You can find the index and other parts of this series here.
This blog is on the fediverse! You can discover and follow the blog (@blog@maho.dev) and comment on its posts from your Mastodon app.
I spent the last couple of weeks getting this blog onto the social web (aka fediverse), investing an hour here and there (I hope you are reading this from Mastodon, btw). It was fun and a very exciting learning experience, and I want to share not only my reflections but also create a guide so others can do the same, to move the needle a little bit in the right direction.
Hi! I have created this index for easy navigation.
In Part 1, we will discuss why it is important to bring your site to the Fediverse.
In Part 2, we will delve into an overview of the design of my implementation.
In Part 3, we will make your blog discovereable in the fediverse.
In Part 4, we will generate our notes and outbox, which contains posts ready to be shared in the Fediverse.
Part 5, is an interlude to implement a subscribing to your site feature with fediverse accounts.
Rediscovering Human Connection While AI may be the buzz today, I believe there is other technology gaining traction with a significant impact, paradoxically in the opposite direction—people taking control back from machines.
I began evangelizing Linux and FOSS in the early 2000s. I was an idealist fueled by the vision of a digital world built on collaboration, transparency, and freedom. I never really thought that “this was the year of Linux on the desktop,” but I was happy to spend hours configuring X.org and, in the process, destroying one or two monitors.
Entering the tech industry is a mix of opportunities, skills, and pure luck. For many of us, breaking into BigTech felt more like winning a lottery ticket than following a structured path. However, there is one methodical action to change that.
And when I say I had luck, it’s not because I lack intelligence, determination, or grit. I possess all of these qualities, as do many others reading this post. There are likely individuals who are even smarter, more determined, and facing higher stakes.
I recently had the incredible opportunity to sit down with my colleague Peter Maynard, the dynamic force behind the YouTube channel Paying it Forward. Here’s a snapshot of our conversation:
CAREER 03:47 - Did you know tech was the career you wanted to follow? 04:57 - What was it about software engineering that got you hooked? 06:02 - Have you faced any career setbacks? 07:10 - What is your perspective on mentorship? 09:30 - How do you prepare for tech job interviews? CODE 15:18 - What is your favourite programming language? 17:14 - What is the Free Software Festival and why is Open Source important to you? 19:50 - Can you share a project you’re particularly proud of? 21:44 - How do you approach problem solving in your coding projects? 22:57 - What are some of the “Coding Practices” you swear by? 25:39 - What emerging tech are you excited about in coding? CHANGE 26:47 - Do you think AI will live up to the hype?
The following post is a stream of consciousness about prototypes; it does not offer any practical advice (except that you should not get attached to a prototype or proof of concepts). If you are a pragmatic individual and do not have a beer at hand, I suggest you stop reading now.
A prototype embodies the visionary essence of a product or idea, a future concept, but, ironically, it does not have a future, or at least it is created without the intention of having one. Despite all of that, it is my favorite aspect of software engineering.
Six years ago, I embarked on a journey to the United States, five years ago, I made a conscious decision to stop worrying about my English accent. In this time, I’ve come to realize the profound privilege of working in an industry, within a specific region, and alongside a team where I’ve never felt discriminated against.
However, I’m not naive, neither oblivious to the challenges that still lie ahead as I continue to advance in my career. The world is not always as open-minded as I’ve been fortunate to experience. We humans often possess unconscious biases that can be challenging to eliminate. Yet, there’s an intriguing beauty in the diversity of accents that we should wholeheartedly embrace.
I’m currently aboard an airplane with my heart soaring.
It’s been a challenging Sunday as I embark on a 15+ hour work-related journey that will keep me away for a week. My child is back at home, perhaps getting ready for school right now. I’m just one of the countless individuals who find themselves in a similar situation, obliged to leave personal matters behind as they head to work.
I have always found Chernobyl fascinating, it is a captivating tale of caution yes, but also a profound tale of wisdom.
Chernobyl by Midjourney
Chernobyl stands as a catalyst of chaos and a tragic human disaster, yet it also embodies the essence of ambition and reveals a perplexing paradox in its furnace of ambition.
A few years ago, I was enthralled by the HBO miniseries that portrayed the catastrophic nuclear incident in Pripyat, Ukraine, a part of the Soviet Union at the time. The series delved into the events leading up to the explosion, the immediate aftermath, and the subsequent efforts to contain the radioactive fallout. Although most of us aren’t involved in mission-critical software projects, it’s difficult not to draw parallels with risk management. Initially, we might question why they allowed certain signals to pass or why they didn’t follow mitigation actions outlined in their risk management plan. I witness similar scenarios in my daily work on software projects.
Most of the posts in my LinkedIn timeline cause me a lot of cringe, more than what I can bear and what I was expecting. I feel that half of them want to sell me something (including CEOs sharing how amazing their teams are), and the other half are self-promoting. It is effectively a job market, and I am suspicious of every booth.
The other day, I tried to be brave and post my unfiltered comments. It was my first post after a couple of years. It was immediately banned by the author. It’s so ridiculous that I cannot access the post (it throws a 500 error) when I’m logged in on LinkedIn, but if you search for it on Google, you can still read it. LinkedIn still tells me it reached X number of users, but if I click on the notification, it redirects me to a blank 500 page.
