Acquiring video games prior to console domination and the modern Internet era went like this: I walked into Electonics Boutique or Egghead Software, went to the PC section, and began to physically pick up the games. I held them in my hand and I was looking for two things: did it have the right weight… more
Update: There’s a new edition of Managing Humans. Woke up writing this morning, which is a big deal because I’ve hated writing for two months. See, Rands and I wrote a book. And yes, I said Rands and I because after 30+ chapters of writing, rewriting, and editing, it’s absolutely clear to me what part… more
The $150,000 mistake, your shipping schedule being off by a year, and The Really Bad Hire (aka: we’re being sued). These are not screw-ups, these are fuck-ups. When you discover them, the air leaves your lungs, the back of your head tingles, and there’s an odd metallic taste in your mouth. Your mind goes blank… more
It’s WWDC season and that means Keynote. Lots of it. Today is Sunday and I’ve clocked 6 hours of Keynote and I’m ok with that. Keynote doesn’t get in my way and Keynote doesn’t piss me off, so I’m taking a break from endless slides to give Keynote some credit and to give you some… more
It is both professionally and personally satisfying to randomly discover that an Apple store is being opened in your home town. This store is 2 doors down from the coffee shop where I’m written most of the significant letters in my life. It is also 25 doors down from the dive bar which serves the… more
As soon as you decide to become a professional nerd, either via a university degree or simply because you sit up all night writing Python to scratch your particular technical itch, you think you absolve yourself of having to stand up in front of a group of people to make a presentation. And you might… more
Ok, stop reading right now and count the toys you can see from your desk. Don’t ask me for a definition, just count. Ordered by proximity, I’ve got: The amethyst ball the Mom gave me. A hockey stick given to me by a prior team. Near this hockey stick is a hockey puck. A cup-sized… more
Let’s start with the visual… This new monitor configuration keeps popping up the engineering team and after walking into enough offices thinking, “Useful or flashy?”, I decided to give it a whirl. The basic usage pattern is unchanged. The left screen is for the active workspace whereas the right screen is the palette screen —… more
As we discovered in A Glimpse and a Hook, it’s almost a miracle when the phone rings and a recruiter wants to set up a phone screen. The fact is, someone, somewhere in the organization has successfully mapped you to an open position. This is a really big deal because, in my experience, the chance… more
I’ve had two compliments on my shoes today. They’re black and white sneakers and unless I’d asked a friend for help I would’ve never bought them Key Rands deficiency: I’m fashion impaired. Always have been. It’s not that I don’t care what I look like, it’s that I have no basic fashion sense. I don’t… more