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Refactored
By Chris Tonkinson, Frank KoehlTechnology
Refactored episodes
- 074: Use the Dang Frameworks
Refactored #074: “Use the Dang Frameworks”
On this episode of Refactored…
- Chris is totally geeking out about the images released from the James Webb Space Telescope and then goes on a tangent about proving Einstein right (frame-dragging, gravitational redshift and lensing, gravitational waves, …).
- Frank claims there are people out there ignoring all the benefits frameworks provide, like…
- Bootstrap (or a hundred other alternatives)
- Sass
- TypeScript (also maybe CoffeeScript)
- Hotwire
- Chris goes on a rant about pour over coffee and how he just wants machines to do all the work. Then goes on a rant about why typing is good for the frontend but not the database.
- Key phrases/themes for this week: NIH and YAGNI.
- The guys fight (a little) about wireframing and prototyping.
- Feedback: Anon says, “I have a department which I am dependent upon that is always dealing with emergencies…” and boy, oh boy, does it sound like Anon is in a pickle. Yikes.
- … and much more!
Don’t be shy! Reach out at [email protected].
Visit https://refactored.work/ for the full archive, show notes, and more. Hosted by Chris Tonkinson and Frank Koehl.
Direct link to RSS feed
1 hr 15 min - 073: Discoverability vs Expressiveness
Refactored #073: “Discoverability vs Expressiveness”
On this episode of Refactored…
- Chris likes DistroTube’s video about Vim where he argues (counterintuitively) that Vim is a better UX than a GUI editor.
- Is it worth it to learn the arcane sorceries of a terminal editor? The guys debate. Chris says yea, Frank says nay.
- Vim vs Visual Studio is a great case study to the broader Linux vs Fisher Price OS Winders debate.
- The guys like PowerShell (except the syntax) and Desired State Configuration (DSC) and SCCM Microsoft Endpoint Manger (MEM) are brought up for some reason.
- Some time is spent comparing Excel vs Google Docs vs sc.
- Sadly, for SOME odd reason, no one thinks of or mentions LibreOffice Calc! /s
- … and much more!
Don’t be shy! Reach out at [email protected].
Visit https://refactored.work/ for the full archive, show notes, and more. Hosted by Chris Tonkinson and Frank Koehl.
Direct link to RSS feed
1 hr 5 min - 072: Rules of the Road
Refactored #072: “Rules of the Road”
On this episode of Refactored…
- Frank runs through the “Rules of the Road” (guidelines for fostering heatlhy creative discussion):
- Reserve judgement
- Raise alternatives, not protests
- You are not your ideas
- Always converse at a round table
- The guys agree - leaders should speak last.
- Feedback: Dave asks, “What are your suggestions for building a sense of “team” with everyone working remotely?
- The pick of the week is demotivational material by Despair. Some of our favorites:
- Motivation — If a pretty poster and a cute saying are all it takes to motivate you, you probably have a very easy job. The kind robots will be doing soon.
- Teamwork — Because none of us is as dumb as all of us.
- Consulting — If you’re not part of the solution, there’s good money to be made prolonging the problem.
- … and much more!
Don’t be shy! Reach out at [email protected].
Visit https://refactored.work/ for the full archive, show notes, and more. Hosted by Chris Tonkinson and Frank Koehl.
Direct link to RSS feed
1 hr 4 min - 071: User Experience
Refactored #071: “User Experience”
On this episode of Refactored…
- Wait — stop the music — developers are… NOT?… good at design?
- Chris blames the Curse of Knowledge. Frank riffs on that, but we all know he’s skating by.
- Who’s less tech savvy, teachers or seniors? FIGHT!
- Frank makes a great analogy to cars, that hide all of their complexity.
- Chris recommends personas for helping to combat the tribulations of UX/UI.
- Frank recommends getting feedback from real human people (not developers) early and often.
- … and much more!
Don’t be shy! Reach out at [email protected].
Visit https://refactored.work/ for the full archive, show notes, and more. Hosted by Chris Tonkinson and Frank Koehl.
Direct link to RSS feed
1 hr 2 min - 070: Leadership README
Refactored #070: “Leadership README”
On this episode of Refactored…
- Frank buys a first-class ticket on the follicle train to vanitytown. Chris pounces on his candid vulnerability to score cheap conversation points.
- Frank steals the show with a great (stolen) idea: The Leadership README. Credit to Gary Foster and Katie Wilde, in turn.
- Frank shares his responses and Chris fumbles through his own hot takes. Some of the prompts include:
- What makes you grumpy?
- How do you like feedback - slack, email, in person, etc?
- How do you prefer to receive recognition? (public or private)
- What are your goals for this year? And for the next 3 months?
- What’s your favorite baked good?
- … and much more!
Don’t be shy! Reach out at [email protected].
Visit https://refactored.work/ for the full archive, show notes, and more. Hosted by Chris Tonkinson and Frank Koehl.
Direct link to RSS feed
1 hr 6 min - 069: Days Since Last Rona
Refactored #069: “Days Since Last Rona”
On this episode of Refactored…
- A three week hiatus?!?!?! It was a team effort:
- Chris rides the Rona and has a rough go of it for two weeks - is he stupid, weak, or both?
- Frank successfully fails to record the first attempt at 69 (nice).
