This Dot Blog
This Dot provides teams with technical leaders who bring deep knowledge of the web platform. We help teams set new standards, and deliver results predictably.
The “Bottom-Up” Roadmap to Leadership with Ty Allen, Fractional CPO at Neso Advisors
Ty Allen, Founder and Fractional CPO at Neso Advisors, discusses his product management journey, from his early days at Georgia Tech and a successful startup to leading teams across various industries. Ty shares valuable insights on building adaptable roadmaps, balancing tech debt with feature development, and connecting product strategy to company vision. He also highlights the importance of a “bottom-up” roadmap approach and maintaining flexibility while ensuring strategic alignment. Chapters 00:00 - 01:32 — Introduction to Leadership and Product Management 01:33 - 04:16 — The Early Days: From Georgia Tech to Startup Success 04:17 - 08:03 — Product Strategy and Roadmap Essentials 08:04 - 12:23 — The Power of Adaptable Roadmaps 12:24 - 16:30 — Managing Tech Debt and Security in Roadmaps 16:31 - 19:52 — The Commercial Lens: Monetizing Features and Value Creation 19:53 - 23:23 — Balancing Innovation and Maintenance 23:24 - 27:29 — Aligning Product Teams with Company Goals 27:30 - End — Final Thoughts: Roadmap Wisdom and Career Advice Follow Ty Allen on Social Media Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tylerallen/ Sponsored by This Dot: thisdot.co...
Nov 4, 2024
1 min
Angular Signals for Simpler State Management and DOM Performance
In this episode of the Modern Web Podcast, host Rob Ocel is joined by Adam Rackis, Danny Thompson, and guest Braydon Coyer, Senior Front-End Developer at LogicGate to talk about using Angular Signals for improved state management and DOM performance. Braydon explains how Signals simplify Angular development and offer better readability and efficiency compared to traditional methods like RxJS. The conversation also touches on hiring in the AI era, discussing challenges around take-home tests and live coding, and how AI tools like ChatGPT are changing the interview process. Chapters 00:00 - Introduction 00:57 - The Angular Renaissance 02:24 - Signals in Angular 03:27 - Transitioning to Signals 04:19 - Signals in Utility Development 05:09 - RxJS and Signals 07:52 - Signals vs Other State Management Solutions 09:34 - Testing Signals 10:29 - Control Flow and Standalone Components in Angular 12:02 - Angular's Evolution and Accessibility 13:28 - Angular’s Framework Governance 17:10 - Hiring in the Age of AI 19:15 - Pair Programming and Real-Time Problem Solving 22:24 - The Role of AI in Interviews 27:58 - Wrapping Up Follow Braydon Coyer Twitter: https://x.com/BraydonCoyer Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/braydon-coyer/ Github: https://github.com/braydoncoyer...
Oct 30, 2024
1 min
Java’s AI Evolution: Semantic Caching JVM, and GenAI Architectures with Theresa Mamarella & Brian Sam-Bodden
In this episode of the Modern Web Podcast, Danny Thompson, Director of Technology at This Dot Labs, hosts a conversation with Theresa Mammarella, JVM Engineer at IBM, and Brian Sam-Bodden, Applied AI Engineer at Redis. They explore their talks at JCONF in Dallas, Texas, covering topics like GenAI architectures in the Java community and OpenJDK's Project Valhalla. Their conversation covers Java’s evolution, AI applications, semantic caching, and how these technologies are impacting development workflows and performance optimization. Chapters 00:00 - Introduction 01:00 - Brian on GenAI in the Java Community 01:47 - Java’s Safe Evolution Path 02:17 - Teresa on Project Valhalla 03:54 - Value Classes and Performance 04:33 - Brian on Semantic Caching 06:54 - Challenges of Rewording Prompts 09:15 - What is RAG Architecture? 11:34 - Java’s Role in AI 13:57 - Cost of LLMs and Caching Strategies 15:57 - Teresa on Java’s Future 18:22 - Learning Resources for Java Developers 20:44 - Addressing Misconceptions About Java 22:39 - Final Thoughts Follow Theresa Mammarella & Brian Sam on Social Media Theresa Mammarella Twitter: https://x.com/t_mammarella Brian Sam-Bodden Twitter: https://x.com/bsbodden Theresa Mammarella Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tmammarella/ Brian Sam-Bodden Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sambodden/...
