I wrote something dashing for Smashing
My first article walks readers through creating a multi-author blog with Next.js. In this post, I share the story and process behind the experience.
Read full articleBlog
I write about all things tech and business. My articles cover design, development, building my own company, and more. You can also find a collection of snippets you can use in your code on the Snippets page.
Do more of what’s working and less of what isn’t
How do you know when to call it quits on an experiment? I’m dialing back on some of mine to get back some time for other projects.
Read full articleTurning simple shapes into complex shapes
SVGs are math that looks unnecessarily complicated. Let me walk you through how to build a complex icon from a few circles and lines.
Read full articleGetting sprint retrospectives right is hard work
Sprint retrospectives are a waste of time only if we use them as Weekly Complaining Corner. We can me them more fun AND meaningful at the same time.
Read full articlePractical APIs for your next tech exploration
When you’re trying a new technology, you can use one of these APIs for the basis of your experiments. They let you build something fun at the same time.
Read full articleWhich is it, cookies or no cookies?
We still need to show a cookie notice for YouTube’s nocookie embed script, because it sets a cookie as soon as a visitor starts playing a video.
Read full articleYour notes could be products
You definitely have at least a few products in you. The collection of tips and tricks you keep for yourself could be valuable to others as well.
Read full articleWhen the law makes you pivot
Shortly before finishing it, I had to change direction on my last side project. Had I proceeded with the original idea, I would have entered a legal gray area.
Read full articleJust enough analytics
When we need to gather statistics or other logs from our projects, we don’t always need to use full, privacy-invading analytics solutions.
Read full articleKeep your links and SEO when moving domains
When changing from one domain name to another, we can use redirects to keep all existing links in place and avoid a dip in search engine rankings.
Read full articleHow to flush Open Graph previews on social networks
Sites like Twitter and LinkedIn cache the preview image that appear when sharing links. We can clear that cache to have them pick up new versions faster.
Read full articleWhen you know too much to be helpful
Once you speak the language experts in your field use every day, it becomes harder to remember what it was like to not know what you know now.
Read full articleWhat a “target audience” could look like
Building for everybody is as bad as building for nobody. By defining an audience, we can focus on activities that support those we want to help.
Read full articleThe end of annoying JavaScript imports
Instead of navigating many layers of directories when importing files, we can use aliases that cover that error-prone part for us.
Read full articleThe Seinfeld approach to content creation
Without a specified target audience in mind, the content we create ends up being for nobody instead of being for everyone.
Read full articleFonts that make you go “agh!iIl1”
This nonsense test string reveals some of the main differences when comparing typefaces, like their weight and related characteristics.
Read full articleGet better at design by breaking some designs
If good artists copy and great artists steal, why shouldn’t new artists destroy? Break some designs to learn the details that make them work.
Read full articleThe constraints behind consistent icons
As I am drawing many more icons for my upcoming set, I follow a few constraints to ensure they all look like they belong together.
Read full articleDon’t invent this here
Now that I am working on a product that I will sell, the decision between what I can reasonably build myself takes on a new shape.
Read full articleIntroducing Lovelicons
I am working on a set of 200+ icons that will be free for personal use. The paid version will include benefits that I have not defined yet.
Read full articleHow to build that work schedule
Building a work schedule helps us minimize distractions and focus on what is important. Follow these instructions to build one for yourself.
Read full articleGiving every minute a job
Splitting a day that would otherwise be “eight hours of work, some of them productive” into dedicated blocks helps maximize the value of these hours.
Read full articleI finally understand “many small functions”
Writing many small functions instead of a few large ones is common wisdom. It took a book from the 90s for me to understand why that’s better.
Read full articleRunning a static site saved me from getting hacked
When I looked at my site’s analytics for the first time in forever, I found that someone ran a script against it to find known vulnerabilities.
Read full articleProtect your SEO when crossposting
By setting canonical links on posts shared on services like dev.to, Hashnode, and Medium, you can start building a SEO reputation for your own domain.
Read full articleThe easiest way to build a Dark Mode
Media queries are essential for doing Responsive Design. They can test for many features beyond browser width. We can use one of them to build a dark mode.
Read full articleI published my first video tutorials!
