There's no I in Interface

I was asked recently what makes REST scalable. I wasn’t quite sure how to answer because all I knew about it (other than CRUD-type HTTP verbs) was that it was stateless. Before the question was asked, I had mentally mapped that CRUD concept to REST. Because I wasn’t totally sure, I figured I should dig in and learn more about REST. While there can be methods on the exposed API that take HTTP verbs like PUT, GET, DELETE, etc., there’s more to the story than that. Plus, what gives, brain? REST == CRUD?? WTF? So what is REST? REST stands for REpresentational State Transfer. It’s an architectural style for a standard communication scheme between computer systems. Most of the time, the protocol standard is HTTP, a stateless communication standard used ubiquitously across the Internet. Due to the stateless nature of the communication, as long as the message between the two systems doesn't change, the code on either side of the communication can be changed without is...

Recently, I had the opportunity to interview at a place that really excited me. The software they were creating (software for managing various systems), the technologies they were using (.NET, WebAPI, PWA, etc.), the methodology (CI/CD using AppVeyor, Octopus, git) and the learning environment were all just what I was looking for. The interview went pretty well, but the way I prepared for it was totally different than what I was expecting. The answers to the interviewers' questions, even as they were coming out of my mouth, were not my best work. I was trying too hard. This is the first job I was really excited about in a long time. I thought it would be a great fit, but I was sabotaging myself at every turn, it seemed, because I was trying so hard to do and say the right things. This interview process made me stop and reflect on what I really do know - those technologies and methodologies that I could explain to someone not in the software space. It's what prompted the REST ...

Recently, my first contracting job ended rather abruptly. My recruiter had mentioned a couple weeks before the notice that my contract was going to be extended by six months, so I was of the impression that I could take my time finding my next gig. Fortunately, the company gave my a (close to) 30 day notice, so I had some time to prepare for interviewing and all the work that goes with that. 30 days to find a new gig, though, isn't much time when you factor in all the processes that go along with finding and securing a new job. I saw a statistic recently that said the majority of new jobs are secured through people you know. Working remotely does have the disadvantage of not getting out and seeing/meeting new people, but then again, you'd really only be seeing/meeting the people you work with, which you do the same with remote without the morning ritual of water-cooler/coffee talk. Having worked 100% remote for the last 3 years or so, I'm ready to get into the office again...