iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Cory House @housecor.com · 03/09/2025

How I handled React state over 10 years: 2014: Class state 2016: Redux 2018: useState, useReducer, useContext 2020: React query 2021: Zustand for globals 2024: useOptimistic, useTransition, useFormStatus, useActionState, RSC 2025: Tanstack DB or sync engine (Zero, Electric, Convex)

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Cory House @housecor.com · 02/06/2025

TypeScript syntax is often inspired by JavaScript. In some cases, TS even uses the exact same syntax as JS for a different purpose. The difference? JS features focus on values. TS features focus on types. Here's a few examples.

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Cory House @housecor.com · 30/05/2025

Are TypeScript types worth testing? Sometimes. Here's when, and how. www.youtube.com/shorts/Uv7r-...

youtube.com

Should I test my TypeScript types? #coding #programming

YouTube video by Cory House

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Cory House @housecor.com · 29/05/2025

Problem: I want to enforce a string format at compile time. Solution: Use a template literal type. Full "TypeScript: Deep Dive" course: dometrain.com/course/deep-...

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Cory House @housecor.com · 28/05/2025

Problem: I want to ensure my switch statement handles all potential cases. Solution: Use TypeScript's never type. Here's how: Full course: dometrain.com/course/deep-...

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Cory House @housecor.com · 24/05/2025

Problem: You have complex logic for narrowing a TypeScript type that you'd like to reuse in a few spots. Solution: Consider an assertion function. 20% off the full course: dometrain.com/course/deep-...

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Cory House @housecor.com · 23/05/2025

It’s live! “TypeScript: Deep Dive” explores advanced TS concepts: - Utility types - Generics - Mapped types - Conditional types - Template literal types - Runtime validation - Decorators - tsconfig techniques And over 250+ examples! Get 20% off at launch here: dometrain.com/course/deep-...

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Cory House @housecor.com · 22/05/2025

LLMs are handy when working with the command line. I wanted a count of all the exercise files in my new course. ChatGPT provided the correct Bash command immediately.

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Cory House @housecor.com · 21/05/2025

It’s done! I’ve been heads down for 3 months creating my most ambitious course yet: “TypeScript: Deep Dive” Just recorded the final clip. This course is 7 hours of advanced features, tips, patterns, and tricks to level up your TS skills. Publishing this week on Dometrain!

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Cory House @housecor.com · 18/05/2025

When migrating a codebase from JS to TS, there are two schools of thought: 1. Start strict, and loosen in spots as needed. 2. Start loose, and migrate to stricter rules over time. I prefer 1. It's safer. Default strict. Loosen when necessary.

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Cory House @housecor.com · 13/05/2025

Just realized Vitest now has built in support for testing TypeScript types. How? It includes expect-type now by default. Handy. Example:

import { assertType, expectTypeOf } from 'vitest'
import { mount } from './mount.js'

test('my types work properly', () => {
expectTypeOf(mount).toBeFunction()
expectTypeOf(mount).parameter(0).toMatchTypeOf<{ name: string }>()

// @ts-expect-error name is a string
assertType(mount({ name: 42 }))
})

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Cory House @housecor.com · 08/05/2025

Vibe coding is the modern version of copy/pasting code you don’t understand from Stack Overflow. It seems fine at first, but at some point you need to understand how to code.

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Cory House @housecor.com · 05/05/2025

Problem: Some interfaces like dates, times, localStorage, the URL, and the file system are “globals” that may change at any time. This makes it difficult to set up complex edge cases and hampers testing. Solution: Instead of coding against these APIs directly, wrap access in an interface.

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Cory House @housecor.com · 02/05/2025

Problem: When I correct an LLM it “forgets” and makes the mistake again later. Solution: 1. Create a llm-learning file. 2. Tell the LLM to write to that file each time I correct it. (I use copilot-instruction.md to instruct Copilot) Now it “learns” over time!

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Cory House @housecor.com · 19/04/2025

I validate all my runtime inputs: -Cookies -Local storage -URL params -API responses -Form values -Environment variables I use Zod to validate runtime inputs. So, I don’t need to worry if the input is malformed. I show how I work with Zod in detail in TypeScript: Deep Dive”. Publishing in May!

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Cory House @housecor.com · 17/04/2025

Claim: "Those who can't do, teach". Reality: "To go deeper, teach." For example, I've worked successfully in TypeScript for years. But now that I'm writing a deep dive course, I'm finding edge cases that I hadn't naturally explored as a practitioner. Teaching forces me to grow.

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Cory House @housecor.com · 17/04/2025

I'm reviewing a TypeScript codebase that's filled with type assertions like this. return fieldErrors as { [key: string]: { errors: string[] } } Type assertions are NOT safe. It's saying "Trust me TypeScript, it's fine." Instead, validate. Consider Zod, ArkType, etc.