After writing on my blog and newsletter, I’m adding a new medium to my rotation. I’m taking some of my content and recording videos for it.
Read full articleGet more value from your git log
We can customize the look of our git log to get more value out of fewer lines. In this issue, I walk you through how we can build a prettier log step by step.
Read full articleHow to pick your next project
A flat todo list helps us get projects done, but it doesn’t help us decide what project to work on next.
Read full articleThis newsletter goes to 13 people
I have not done any marketing for this newsletter at all, and it shows. It’s about time I change something about that.
Read full articleHow the poop emoji broke my website
A few emoji included in a font are responsible for Firefox not showing syntax highlighting in my code snippets.
Read full articleThe main branch in git
There was never a technical reason for us to call the source of truth “master” in Git. We can rename it to “main” or any other term in a few minutes.
Read full articleMemorizing a shuffled deck of cards
Distractions and the internet have conditioned us to do shallow work. To engage in Deep Work, we need to learn how to concentrate again.
Read full articleA very relaxing refactoring
Refactoring old code shows you how much you have grown since you wrote it. Sometimes, that’s just the boost you need to unlock creativity.
Read full articleGDPR applies to you as well
Running Google Analytics is the most obvious reason for showing a consent form to visitors. There are many less obvious ones you also need consent for.
Read full articleJoin me for Hacktoberfest
Every October, DigitalOcean celebrates the open source community by running Hacktoberfest. Let’s code a few things together this month.
Read full articleThe global .gitignore
Instead of ignoring the same files specific to your machine in every project, exclude them globally once for all your projects.
Read full articleEnd of an era
Moment.js is now a legacy project. While you can keep using it, these other projects might be better fits for you.
Read full articleWe’re skipping our shiny features
“Being busy” is not a good measure of progress. By focusing on what creates real value, we can make good use of our limited time.
Read full articleMy design turned out worse than I thought
What looks good in a design tool doesn’t necessarily look good in a browser. Working in both at the same time helps you catch those mistakes early.
Read full articleTired of learning by building todo-apps?
Tutorials often default to todo-apps. These twists on that idea help you dig into how the framework you’re learning really works.
Read full articleAwesome creator podcasts
The format of “two hosts talking about what is going on in their businesses” is fascinating. Know any others like the ones in this list?
Read full articleFree alternatives to FontAwesome
A coherent and high quality icon set can level up a design. FontAwesome is good, but there are alternatives.
Read full articleBooks for getting better at design
Design is not only about visuals. Start here to take your first steps into becoming a better designer.
Read full articleThree tools to up your productivity
Consolidate many tools into few tools and automate what you can. These three help me stay productive.
Read full articleI am changing my newsletter
I have not found the best format for this newsletter yet. I’ll try a few different ones to see what works best for my readers.
Read full articleJavaScript sorts arrays weird
By default, an array of numbers will not be sorted numerically. To avoid unexpected results, we can tell it how to sort an array.
Read full articleThe iPad got the best pointer
Apple is adding mouse support to iPadOS. The thinking that went into the UX of the iPad’s new pointer is a fascinating evening watch.
Read full articleFat marker sketches are the better mockups
Before we spend too much time on the details, we need to figure out the overall structure of a design.
Read full articleThese tips are fire.
The bite-sized tips I started sharing on Twitter show how code can be improved gradually. You can read them all on this site now.
Read full articleEnthusiasm does not mean priority
One of the harder parts of product development is knowing what to focus on. Your latest cool idea might not need immediate attention.
Read full articleOffsetting a low salary
A good job is not defined by salary alone. There are other things you can look for in a potential position.
Read full articleBack to normal?
Quarantine has showed us what work could look like going forward. Let’s reconsider how we work instead of urgently wanting to go “back to normal”.
Read full article“Before we start building this…”
Double-check you’re working on the right things by asking if the solution helps you solve important problems.
Read full articleDelete your backlog
A backlog full of tasks you don’t ever intend to do only weighs you down. Saying no to tasks allows us to focus on what is important.
Read full articlePoor man’s debugging, but cooler
Annoyed with how browsers log variables to the console? We can access and do more useful things with them.