Oct 29, 2024
1 min
How to Create a Website from Scratch with Nuxt Studio, Nuxt Content, and Nuxt UI
In this JS Drop, Simone is joined by Ferdinand and Baptiste from Nuxt Labs to explore the latest updates in the Nuxt ecosystem. Ferdinand kicks off with an introduction to Nuxt Labs and its dual mission of supporting the open-source Nuxt framework while building sustainable products like Nuxt Studio, Nuxt Content, and Nuxt UI. Baptiste takes over with a live demo, showcasing how to create a website from scratch using Nuxt Studio. He demonstrates the platform’s powerful content management features, showing how Nuxt Content integrates to manage and edit website content easily. Baptiste highlights Nuxt UI components and how they simplify coding by providing ready-to-use elements. The demo also features live editing and previews, making collaboration easier for both technical and non-technical users. Ferdinand wraps up by emphasizing Nuxt Studio’s user-friendly design and hints at exciting future updates, including branch management and internationalization support. This session highlights Nuxt Labs' commitment to enhancing the Vue.js ecosystem with versatile, user-focused tools. Follow Baptiste Leproux and Ferdinand Coumau: Baptiste Twitter: https://x.com/larbish Ferdinand Twitter: https://x.com/CoumauFerdinand Baptiste Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/baptiste-leproux-618842b0/ Ferdinand Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ferdinand-coumau-nuxt/ Sponsored by This Dot...
Oct 25, 2024
1 min
The HTML Dialog Element: Enhancing Accessibility and Ease of Use
The new dialog element streamlines the implementation of accessible dialogs, modals, and other kinds of non-modal dialogs....
Oct 25, 2024
4 mins
Unit Testing, TypeScript, and AI: Enhancing Code Quality and Productivity in 2024
In this episode of the Modern Web Podcast, host Rob Ocel and co-hosts Adam Rackis, Tracy Lee, and Danny Thompson discuss the importance of unit testing for maintaining code quality and reliability, emphasizing its role in scaling projects and ensuring long-term stability. The conversation also highlights the benefits of TypeScript in improving code safety and developer productivity, sharing experiences on how it catches errors early in the process. They also examine the growing role of AI in automating development tasks, weighing the efficiency gains against the risks of over-reliance on automation while stressing the importance of understanding the underlying processes. Chapters 00:00 - Introduction and Episode Overview 02:59 - The Importance of Unit Testing 10:03 - Best Practices for Implementing Unit Tests 17:15 - TypeScript’s Role in Code Safety and Productivity 2:30 - AI in Software Development: Automating Tasks 29:16 - Balancing AI Automation with Developer Expertise 32:07 - Final Thoughts and Closing Remarks Sponsored by This Dot: thisdot.co...
Oct 23, 2024
1 min
Lessons from Building Netlify with Matt Biilmann, CEO at Netlify
Matt Biilmann, CEO and co-founder of Netlify, for an in-depth discussion about the company's incredible growth journey—from a bootstrapped two-person startup to a global platform serving over 5 million developers and powering sites for major companies like Unilever and Asana. Matt reflects on the key lessons he’s learned while scaling Netlify, including raising $212 million in venture capital and growing the team to 200 employees. He shares valuable insights on balancing day-to-day operations with long-term vision, navigating the challenges of hiring experienced leaders, and fostering a culture of clarity and focus. Matt also highlights the importance of reducing friction for web development teams and ensuring fast time-to-market for web projects. Chapters 00:00 - Introduction 01:00 - The Origins of Netlify 02:30 - Netlify’s Growth Journey 04:00 - Impact of Netlify on the Web Ecosystem 05:30 - Building the Right Team 07:45 - From Developer to CEO: Evolving as a Leader 10:00 - The Balance Between Vision and Operations 12:00 - Delegating vs. Staying Hands-On 15:30 - Hiring Experienced Leaders 18:00 - Building Diverse Teams 20:00 - Intuition in Leadership 22:30 - Simplifying Goals and Objectives 25:00 - The Shift in Tech Leadership 28:00 - Changing Expectations for Engineers 30:00 - Advice for Startup Founders 32:00 - Where to Find Matt Online 33:00 - Conclusion Follow Matt Biilmann on Social Media Twitter: https://x.com/biilmann Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mathias-biilmann-christensen-a5a3805/ Github: https://github.com/biilmann Sponsored by This Dot: thisdot.co...
Oct 22, 2024
2 mins
"How do I undo my most recent commit?" - Mastering the git reset command
Ever messed up a commit? Learn how to undo it like a pro! Our new blog post breaks down the git reset command, helping you navigate those "oops" moments with confidence....