- The guys talk $1T Bitcoin, the Etherium PoS merge, fractional reserve banking, stablecoins, UST depegging, and market volatility.
- Frank buys a new PC with a RTX3070 in it a new RTX3070 with the rest of a computer wrapped around it. Chris can’t remember the name of Fractal Design, which has been his choice of case for his last several builds.
- The guys talk device/software pricing. Is a subscription for features on a discrete device fair?
- Chris complains that GitLab breaks something (again) but it’s ok because the community is awesome: point and case. Yay GiLab! Yay open source!
- The picks of the week are Origin PC custom gaming rigs, the reMarkable 2 paper tablet, and Apple’s AirPods Pro.
- … and much more!
Don’t be shy! Reach out at [email protected].
Visit https://refactored.work/ for the full archive, show notes, and more. Hosted by Chris Tonkinson and Frank Koehl.
Direct link to RSS feed
1 hr 10 min - 068: Well-Rounded Cybers
Refactored #068: “Well-Rounded Cyber”
On this episode of Refactored…
- Holy moly y’all — Frank got a new job, and now he’s doing the cybers!
- Do you lead your personal brand with “ex-Facebook,” “ex-Google,” or similar? You maybe shouldn’t do that, the guys think.
- The guys discuss the infosec “community.” Cliquey like Mean Girls but boy oh boy can some of those folks executive.
- Speaking of executives… the topic of well-roundedness comes up. You gotta be a perfect circle? Or would, say, octacontaheptagonal be smooth enough? Mild debate ensues.
- Feedback: Joyce asks, “What are your thoughts on the best ways for handling goal setting and employee reviews?”
- The pick of the week is the Freakonomics podcast, specifically the current series on higher education (starting with episode 500) - it speaks to (much more than) the debate from Refactored #062.
- … and much more!
Don’t be shy! Reach out at [email protected].
Visit https://refactored.work/ for the full archive, show notes, and more. Hosted by Chris Tonkinson and Frank Koehl.
Direct link to RSS feed
54 min - 067: Make Boring Great Again
Refactored #067: “Make Boring Great Again”
On this episode of Refactored…
- Frank blows a bunch of money on some hoity-toity markers only to revert back to Expo.
- Chris remembers the SaltStack vs Puppet decision differently than Frank, but they both agree, they wanted the Boring™ option.
- Should Everyone Code? No. The answer is no. Not everyone should code. This is rookie marketing, and it’s bad.
- Is Excel the largest and most popular development platform in the world? The guys discuss, and you may dislike their conclusion.
- Feedback: Joe asks, “What is different about being an effective consultant vs being an effective employee for the same company?”
- The (unofficial) pick of the week is The Practice of Professional Consulting by Edward G. Verlander.
- … and much more!
Administrative note: One of the guys is quote “sick” (da hell kinda excuse is that? Is this the third grade?) and the other is “busy” with “back to back business travel” (sure bruh, sure - go ahead and lie to us, just don’t lie to yourself) but we expect the next eepisod to drop on May 10th.
Don’t be shy! Reach out at [email protected].
Visit https://refactored.work/ for the full archive, show notes, and more. Hosted by Chris Tonkinson and Frank Koehl.
Direct link to RSS feed
1 hr 2 min - 066: The FTC Gets It... Right?
Refactored #066: “The FTC gets it… right?”
On this episode of Refactored…
- Frank bemoans the configuration of new peripherals (like his Shure SM7B). Why is it always such a pain?
- Chris got a free vacation from airline miles and hotel points. That stuff actually works!
- The guys discuss the logic - and implications - of the FTC’s recent order for Weight Watchers to destroy it’s data models following precedent from the Cambridge Analytica scandal.
- Simon Sinek enters the chat when the guys talk about metacognition and Start With Why comes up.
- Feedback: Dave asks, “Do you feel that micromanagement of teams impacts their productivity?”
- … and much more!
Don’t be shy! Reach out at [email protected].
Visit https://refactored.work/ for the full archive, show notes, and more. Hosted by Chris Tonkinson and Frank Koehl.
Direct link to RSS feed
1 hr 2 min - 065: Incremental Trade-Offs
Refactored #065: “Incremental Trade-Offs”
On this episode of Refactored…
- The Increment Collector’s Edition has been cancelled due to production challenges. But the reply-all thread is the real story. Here are a few pulled quotes:
- This is now the “I’m sad about my increment collector’s edition order” thread.
- Woo! Hoo! My first user therapy group!
- This is an awesome self-selected group of people who care about product engineering!
- This whole email chain is some combination of ridiculous and amazing.
- Frank makes a prediction that “something like Slack will always exist.”
- Chris trips over both his old man walking cane AND his tin foil hat to bash modern chat.
- Hey! Phrasing! TAM: Total Addressable Market
- Feedback: Anonymous asks, “What do you recommend when you are told that you have to release a product that you know is not yet stable or ready for release?”
- … and much more!
Don’t be shy! Reach out at [email protected].
Visit https://refactored.work/ for the full archive, show notes, and more. Hosted by Chris Tonkinson and Frank Koehl.
Direct link to RSS feed
54 min
About Refactored
From the publisher's feed
A casual, ongoing conversation between two technology leaders with Chris Tonkinson and Frank Koehl.