Read full articlePicking what to learn
Options are good but distracting. By starting with an end in mind, we can find out what the best next thing to learn is.
Read full articleWriting code for others to read
Clever code isn’t always the most readable. Especially when working in teams, readability has to come first.
Read full articleEvolution, not revolution
The latest version of my website is an improvement over the previous one, not a completely different thing.
Read full articleServing WebP images
Web servers can send different files to browsers based on headers in a request. Knowing this, we can send WebP-files only to browsers that support them.
Read full articleIdle times
You’re probably working longer hours than normal during quarantine. Even when working from home, it is okay and important to take breaks.
Read full articleHow to understand any codebase
Treat existing codebases as a blackbox. Take small pieces and write tests for them to understand a project’s inner workings step by step.
Read full articleHow to write legacy code
No code starts out as unmaintainable legacy we don’t dare to change. All codebases end up there because of a lot of small decisions like these examples.
Read full articleStaying sane in the homeoffice
Separate “work” and “home” when working from home to not go crazy during quarantine. Take breaks and talk to other people, as you would in an office.
Read full articleQuestions to ask in job interviews
Job interviews are tests for both sides. Use them to figure out if the company you are applying to is a place you really want to work at.
Read full articleProgressive enhancement with @supports (video)
With @supports, we can start using features that will come to CSS soon in supporting browsers today.
Read full articleNegativity in retrospectives
Retrospectives that end after letting everybody complain are a waste of time. Turn that frown upside down for a better result.
Read full articleRole models
If you have been working somewhere for a while, others are likely looking to you for guidance and leadership.
Read full articleA better keyboard layout for programming
The US keyboard layout puts many of the symbols we need a lot when coding on their own dedicated keys.
Read full articleDealing with broken streaks
Streaks limit us to short-term thinking, yet we can only see long-term effects in retrospect. It’s okay to break a streak along that way.
Read full articleTexting faster
iOS 13 now has a built-in swipe keyboard called “QuickPath” that is much faster than typing individual letters.
Read full articleBookmarking the greats
By looking at what others have done before us, we can find combinations of their ideas that work for us.
Read full articleStart building an audience today
ConvertKit recently introduced a new free tier that makes it easier than ever to get started building an audience.
Read full articleFind your community
No matter what you are passionate about, there is a vibrant community out there where you can exchange ideas with likeminded people.
Read full articleHow to split arrays into equal-sized chunks
JavaScript does not provide a function to split arrays into several smaller arrays. Let’s build one ourselves.
Read full articleDeclutter those bytes
Getting rid of projects and plans that we will not get back to frees up mental space for things that excite us.
Read full articleSMART
A good goal is one that makes it easy to follow through. The SMART criteria help us in setting better goals.
Read full articleRecharge
2019 is almost over, and I am looking forward to a few weeks of vacation. There are always more things to learn or to work on. All of that can wait.
Read full articleHow do you eat an elephant?
Big goals take a long time to achieve. By taking many small steps in the right direction, we can get closer and closer to them without losing motivation.
Read full articleUnexpected usecases
I had my expectations of how software is used challenged last week when talking to the CTO of a med-tech startup.
Read full articleCSS that has a tail wind
In utility-first CSS, we do not limit ourselves to single classes. Instead, we use many small classes that each add small pieces of styling.
Read full articleShaping up
While Scrum works well for many teams, it’s not for everybody. Basecamp’s Shape Up is an alternative that might work better for you.
Read full articleWriting utility-first CSS with Sass
In utility-first CSS, many classes are very similar. We can auto-generate many of them using maps and loops in Sass.
Read full articleStress-test your layouts in disco mode
Talking about mobile-, tablet- and desktop-layouts worked well when the lines between those classes were well-defined.
Read full articleUse dad jokes to get better at design
We can design better pages and screens if we use real data when creating our mockups. I released a Sketch-plugin that replaces texts with dad jokes.
Read full articleDesign with ugly data
Many mockups break when we replace their lorem ipsum with real data. By using imperfect images and texts in them, we can design more robust layouts.
Read full articleThe Inter typeface family
Variable fonts are about to fix some of the performance issues caused by adding many custom fonts to our sites.
