iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Alan Ridlehoover @alan.codegardener.com · 17/03/2026

If your codebase were an automobile, what kind would it be? A sports car? Minivan? Pickup? Regardless, if you let complexity sneak into your codebase, you're driving with one foot on the gas, one on the brake. The more complex, the harder you're pushing. Take your foot off the brake! Simplify!

020

Alan Ridlehoover @alan.codegardener.com · 13/03/2026

Bumping for visibility, since I posted this at an obscene hour.

000

Alan Ridlehoover @alan.codegardener.com · 13/03/2026

"Red, green, refactor" promotes premature abstraction. Ward Cunningham on convincing management to refactor: "I don't. Two estimates—make room for the feature, then add it." Do structural refactor before the next story, not after this one. What I do instead: the.codegardener.com/red-green-pr...

the.codegardener.com

Red, Green, Premature Refactor

"Red, green, refactor" promotes premature abstraction. I had all the information to come to this conclusion 20 years ago. I'm embarrassed to admit how long it actually took. What makes me say that? ...

011

Alan Ridlehoover @alan.codegardener.com · 10/03/2026

Not where I am. But Cisco is huge.

Alan Ridlehoover @alan.codegardener.com · 10/03/2026

We hold all code submitted to our repo to the same standard, regardless of who or what wrote the code. AI can totally get there. So we’d likely push back on the PM.

100

Alan Ridlehoover @alan.codegardener.com · 10/03/2026

Are you a builder who prioritizes shipping software? Or are you a craftsperson who prioritizes well designed code? It’s a false choice. You get more done with well designed code and tests than you do without. Craftspeople move faster than Builders who eventually grind to a tech debt induced halt.

163

Alan Ridlehoover @alan.codegardener.com · 07/03/2026

Totally! False confidence. Bugs can still sneak in with 100% line & branch coverage. But, without 100% coverage, you cannot refactor code with full confidence. It's not about bugs. It's about moving fast and keeping your design malleable!

020

Alan Ridlehoover @alan.codegardener.com · 07/03/2026

Have you ever been told by an executive that test coverage past 80% produces diminishing returns? Have you asked them which 20% you should not test? Have they ever given you an answer?

171

Alan Ridlehoover @alan.codegardener.com · 06/03/2026

Come ready to share your experience with disagreement. Come ready to receive the wisdom of the room. And leave with a framework for breaking through disagreements and making decisions together.

000

Alan Ridlehoover @alan.codegardener.com · 06/03/2026

We'll cover why persuasion fails, how to facilitate a decision-making process that actually works, and the role psychological safety plays in all of it — skills that can be applied to any human relationship.

100

Alan Ridlehoover @alan.codegardener.com · 06/03/2026

There are two words that can change all of that. They're disarming, vulnerable, and surprisingly hard to say. This workshop is built around those words — and everything that has to be true for them to work.

100

Alan Ridlehoover @alan.codegardener.com · 06/03/2026

Every experienced engineering team has been here: a decision needs to be made, everyone has a favorite solution, and the harder people push, the more entrenched people get. Persuasion—our default tool for resolving disagreements—doesn't just fail in these situations. It can actively damage the team.

100

Alan Ridlehoover @alan.codegardener.com · 06/03/2026

I'm working on an idea for a workshop at #RubyConf. I'm wondering if you would find this a valuable use of your time at a technical conference. Please comment to register your vote. Here's the title: You're Right! Going from Disagreement to Decision without Damaging Your Team Abstract in 🧵

100

Alan Ridlehoover @alan.codegardener.com · 25/11/2025

Same. I felt seen by her talk. I, too, started programming in the 1900’s.

David Roberts @volts.wtf · 21/11/2025

Reposted by Alan Ridlehoover

In an era filled with tech dipshits who never developed emotionally past the age of 13 & use their wealth to become odious monsters ... ... listen to Steve Wozniak.

9969491866

Alan Ridlehoover @alan.codegardener.com · 22/11/2025

Saw you at the conference. Didn't get a chance to chat. Glad you enjoyed SF! Which talk should I absolutely not miss when the video comes out?

230

Alan Ridlehoover @alan.codegardener.com · 09/11/2025

Enjoyed the article! I gave up and wrote my own definition for vision: A vision statement is an inspirational postcard from an aspirational future. It should be brief. It should paint a picture. And it should make you wish you were there. the.codegardener.com/vision-missi...

the.codegardener.com

Vision, Mission, Values

A vision statement should be an inspirational postcard from an aspirational future. It should be brief. It should paint a picture. And it should make you wish you were there!

Shane Becker @veganstraightedge.com · 22/10/2025

Reposted by Alan Ridlehoover

A love letter by XKCD: What are you doing? Lenthening the sunset Pushing back the night Giving me a little more time Here with you. youtu.be/U8F7UNK9jco

XKCD drawing of two stick figures watching a sunset, with the text:

What are you doing?
Lenthening the sunset
Pushing back the night
Giving me a little more time
Here with you.

