Svelte, JavaScript, CSS, HTML, and anything else of interest to standards-loving web designers and developers
Photo by Martijn Baudoin on Unsplash We've all worked with a rockstar developer. They joined the team years ago, full of energy. They had great ideas about new tech, new paradigms, new architectures. Their cutting-edge ideas left everyone else feeling a bit behind and outdated. They rewrote most of the company's core architecture. They introduced new build processes, new tools, new languages. They…
Photo by Mr Xerty on Unsplash When I'm working with a client, I respect their time and energy by keeping things simple and easy for them. I make as many decisions as I can, and try not to bog them down with every complex decision I have to make. I've learned to trust my instincts, and to escalate important choices only when the trade-offs are truly business decisions. This is a story of when this…
In 1989, when I was eight, I started learning Logo and Basic programming on my Coleco Adam. I was absolutely fascinated to realize those video games like Buck Rogers were made with the same programming tools I was learning! I wanted to learn how to make computers do things like that. In 1998, when I was seventeen, I had my first job at a movie theatre. On my break, I would fantasize about starting…
Photo by Growtika on Unsplash The great thing about the web is that web pages from thirty years ago still work fine. So you can imagine how surprised I was when a new version of Chrome broke my client's web app in production. Business as usual The web app is a data visualization tool with a colourful d3 SVG map. Hovering over a country brings up a tooltip, and clicking a country brings up a larger…
Do you love reviewing AI-generated code? Do you get a tickle of pure joy to find and criticize the mistakes and problems in hallucinatory slop? Me neither. You know what I do love? I love pouring my creativity and insight and empathy into a project. I love designing architectures and solutions that actually make things better for users. I love getting in the flow state, cranking away at a problem,…
I have a weekly cadence with my clients. This means they expect me to make progress every week. But there's no expectations for any particular day. I'm also careful not to over-commit. I leave myself room to breathe. If I decide to go beyond that and work extra, everyone's happy. If I don't, that's okay too. My day is a blank canvas. I get to decide how I'll fill it. What am I most curious or…
The past few months, for the first time, I prioritized coziness & rest, minimizing stress and ambition and mindfully enjoying travelling with my family. I just dropped my son off at school, and now I feel it's time to start a new season of focusing on my business again. But I feel the need to bring that coziness back into my professional life and find ways to do bigger things while still being…
Six months ago, my wife was about to give birth to our second child. Shortly after our baby was born, I took on a really big client project with a firm deadline. I also signed up for a Creative Writing class, not sure if I'd be able to juggle it all. I barely pulled it all off thanks to my wife's support. When the project was delivered and the course ended, I desperately desired something…
I was already dreaming of starting my own business before I ever got my first job. My very first job was at a movie theatre in the late twentieth century. In my breaks I would brainstorm ideas for starting a web design business. I would fantasize about proposing to redesign the movie theatre's website. When the boss wasn't looking, I would sketch out my web site and my pricing on scraps of paper.…
Dear Recruiter, Thank you for contacting me, but unfortunately I am not interested in a full-time job. There is no way in hell you'll find me in an office nine-to-five Monday-to-Friday. I've been there, done that, and it was a living nightmare. No, you don't need to circle back in three months to see if my situation has changed. I'm not available for employment, and I never will be. Yes, I…