

Build and Learn
CJ Avilla, Colin Loretz
A podcast about software development and developing ourselves as software engineers. Hosted by CJ Avilla and Colin Loretz.
Episodes
Mentioned books

Mar 20, 2023 • 43min
Keith Casey: Webhooks & webhooks.fyi
In this episode about webhooks.fyi, we're joined by Keith Casey from ngrok. You'll hear about webhooks.fyi an information-rich resource for learning how to build and consume webhooks. webhooks.fyi is an open source knowledge base and directory listing and analyzing different webhook providers. We discuss webhook security, signature verification, forward compatibility, and more. Other Links from the Showhttps://webhooks.fyingrok.comWebhooks to Revolution the Web from @progriumWhat are Webhooks The Self Provisioning Runtime CaseySoftwareBuild and Learn around the web- Twitter: @buildandlearn_- Colin: @colinloretz- CJ: @cjav_dev

Mar 6, 2023 • 49min
Chelsea Otakan: Design and build systems, not just features
This week we are joined by Chelsea Otakan, infamously also known as @chexee on most of the internet. Chelsea is a product designer and front-end developer, currently working at Lattice. In this episode, we learn more about Chelsea's design origin story, her philosophies on product design, and why you should "build a skateboard, not a wheel".Chelsea's design philosophies- Ship quickly, ship for the user- Design is continuous- Design and build systems, not just features- Don't be afraid to dig deep- Critique early, often, and with everyoneOther Links from the Show- Shopify article on creating a "quality elevator" from Kyle Peatt: The system always kicks back - Chelsea's portfolio and work at Chexee.meBuild and Learn around the web- Twitter: @buildandlearn_- Colin: @colinloretz- CJ: @cjav_dev

Feb 20, 2023 • 42min
Custom codegen for SDKs
In this episode of Build and Learn, we discuss code generation (codegen) and how Stripe uses it to generate SDKs for its APIs automatically. We talk about how a declarative shape of an API (such as Open API spec or GraphQL schema) can be fed into a tool to generate an SDK in a specific programming language. This process helps ensure that the SDKs are always in sync with the API and that any changes to the API are automatically reflected in the SDKs. Most SDKs today are still hand-written, but automatic generation is becoming more popular. We'll touch on the tradeoff between readable code and automatically generated code, which can be quite long and complex. You'll also hear how the Ruby clients for Orbit were likely written by hand and may not be up-to-date.Resources:Richard Marmorstein's Strangeloop talk about codegen: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mgRreyw-NlgCJ's RubyConf 2022 talk about codegen: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sm0fgIqfsO8Stainless API company: https://stainlessapi.com/Open API Spec: https://swagger.io/specification/ Stripe API Spec: https://github.com/stripe/openapiSwagger codegen: https://swagger.io/tools/swagger-codegen/ Orbit Ruby Activities gem: https://github.com/orbit-love/ruby-orbit-activities

Feb 7, 2023 • 37min
Building Developer Relations Teams with Trag
In this podcast episode, we are diving into the world of developer advocacy and developer relations with Chris Traganos, aka "Trag." While Chris and CJ originally met working together in developer advocacy at Stripe, Trag talks to us about his new role leading the Developer & Appstore Evangelism program at Amazon. How DevRel strategies change depending on the type and size of companyTradeoffs that come with "where" a DevRel team is situated on in an organizationSales & MarketingEngineeringThe ever-evolving role of DevRel within a companyDevRel as "on-screen talent"As a DevRel manager, how to advocate for advocatesHow to help dev advocates reach their personal goalsChoosing tracks in your careerDev Advocacy & Engineering pathsIndividual Contributor & Manager pathsResources:- @chris_trag on Twitter- @AmazonAppDev on Twitter

Jan 23, 2023 • 46min
Building things that excite you with Charlie Gerard
In this podcast episode, the we discuss a range of topics related to learning and building cool projects. We begin by discussing the recent snow day and share some funny tips and tricks kids use to create a snow day. Charlie Gerard, a senior dev advocate at Stripe, introduces herself and talks about her role as a creative technologist, primarily working in JavaScript. She shares her love for solo traveling, reading, tinkering, and building. We also discuss Charlie's previous projects and how she comes up with project ideas. She rarely starts from scratch but builds on something she has built before, adding a new sensor or trying a different technology or interaction. We also discuss the challenges of working with sensors and how to connect them to a computer and figure out the different protocols. ThoughtWorks, a company with a tool called the Radar, helps developers navigate new technologies and decide which to adopt. We discussed the importance of starting small when learning to code and using games to learn programming. We chat about using ChatGPT for games like D&D, expressing that these games are meant to be fun and not automated. Charlie can be found on Twitter (https://twitter.com/devdevcharlie), Mastodon (@devdevcharlie@hachyderm.io), and her website https://charliegerard.dev/, and regularly shares cool projects on GitHub under the username charliegerard.Resources:- Thoughtworks Radar - https://www.thoughtworks.com/radar- Charlie's projects - https://charliegerard.dev/projects- Richard's blog post about energy - https://twitchard.github.io/posts/2023-01-18-unicycles.html