Oct 18, 2024
2 mins
How a First Reddit Engineer Builds Strong Engineering Cultures with Jeremy Edberg
In this episode of the Leadership Exchange, host Tracy Lee welcomes Jeremy Edberg, CEO of DeVos and former first employee at Reddit, to discuss leadership, engineering culture, and team building. They review Jeremy's career journey from Reddit to Netflix and beyond, sharing insights on scaling engineering teams, the impact of culture on development practices, and hiring strategies. Jeremy reflects on the evolution of his management style, emphasizing the importance of human connection in leadership, while also sharing lessons learned from his time at companies with strong engineering cultures. Chapters 00:00 - Introduction and Guest Welcome 00:48 - Jeremy’s Background and Career Journey 01:51 - Introduction to DeVos and Its Founders 02:30 - Throwback: Reddit Meetups and "Chad Berg" Chanting 03:05 - Rebuilding the Reddit Engineering Team 05:16 - Challenges of Scaling and Maintaining Reddit's Culture 07:08 - The Role of Code in Driving Team Culture 08:14 - Differences in Team Dynamics at Reddit and Netflix 09:07 - Working at Netflix vs. Cloudflare 09:38 - The "Sports Team, Not a Family" Philosophy at Netflix 11:21 - Understanding the Keeper Test at Netflix 14:27 - Evolving Netflix's Culture to Support Diversity and Inclusion 16:05 - Misconceptions About Netflix's Work Environment 17:17 - Work-Life Balance at Netflix: High Performance in a Chill Setting 20:28 - Key Elements of a Good Engineering Culture 23:09 - How Jeremy's Leadership Style Has Evolved 24:34 - Advice for Building Successful Engineering Teams 25:26 - Closing Remarks and Sponsor Thanks 26:13 - Where to Follow Jeremy Online Follow Jeremy Edberg Twitter: https://x.com/jedberg Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jedberg/ Sponsored by Wix Studio: wix.com/studio...
Oct 15, 2024
2 mins
Building Scalable AI Applications: Insights from AWS's Michael Liendo
In this episode of the Modern Web Podcast, Rob Ocel, Danny Thompson, and Adam Rackis talk with Michael Liendo, Senior Developer Advocate at AWS, about building practical AI applications and tackling challenges like scalability, multimodal functionality, and cloud infrastructure choices. Michael shares insights on tools like AWS Amplify and DynamoDB, discusses strategies for managing cloud costs, and explores the evolving role of prompt engineering. Michael previews his upcoming talks at AWS re:Invent on AI and scalable B2B SaaS applications. Chapters 00:00 - Introduction and Guest Welcome 01:30 - Talking Weather and Life in the Midwest 03:00 - Exploring Generative AI and Practical Applications 06:45 - Navigating Cloud Costs and Scalability Considerations 08:30 - Maintaining Creativity and Customization with AI 11:00 - Managed Services vs. On-Prem Infrastructure Debate 15:30 - Choosing a Tech Stack for Side Projects and Startups 18:45 - Learning Cloud: Paths for Full-Stack Cloud Development 22:30 - The Role of Cloud Certifications in Today's Market 26:00 - Preview of Michael’s Upcoming Talks at AWS re:Invent 32:00 - Where to Find Michael Online Follow Michael Liendo on Social Media Twitter: https://x.com/focusotter Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/focusotter/ Sponsored by Wix Studio...
Oct 14, 2024
1 min
The Journey To Making A New Framework: TanStack Start with Tanner Linsley
Danny Thompson, Director of Technology at This Dot Labs, talks with Tanner Linsley, Creator of TanStack, about his latest project, TanStack Start. They discuss the challenges of existing frameworks like Next.js and Remix, the development of TanStack Router, and the future of React Server Components. Tanner also explains how caching strategies and fine-grained invalidation can transform the user experience. Chapters 1. Introduction & Tanner’s Background (00:00) 2. Going Full-Time on TanStack (01:00) 3. The Birth of TanStack Router (02:21) 4. Why Build Another Framework? (04:00) 5. React Server Components: Potential & Limitations (07:05) 6. Fine-Grained Cache Invalidation & UX (09:02) 7. Parallel Data Fetching in Routing (13:39) 8. TanStack Start: Alpha & Future Plans (16:41) 9. Where to Learn More About TanStack (18:48) Find Tanner Linsley on Social Media Twitter: https://x.com/tannerlinsley Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tannerlinsley/ Github: https://github.com/tannerlinsley TanStack: https://tanstack.com/ Sponsored by Wix Studio...
Oct 9, 2024
1 min
Why is It so HARD to Break Into Tech with Jason Torres
Tracy Lee and Rob Ocel chat with Jason Torres about the challenges of breaking into tech, especially for self-taught and underrepresented developers. Jason shares his journey from a 15-year career in the film industry to pursuing software development, discussing the emotional and financial hurdles involved. They also discuss the importance of networking, finding a niche rather than mastering everything, and the impact of the tech downturn on junior developers. Chapters 1. Introduction and Tech Career Journeys (00:00 - 02:30) 2. The Struggles of Breaking Into Tech (02:31 - 06:00) 3. Jason’s Career Pivot from Film to Tech (06:01 - 10:30) 4. The Importance of Networking and Community (10:31 - 15:00) 5. Specializing vs. Being a Generalist in Tech (15:01 - 20:00) 6. Finding Your Path in Tech (20:01 - 25:30) 7. Dealing with Imposter Syndrome and Belonging (25:31 - 30:00) 8. Final Thoughts and Tips for Breaking Into Tech (30:01 - 33:00) 9. Closing Remarks and Tech Talk Humor (33:01 - End) Follow Jason Torres on Social Media Twitter: https://x.com/TasonJorres Linkeidn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/thejasontorres/ Sponsored by Wix Studio: https://www.wix.com/studio...
Oct 8, 2024
1 min
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