To kick off Elixir Wizards Season 13, The Creator's Lab, we're joined by Zach Daniel, the creator of Igniter and the Ash framework. Zach joins hosts Owen Bickford and Charles Suggs to discuss the mechanics and aspirations of his latest brainchild, Igniter—a code generation and project patching framework designed to revolutionize the Elixir development experience.

Igniter isn’t just about generating code; it’s about generating smarter code. By leveraging tools like Sourcerer and Rewrite, Igniter allows developers to modify source code and batch updates by directly interacting with Elixir's AST instead of regex patching. This approach streamlines new project setup and package installations and enhances overall workflow.

They also discuss the strategic implications of Igniter for the broader Elixir community. Zach hopes Igniter will foster a more interconnected and efficient ecosystem that attracts new developers to Elixir and caters to the evolving needs of seasoned Elixir engineers.

https://smartlogic.io/

Special Guest: Zach Daniel.

The Elixir Wizards and Thinking Elixir podcasts join forces to bring you a special hype-isode for ElixirConf 2024 in Orlando, Florida. Hosts Owen, Sundi, David, and Mark discuss their favorite moments from past conferences and offer a sneak peek into what this year's event has in store.

From insightful training classes to thought-provoking talks on topics like LiveView, data processing, Nerves, and machine learning—there's something for every Elixirist and Elixir-curious software developer. In this episode, we share tips on making the most of the conference, whether you're there to network, learn, or just soak in the community vibes.

Want to attend ElixirConf in Orlando from August 27th-30th, 2024? Use code ELIXIRPODCAST at checkout to get a $50 discount on your tickets here: https://ti.to/elixirconf/2024

https://2024.elixirconf.com/

Special Guests: David Bernheisel and Mark Ericksen.

It’s the season finale of Elixir Wizards Office Hours! SmartLogic’s Project Manager Alicia Brindisi and VP of Delivery Bri LaVorgna join host Dan to delve into the agile ceremony of retrospectives. They explore the vital role of retrospectives in Agile project management and unveil practical strategies for enhancing their effectiveness.

Alicia and Bri break down the elements of a successful retrospective. They cover everything from meticulous preparation to facilitation techniques, and how to choose the best format for fostering open dialogue and actionable results. Learn how to navigate common obstacles and guide discussions toward productive, solution-focused outcomes.

Throughout the episode, they emphasize the transformative potential of retrospectives within the Agile framework, portraying them not just as a procedural activity, but as a catalyst for continuous team growth and project success.

SmartLogic https://smartlogic.io/

Special Guests: Alicia Brindisi and Bri LaVorgna.

In Office Hours Episode 10, SmartLogic’s newest developers, Emma Whamond and Micaela Cunha, join Elixir Wizard Owen Bickford to discuss their onboarding experiences, joining a new engineering team, and navigating an unfamiliar codebase. They share tips and challenges on learning new programming languages like Ruby and Elixir while ramping up for active client projects. Emma and Micaela emphasize the value of starting with tests and seeking guidance from teammates when diving into unfamiliar projects.

Our guests provide valuable guidance for anyone navigating the transition into a new software development team, highlighting the importance of collaboration, continuous learning, and community support in the tech industry.

What to expect when joining a new engineering team

Elixir Programming Language https://elixir-lang.org/

Special Guests: Emma Whamond and Micaela Cunha.

In Episode 9 of Elixir Wizards Office Hours, we dive into task writing and backlog grooming, transforming ideas from the discovery phase into actionable tickets. Join SmartLogic Developer Camber Griffin and hosts Dan Ivovich and Owen Bickford as they explore the intricacies of task writing, ticket grooming, estimation, and backlog management in the software development lifecycle.

They emphasize crafting clear, detailed tickets that act as comprehensive guides for development teams. A well-written ticket does more than outline what needs to be built—it facilitates collaboration by including entry points, linking to essential documentation, defining acceptance criteria, detailing QA steps, and identifying potential risks and future hurdles.

Jira Work Management https://www.atlassian.com/software/jira

Special Guest: Camber Griffin.

In Elixir Wizards Office Hours Episode 8, hosts Sundi Myint and Owen Bickford lead an engaging Q&A session with co-host Dan Ivovich, diving deep into the nuances of DevOps. Drawing from his extensive experience, Dan navigates topics from the early days before Docker to managing diverse polyglot environments and optimizing observability.

This episode offers insights for developers of all levels looking to sharpen their DevOps skills. Explore the realms of Docker, containerization, DevOps workflows, and the deployment intricacies of Elixir applications.

Ansible open source IT automation engine https://www.ansible.com/

In Episode 7 of Elixir Wizards Office Hours, SmartLogic Engineers Joel Meador and Charles Suggs join host Owen Bickford to tackle the often tricky task of adding print functionality to web applications. They discuss their recent experiences with browser-based printing and the hurdles of cross-browser compatibility, consistent styling, and dynamic content generation, such as headers and footers.

The trio delves into the limitations of current printing capabilities in browsers, the potential of server-side PDF generation, and the necessity of juggling separate templates for web and print. They also consider accessibility for printed content and the demands of delivering high-fidelity, pixel-perfect prints.

Throughout the episode, Joel, Charles, and Owen offer up practical advice for developers grappling with similar issues, emphasizing the need for thorough research, proactive problem-solving, and the exploration of both in-browser and external PDF generation solutions.

CSS3 https://css3.com/

Special Guests: Charles Suggs and Joel Meador.

In Office Hours Episode 6, SmartLogic Developers Anna Dorigo and Bilal Hankins join Elixir Wizards Sundi and Dan to discuss their experiences maintaining a decade-old Ruby on Rails codebase.

They delve into the critical importance of deeply understanding the codebase, keeping dependencies current, and adapting to the original application's evolving priorities and design choices.

The conversation spans a range of topics, including accessibility, testing, monitoring, and the challenges of deploying database migrations in production environments. The guests share effective strategies for sustaining and enhancing older codebases, such as employing automated tools, performing code audits, and adhering to clean coding principles.

COBOL programming language https://developer.ibm.com/languages/cobol/

Special Guests: Anna Dorigo and Bilal Hankins.

In today's episode, Elixir Wizards Owen and Dan delve into the complexities of building advanced reporting features within software applications. They share personal insights and challenges encountered while developing reporting solutions for user-generated data, leveraging both Elixir/Phoenix and Ruby on Rails.

The discussion zeroes in on crucial data modeling and architectural decisions that enhance reporting efficiency and flexibility. Owen and Dan explore tactics like materialized views, event sourcing, and database triggers to optimize data handling while being mindful of UX elements like progress indicators and background job management.

They share insights on leveraging the Elixir/Beam ecosystem’s strengths—like concurrency and streamlined deployment—to tackle common reporting, caching, and integration challenges. The episode highlights the impact of reporting features across all aspects of a software application’s design and architecture.

Prometheus monitoring system & time series database https://prometheus.io/

In Elixir Wizards Office Hours Episode 4, SmartLogic Product Designer Ava Slivkoff joins hosts Sundi Myint and Owen Bickford to discuss the product designer's role in software development. Ava shares her experience navigating client expectations, software design principles, and technical constraints.

They explore the integration of design and development workflows and how designers and engineers can collaborate to meet a project's specific needs. The conversation emphasizes the value of cross-functional teams and the synergy that can arise when all team members work in harmony to bring a product to life.

Figma Dev Mode https://www.figma.com/dev-mode/

Special Guest: Ava Slivkoff.