Recent posts

Notes on system reliability

Performance optimization is a tempting distraction. Every line of code that exists to optimize one specific case is a line that must be maintained and understood forever.

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What makes code readable

Performance optimization is a tempting distraction. Every line of code that exists to optimize one specific case is a line that must be maintained and understood forever.

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From the archive

Most codebases grow in directions their authors never anticipated. The pressure to optimize early is real, but constraints often produce more elegant solutions than freedom ever could.

About this site

I write about software architecture, distributed systems, and the craft of programming. Posts are infrequent but hopefully worth the wait.

Thoughts on writing. Updated monthly.

Elsewhere

Occasional writing on design topics. Past essays here.