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The Cloud is Just Someone Else's Computer
17.2.2019
When we started Discourse in 2013, our server requirements were high:
1GB RAM
modern, fast dual core CPU
speedy solid state drive
I'm not talking about a cheapo shared cpanel server, either, I mean a dedicated virtual private server with those specifications.
We were OK with that, because we were
What does Stack Overflow want to be when it grows up?
22.10.2018
I sometimes get asked by regular people in the actual real world what it is that I do for a living, and here's my 15 second answer:
We built a sort of Wikipedia website for computer programmers to post questions and answers. It's called Stack Overflow.
As of last month
There is no longer any such thing as Computer Security
21.9.2018
Remember "cybersecurity"?
Mysterious hooded computer guys doing mysterious hooded computer guy .. things! Who knows what kind of naughty digital mischief they might be up to?
Unfortunately, we now live in a world where this kind of digital mischief is literally rewriting the world's...
WDRL — Edition 231: Pupeteer 15, Safari 12, Tracking Protection, Card Modules, Web Performance Tips And A CORS Guide
8.6.2018
Hey,
it’s interesting how we can always think we know almost everything about something but then realize that we actually don’t know much. I had this feeling when reading through Heydon Pickering’s article about building a card with code: A lot of these things are clear but there are so many...
Learning Gutenberg: Building Our Custom Card Block
25.5.2018
We’ve got some base knowledge, we’ve played with some React and now we’ve got our project tools set up. Let’s dive into building our custom block.
Article Series:
Series Introduction
What is Gutenberg, Anyway?
A Primer with create-guten-block
Modern...
Learning Gutenberg: Setting up a Custom webpack Config
24.5.2018
Gutenberg introduces the modern JavaScript stack into the WordPress ecosystem, which means some new tooling should be learned. Although tools like create-guten-block are incredibly useful, it’s also handy to know what’s going on under the hood.
Article Series:
Series Introduction
...
Learning Gutenberg: What is Gutenberg, Anyway?
21.5.2018
Gutenberg is the new React-driven SPA editing experience in WordPress. Oh wait, a string of buzzwords doesn't count for a viable explanation of software? We’re going to unpack that string of buzzwords as we explain what Gutenberg is.
Article Series:
Series Introduction
What...
To Serve Man, with Software
31.12.2017
I didn't choose to be a programmer. Somehow, it seemed, the computers chose me. For a long time, that was fine, that was enough; that was all I needed. But along the way I never felt that being a programmer was this unambiguously great-for-everyone career field with zero downsides. There
The Existential Terror of Battle Royale
5.11.2017
It's been a while since I wrote a blog post, I guess in general, but also a blog post about video games. Video games are probably the single thing most attributable to my career as a programmer, and everything else I've done professionally after that. I still feel video games
Hacker, Hack Thyself
2.6.2017
We've read so many sad stories about communities that were fatally compromised or destroyed due to security exploits. We took that lesson to heart when we founded the Discourse project; we endeavor to build open source software that is secure and safe for communities by default, even if there are
Thunderbolting Your Video Card
24.3.2017
When I wrote about The Golden Age of x86 Gaming, I implied that, in the future, it might be an interesting, albeit expensive, idea to upgrade your video card via an external Thunderbolt 3 enclosure.
I'm here to report that the future is now.
Yes, that's right, I paid $500
Password Rules Are Bullshit
10.3.2017
Of the many, many, many bad things about passwords, you know what the worst is? Password rules.
If we don't solve the password problem for users in my lifetime I am gonna haunt you from beyond the grave as a ghost pic.twitter.com/Tf9EnwgoZv— Jeff Atwood
I'm Loyal to Nothing Except the Dream
30.1.2017
There is much I take for granted in my life, and the normal functioning of American government is one of those things. In my 46 years, I've lived under nine different presidents. The first I remember is Carter. I've voted in every presidential election since 1992, but I do not
An Inferno on the Head of a Pin
17.1.2017
Today's processors contain billions of heat-generating transistors in an ever shrinking space. The power budget might go from:
1000 watts on a specialized server
100 watts on desktops
30 watts on laptops
5 watts on tablets
1 or 2 watts on a phone
100 milliwatts on an embedded system
That's
Let's Encrypt Everything
23.11.2016
I'll admit I was late to the HTTPS party.
But post Snowden, and particularly after the result of the last election here in the US, it's clear that everything on the web should be encrypted by default.
Why?
You have an unalienable right to privacy, both in the real world
Your Digital Pinball Machine
2.11.2016
I've had something of an obsession with digital pinball for years now. That recently culminated in me buying a Virtuapin Mini.
OK, yes, it's an extravagance. There's no question. But in my defense, it is a minor extravagance relative to a real pinball machine.
The mini is much smaller than
Can Software Make You Less Racist?
25.8.2016
I don't think we computer geeks appreciate how profoundly the rise of the smartphone, and Facebook, has changed the Internet audience. It's something that really only happened in the last five years, as smartphones and data plans dropped radically in price and became accessible – and addictive –...
The Raspberry Pi Has Revolutionized Emulation
25.7.2016
Every geek goes through a phase where they discover emulation. It's practically a rite of passage.
I think I spent most of my childhood – and a large part of my life as a young adult – desperately wishing I was in a video game arcade. When I finally obtained my driver's
The Golden Age of x86 Gaming
21.5.2016
I've been happy with my 2016 HTPC, but the situation has changed, largely because of something I mentioned in passing back in November:
The Xbox One and PS4 are effectively plain old PCs, built on:
Intel Atom class (aka slow) AMD 8-core x86 CPU
8 GB RAM
AMD Radeon 77xx
Your Own Personal WiFi Storage
7.5.2016
Our kids have reached the age – at ages 4, 4, and 7 respectively – that taking longer trips with them is now possible without everyone losing what's left of their sanity in the process. But we still have the same problem on multiple hour trips, whether it's in a car, or