Wookash Podcast Fabian Giesen | The Part That Nobody Teaches
Dec 20, 2025
Fabien Giesen, a software engineer and graphics expert known for his in-depth technical writing, shares insights from his journey in programming. He discusses the game-changing impact of Turbo Pascal and the challenges with assembly language documentation. Fabien also explains the significance of keyboard debouncing for VR, how he built low-latency display setups, and the evolution of graphics control from DOS to Windows. His experiences range from developing software for Intel's Larrabee GPU to tracing the lineage of engineering teams across major gaming platforms.
AI Snips
Chapters
Transcript
Episode notes
Learn From Small Libraries And Real Source
- Use small, well-documented libraries and source examples to learn larger program structure and abstractions.
- Study shipped code (like Turbo Vision) to grasp event loops, UI toolkits, and real-world architecture.
Mode 13h Sparked Early Graphics Work
- Fabien learned graphics on Turbo Pascal by switching the VGA into mode 13h and writing directly to video memory at segment A000h.
- This hands‑on 256‑color, 320×200 mode taught him immediate, visual feedback for learning programming and assembly.
Debounce Real-World Inputs
- Debounce mechanical inputs before trusting events because switches physically bounce for microseconds.
- Ignore rapid toggles for a short fixed interval to avoid spurious input readings.