Recent content on Michael Hebblethwaite's blog
If I am talking in professional capacity with developers then I would probably be interesting in asking them some of the following questions. I want to get perspective on how they and their company think and act about the common challenges we face. Listed out in no particular order. Testing What are your thoughts on code coverage? What frameworks do you use to test your code? How do you feel about…
Upgrading Rails version doesn’t have to be stressful. I have gone through the process a few times over the years without major issue. Here I have put together a basic ‘how to’ with some of the tips that have helped me complete the process successfully over the year. Do Read every guide and readme related to rails and the gems used in the codebase Look up the meaning of the config options on the…
Today, I want to write about steps you can take to make your take home test easy to run, and win brownie points with reviewers. I spent a lot of time in the last half of 2023 reviewing take home test submissions. The company had opened hiring for junior through to senior positions, providing the same take home test for everyone. The goal of the test was to build a simple CLI application to search…
I am working on a Ruby on Rails codebase that is quite long lived, though new to me, and has an RSpec test suite that takes a long time to complete. One common piece of advice when looking to speed up the test suite in CI is to avoid out going network requests. These requests not only slow down tests by the time taken, but also make the test results dependant on an external service. I was unsure…
I was doing a coding challenge where I wanted to map through an array transforming the current element based on the previous element. Sounds convoluted, but then I again feel most coding challenges are. Maybe that’s part of the fun though. Anyway Ruby has a nice method, .each_with_index , that exposes the element along with its index. favourite_fruits = %w[raspberries strawberries blueberries]…
I decided to build a gbs-control so I can connect my PlayStation 2 over component to my LCD monitor. I have been using a generic passive convertor for component to HDMI. However my monitor doesn’t display 240p signals. Also it uses line doubling for 480i signals which causes a bobbing effect, and occasionally results in image retention. This could potentially cause long term damage. I have watched…
I saw this spinach curry being prepared on the TV one afternoon. I decided to record the recipe as I thought it looked like a simple and tasty meal to make. It took some time to make, but it was worth it. Ingredients 400g spinach 1/2 cup water 150g chickpeas 1 1/2 onions, finely chopped (300g) 1 teaspoon garlic, finely minced 1 teaspoon ginger, finely minced 1 teaspoon salt 2 tablespoons curry…
One time I wanted to make some spaghetti and meatballs. I thought this recipe looked interesting because it required breadcrumbs soaked in milk. They can be cooked either by baking or boiling in a sauce. Both ways are delicious Ingredients 1/2 cup milk 1/2 cup fine breadcrumbs 1 large egg 1 teaspoon salt Freshly ground black pepper 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese 1/4 cup finely minced Italian…