make is accepting far too little cash comp on the grounds that their options may be worth something some day. When they turn out not to be they get burned twice. First on not getting that money period, and second on not having higher cash comp all along which means they also missed out on compound savings or investment with that money.

Net net see options for what they are in most companies—-a way to “pay” people when the company can’t really afford to pay people.

Currently Reading

You can find the newsletter archive at https://eli4d.com/category/newsletter/ and the blog at eli4d.com.

Thoughts? Feedback? Let me know: @eli4d on Twitter

Quick Post via Twitter: “Outrage as sport” – excellent actionable advice from @jeffrey_way regarding #focus #qp #SocialMedia Keep Your Head Down — The @laracasts Snippet https://t.co/o1y2YbHCC3 https://t.co/WsmdxdhqPg

“Outrage as sport” – excellent actionable advice from @jeffrey_way regarding #focus

#qp
#SocialMedia
Keep Your Head Down — The @laracasts Snippet https://t.co/o1y2YbHCC3 https://t.co/WsmdxdhqPg