Read full articleWhat do you not have time for?
I have not met anyone that never said “I don’t have time for that”. So many of us are “too busy” to do the things we really care about.
Read full articleIs this a hill you want to die on?
There are disagreements in all teams about what we build and how we build it. Given several options, we need to understand each of their effects.
Read full articleWrite like Hemingway
Writing is best when it is easily understood by readers. Everything I write goes through an extensive editing phase to improve its readability.
Read full articleAs a User Story
Adding a single sentence to our tickets helps us focus on what is important. Let’s explore what goes into a good user story.
Read full articleShipped is better than perfect
Don’t let perfectionism keep you from shipping things. Release (too) early, then clean it up after you got some real feedback on it.
Read full articleWhat CAN you do?
My wife and I were supposed to relax on Mallorca right now. Our trip was cancelled less than 24 hours before our flight was supposed to take off.
Read full articleDo Not Track, maybe
To opt out of tracking scripts on websites, you can set the “Do Not Track”-setting in your browser. Unfortunately, websites are not required to honor it.
Read full articleDrawing sweet icons for you
I am often creating custom icons for my projects. Because many share a similar style, I will assemble them into a free icon pack.
Read full articleHow to go from Junior to Senior Developer
In software development, seniority has nothing to do with age. When can someone be considered “senior”?
Read full articleJavaScript’s reduce, every, and some
The array functions are great for all kinds of problems. But what happens when you forget to specify reduce’s second parameter?
Read full articleWhat do I know?
You know a lot of things others don’t. Help them by sharing what you know, no matter how easy or obvious you might think it is.
Read full articleWhat to consider when picking a library or plugin
How do we decide between hundreds of libraries? When does it make sense to build your own version instead?
Read full articleNothing is ever “not bad”
Camouflaged as a pleasantry, we can show appreciation much more effectively than through using “that’s not bad”.
Read full articleThe benefits of colocating unit tests
Grouping unit tests and the code they test makes maintenance easier than it is when we keep them in separate directories.
Read full articleOn trends in design
Trends make defining a product’s visual appearance easier, but they also make it harder for you to stand out.
Read full articleMake your time count
When working in technology, we can do a great many things. Some of them are absolutely not worth doing.
Read full articleDrop the “should”
The word “should” is often completely unnecessary. Avoiding it makes your language more direct and assertive.
Read full articleYour API might be sexist
Just as gender is not “true” or “false”, Boolean values are not appropriate for situations in which we assume only two options exist.
Read full articleHow to name color-variables in Sass
Color variables defined with CSS preprocessors are easier to manage if we map them to semantic names first.
Read full articleWriting BEM-style CSS with Sass
The &-operator in Sass can greatly reduce the typing work required when using BEM in your stylesheets.
Read full articlegrunt-contrib-sass and Node.js 0.10.8
The current versions of Node.js and grunt-contrib-sass don’t work together. Downgrade Node.js to an earlier version to avoid the issue.
Read full articleInsights of a new screencaster
I recently published my first screencasts on programming. In the process, I learned a few first things about creating info products.
Read full articleDebunking whitewashed exam statistics
Looking at the official statistics of a recent exam, the numbers aren’t as positive as they are made out to be.
Read full articleScreencasts on Standard ML in German
A well-intentioned but ultimately unfair move by a lecture’s organizers inspired me to record a number of screencasts on functional programming.
Read full articleWhy students fail entry-level programming exams
The common approach to teaching development is rarely tailored to newcomers, which results in high failure and dropout rates.
Read full articleWriting high-performance CSS
Aside from the established best practices for reducing load times, a few things that can be done to stylesheets to make browsers render pages faster.
Read full articleUnderstanding CSS hierarchy-matching
Understanding the concept behind how browsers match CSS-selectors and HTML helps us write better stylesheets.
Read full articleSML/NJ 110.74 on OS X 10.8 Mountain Lion
After installing SML/NJ on OS X with Homebrew, you still need to make a few manual changes to make them play together nicely.
Read full articlePainless installation of SML on OS X
Installing SML/NJ on OS X manually is difficult and annoying. Homebrew enables a much easier hassle- and clutter-free installation.
Read full article