041

Reposted by Alan Ridlehoover

Shane Becker @veganstraightedge.com · 28/10/2025

TIL: Wubular github.com/RubyElders/wubular > Wubular is a modern re-imagining of Rubular, built with Ruby compiled to WebAssembly. > It lets you compose and test Ruby regular expressions directly in your browser — no backend server required.

github.com

GitHub - RubyElders/wubular: Created with CodeSandbox

Created with CodeSandbox. Contribute to RubyElders/wubular development by creating an account on GitHub.

021

Alan Ridlehoover @alan.codegardener.com · 17/10/2025

Excellent suggestions. One other challenge: what happens when the OPUR is unavailable or leaves the organization? Is there backup? Would it not make more sense for there to be a team instead of one person?

Alan Ridlehoover @alan.codegardener.com · 17/10/2025

In other words, as the OPUR, I am empowered but don’t have time. The people on the rotation have time but don’t feel empowered because there is an OPUR. I do not see that as a healthy dynamic.

Alan Ridlehoover @alan.codegardener.com · 17/10/2025

I’m thinking about changing the run book for the process to make updating the run book part of the process.

Alan Ridlehoover @alan.codegardener.com · 17/10/2025

“Could you make that change for me so the next person in the rotation can benefit from your learnings?” usually works.

Alan Ridlehoover @alan.codegardener.com · 17/10/2025

Rather than update the docs or work on the backlog of tickets to further automate the process, they tell the coordinator (me) that changes need to be made. But I am just one person. By making me the OPUR, nothing is happening to improve the system. So I turn it around on them.

Alan Ridlehoover @alan.codegardener.com · 17/10/2025

We have a gated deployment process that requires a human to push buttons and check dashboards as a build goes through automated end-to-end tests in staging and canary before being promoted to production. We have a rotation of engineers who run the process. They have downtime while tests run.

210

Alan Ridlehoover @alan.codegardener.com · 16/10/2025

Hot take: Developers who are happy to complain about friction within a process, generally don't lift a finger to resolve it.

070

Alan Ridlehoover @alan.codegardener.com · 16/10/2025

Hot take: Developers will complain about other people's flaky tests but defer dealing with their own for as long as possible.

030

Alan Ridlehoover @alan.codegardener.com · 16/10/2025

Hot take: Developers will complain about a build that takes two minutes longer than they think it should, but will gladly spend two days gold plating something.

140

Alan Ridlehoover @alan.codegardener.com · 15/10/2025

A vision statement should be an inspirational postcard from an aspirational future. It should be brief. It should draw a picture. It should make you wish you were there! the.codegardener.com/vision-missi... #management #vision #mission #values

the.codegardener.com

Vision, Mission, Values

A vision statement should be an inspirational postcard from an aspirational future. It should be brief. It should paint a picture. And it should make you wish you were there!

031

Alan Ridlehoover @alan.codegardener.com · 07/10/2025

You know Fito and I will be there!!!

Alan Ridlehoover @alan.codegardener.com · 23/09/2025

Hot take: The Rails Way™ favors modification over extension.

030

Alan Ridlehoover @alan.codegardener.com · 23/09/2025

Software that is designed to be modified is software that is hard to change. Software that is designed to be extended is software that is easy to change.

050

Alan Ridlehoover @alan.codegardener.com · 28/08/2025

# My new favorite strategy for getting things done. def actualize(vision) think_big start_small deliver_value earn_trust grow_influence end vision = 1 do actualize(vision) vision += 1 end #ruby #vision #gtd

040

Alan Ridlehoover @alan.codegardener.com · 20/08/2025

@drbragg.dev What’re you doing in early September?

Alan Ridlehoover @alan.codegardener.com · 15/08/2025

Compliments are a reflection of the light you are putting out into the world. Accept them gracefully. Others have a better view of your aura than your inner critic does. (left) What your inner critic sees. (right) What others see.

An African man, Asian woman, and Caucasian woman looking forlorn. This is what their inner critics see in them.

An African man, Asian woman, and Caucasian woman smiling, with a warm glowing aura around them. This is what others see in them.

060

Alan Ridlehoover @alan.codegardener.com · 07/08/2025

Compliments are a reflection of the light you are putting out into the world. Accept them graciously by recognizing that other people have a better view of your aura than your inner critic does.

1101

Alan Ridlehoover @alan.codegardener.com · 05/08/2025

I end up using the right half of my left monitor and the left half of my right monitor. You’ll need a good window manager. I use magnet on MacOS.

Aubrey @aubreysambor.com · 05/08/2025

Reposted by Alan Ridlehoover

Hi all! 👋 I was laid off and am looking for my next senior front end developer role. I have 19+ years of experience working with small agencies and Fortune 500 companies and focus on writing clean, accessible HTML, CSS, and JavaScript. Resume: aubreysambor.com/resume/ Leads/reposts appreciated!

aubreysambor.com

Resume | Aubrey Sambor

A blog about web development, knitting, and other assorted things.

37977

Alan Ridlehoover @alan.codegardener.com · 01/08/2025

Congratulations! And, oof! I always speed up in front of a conference audience. Maybe put some reminders in your speakers notes to pause and take a sip of water. Or, ad lib more. Ad libbing always slows me down. YMMV.