Atomic Spin

Personal Optimization • Aug 09, 2019

Three Lessons Learned from Year One as a Professional

In my first year as a professional, I've learned important lessons about asking questions, using failure to grow, and recharging outside of work.

Development Practices • Aug 08, 2019

Bake Production Testing into Your Application

Add hooks and displays to your system that can be used to test that a production environment has been configured correctly.

Web Apps • Aug 07, 2019

Taking Advantage of the (Few) Good Parts of CSS

Utilizing only the good parts of CSS feels like I'm throwing out 90% of it. But if it means I can spend less time debugging, I'll do it gladly.

Project & Team Management • Aug 06, 2019

Writing Agile Stories, Part 4 – Decision-Making Guidelines

Decision making is an art, not a science. Here are some guidelines I apply when deciding how to slice-and-dice stories in a backlog.

Web Apps • Aug 05, 2019

Taming Your Java Environment

How to set up Java and Node properly in Linux for running JavaScript. A CI build that can run successfully and repeatedly over the years is crucial.

Extracurricular Activities • Aug 04, 2019

Creating a Developer Escape Room, Part 2 – Puzzles & Setup

A template for creating your own developer-centric escape room, with three puzzles and instructions for how to set everything up.

Growing as Makers • Aug 03, 2019

Creating a Developer Escape Room, Part 1 – Why & How

A custom escape room can be part of a team-building activity or just a fun lunchtime break. It's a great way to build trust and camaraderie.

Development Practices • Aug 02, 2019

“Well, I’m not a designer…” – Five Ideas for Devs Making Design Decisions

Learn just enough to iterate a design quickly, use established styles, and put in a bit of effort on every piece. And you can dramatically increase your product quality.

Planning Your Project • Aug 01, 2019

Is Software the Best Solution? These 5 Questions Will Help You Decide

Custom software may seem like a quick solution to your problem, but is it the best, most efficient one? Here's how to ask the right questions.

React / Redux • Jul 31, 2019

Loading States in React Components Using TypeScript’s Discriminated Unions

By using discriminated unions in TypeScript to define the props for a React component, we can cleanly handle loading states in our React components.

Project & Team Management • Jul 30, 2019

Writing Agile Stories, Part 3 – Setting Good Story Goals

Describing expected behavior in a story is a baseline. Make your stories even better by writing a story goal that describes the purpose of the feature.

DevOps & System Admin. • Jul 29, 2019

Five Ways to Spice Up Your Bash Command Prompt

With these tools, you'll be able to delve deeper and customize your Bash prompt to just how you like it.