Jan 10, 2023 • 41min
IC to Lead: Building Confidence In Your Skills with Lindsay Barrett
In this episode, you'll hear Lindsay's path from graphic designer to support engineer and how she now manages a team of support engineers. We discuss what this transition has looked like for her as well as the training and learnings she undertook along the way.In the second half of the episode, we dig into more specific tactics that her and her team have encountered like supporting customers through API version migrations, authentication issues and squashing bugs with their product engineering team. ResourcesLindsay Barrett on LinkedInLeadDevSupport Driven Slack, Podcast, Blog, Job Board, EventsGrowth SpaceEngineering Management for the Rest of Us by Sarah DrasnerWilliam Vincent's Django BooksQuestions or feedback for the show? You can DM us on Twitter at https://twitter.com/buildandlearn_

Dec 26, 2022 • 42min
AWS Amplify and Front-end Frameworks with Erik Hanchett
In this episode, you'll hear Erik's developer journey and learn about AWS Amplify. We discuss some ƒront-end trends and continue reiterating the value of rolling up your sleeves and building small things to learn new programming languages and frameworks.We compare and contrast working with Vue and React. We touch briefly on trends seen at Vercel with server-side generation and rendering. Shopify's acquisition of Remix and the dilemma of choice. The advent of code style challenges to build more small projects to learn from. In the second half of the episode, Erik teaches Colin and CJ all about AWS Amplify's various components that can be used to build full-stack applications.Resources:AWS Amplify documentationProgram With Erik YouTube Channel@erikch on Twitteradventofcode.com

Dec 12, 2022 • 42min
Mike Bifulco: Building a Developer Brand
We talk about some of the keys to building a personal brand as a software developer.• Authenticity• Consistency• Why you should (or shouldn't) think about developing your brandThis Episode's Links •Twitter and the Perils of Obedience • Coolors: the super fast color palette generator• BuildSpace Creator Linked List• Monica Lent: building profitable indie products • Paul Jarvis: Fathom Analytics and Company of One• Scott Hanselman: blogger, dev, speaker, author, teacherThanks again to Mike for joining us, you can find all things Mike Bifulco at https://mikebifulco.comYou can find the show on Twitter and at buildandlearn.dev.@buildandlearn_@colinloretz@cjav_dev

Nov 25, 2022 • 40min
Getting hired as a developer
Sourcing where you want to apply Make a list of the tools/apps/companies you like to useOutbound (Make a top 10 list)Inbound (review inbound recruiter outreach from the past 3 months or more)Networking (who do you know, try to do some coffee chats to see if they like their company and team)Cold outreach is tough (numbers game)Timing - interviewing such that offers come in around the same timeResume & cover letter & LinkedIn & Social Have these reviewed by your peers and iterate on feedbackMake sure you communicate the things you’ve done that add value, ideally how much value you’ve added. Situation Behavior Impact (SBI) is a good framework for bulletsOmit anything unrelated to the job you’re going for (hot take?)Clean up socialPreparing for Interviews Practice Interviews with friends/mentors PairingResearch the companyAlgorithms HackerRankLeetCodeExercismCommunities Rands Leadership SlackReverse Job Boards https://railsdevs.com/RemoteOK.comWeWorkRemotely.comHN Who’s Hiring - first of each monthResources interview cake https://www.interviewcake.com/Cracking the coding interview by Gayle Laakmann McDowell https://www.crackingthecodinginterview.com/Atomic Habits - James Clear https://jamesclear.com/atomic-habits

Nov 14, 2022 • 34min
CFPs! Submitting talks to conferences
Some LinksLaravel Bootcamp Rails Hackathon Ruby Archaeology by Nick Schwaderer "Build vs Buy" on Rails by Colin Loretz Content Creation for Software DevelopersCFP LandWhy speak at a conference?Share your hard-won learningsMeet other peopleGrow an audienceBuild your talent brand to hire peopleWhat makes a conference worth speaking at?Do you need to be very senior to speak at a conference?No!Picking a topicWhat are you interested in?What are you excited about?What do you know a lot about?Components of a CFPAbstractDescriptionOutlinesUsually a blind selection processOther TipsWatch past talks from the conference you are applying to on YouTube if they are available.Check out speakerline.io for examples of CFPsOn writing well - William https://www.amazon.com/Writing-Well-Classic-Guide-Nonfiction/dp/0060891548