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Cory House @housecor.com · 13/04/2025

There are many JS runtimes - Node, Deno, Bun, etc. Just learned about a new one: Bare. Bare is unique: - Light (runs on mobile) - No server (great for P2P apps) - Not tied to a specific JS engine. - Separate modules (Upgrade modules when desired. Install what you need) More: bare.pears.com

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Cory House @housecor.com · 10/04/2025

“We don’t have time to write tests” isn’t a valid excuse anymore. I'm presenting "Creating Automated Tests with AI" April 23 at 11AM ET. In this webinar I'll show how to quickly generate tests using ChatGPT, Copilot, and Applitools Autonomous. Sign up: applitools.info/8y6

applitools.info

Creating Automated Tests with AI | April 23 • 11 AM ET

Learn how to use GitHub Copilot, ChatGPT, and Applitools Autonomous to generate reliable automated tests—fast. In this session with Cory House, discover modern AI-driven workflows for Playwright, Vite...

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Cory House @housecor.com · 08/04/2025

TypeScript has around 20 utility types. There are 100's of handy 3rd-party utility types too. Here are the top 4 I found while researching "TypeScript: Deep Dive" (publishing soon). github.com/millsp/ts-to... github.com/piotrwitek/u... github.com/andnp/Simply... github.com/sindresorhus...

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Cory House @housecor.com · 02/04/2025

React Server Components have gotten a lot of hate recently. I'm not saying they're perfect, but this short comparison shows why I still think they're compelling. youtu.be/LdFPUzkaiCA

youtu.be

Why React Server Components? WAY less code.

YouTube video by Cory House

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Cory House @housecor.com · 28/03/2025

I've heard people say "spelling mistakes in code are harmless". I disagree. Spelling mistakes slow reading, create confusion, and can lead to bugs. Solution: Run cspell as part of your CI process. Here's an example cspell just found - a misspelled style that wasn't applying.

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Cory House @housecor.com · 27/03/2025

PSA 📢: This isn’t error handling. .catch((e) => console.log(e)) It's error swallowing. The user isn’t watching the console. Solution: Show the user a friendly non-technical message like "Sorry, an error occurred. Please try again later."

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Cory House @housecor.com · 26/03/2025

TypeScript radically improved my frontend code. Here are 7 reasons I use TypeScript instead of JavaScript. youtube.com/shorts/fQaC0...

youtube.com

7 Reasons I Use TypeScript instead of JavaScript #coding #programming

YouTube video by Cory House

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Cory House @housecor.com · 25/03/2025

Problem: Unused npm dependencies. They make package.json harder to read, bloat node_modules, waste our time updating packages we don’t use, and create confusion about what our project requires. Solution: npx depcheck It lists unused dependencies.

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Cory House @housecor.com · 21/03/2025

Problem: I want to see a list of the settings I've changed in VS Code. Solution: Search for @modified. This displays a list of modified settings. I used this today because I recently changed a setting that I wanted to revert, and couldn't recall the setting's name.

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Cory House @housecor.com · 20/03/2025

A React RSC payload includes 3 things: 1. The rendered server component. 2. Client component placeholders, with a reference to the JS chunk containing the client code. 3. Props passed from server components to client components. 3 is the place to watch for needless bloat.

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Cory House @housecor.com · 19/03/2025

In TypeScript, there are at least 4 ways to implement immutability. Here's how I choose between them. youtube.com/shorts/pwtKr...

youtube.com

4 Ways to Make Things Immutable in TypeScript #coding #programming

YouTube video by Cory House

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Cory House @housecor.com · 18/03/2025

Now that Node, Bun, and Deno can run TS files directly without compilation, using JSDoc syntax to declare TypeScript types is even harder to justify. JSDoc syntax is more verbose, lacks full feature support, and is harder to read. Look at this comparison. Easy choice.

// Prefer this
type User = {
/** User's ID */
id: number,

/** User's name. */
name: string
};

// Over this:
/**
* @typedef {Object} User
* @property {number} id - User's ID.
* @property {string} name - User's name.
*/

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Cory House @housecor.com · 17/03/2025

In TypeScript, Interfaces and Types are often interchangeable. But these six features only work with types. youtube.com/shorts/tR8ps...

youtube.com

6 type only TypeScript features #coding #programming #typescript #code #javascript

YouTube video by Cory House

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Cory House @housecor.com · 14/03/2025

Learn TypeScript in 60 seconds.

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Cory House @housecor.com · 13/03/2025

TypeScript is great. But it has 3 features that you should probably avoid. Here's what I suggest using instead. Clip from "TypeScript: Getting Started" on Dometrain youtube.com/shorts/tr39p...

youtube.com

TypeScript: 3 Features to Avoid

YouTube video by Cory House

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Cory House @housecor.com · 11/03/2025

I think I finally have my phone-friendly vertical video format dialed in. I'm using an iPad with a Neewer teleprompter as my monitor so I can look directly at the code as I narrate. And Camtasia creates the slick captions. Thoughts?

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Cory House @housecor.com · 11/03/2025

In TypeScript, interfaces and type aliases can "extend" each another. - An interface can extend a type. - A type alias can "extend" an interface (via a type intersection). Clip from "TypeScript: Getting Started" on Dometrain: dometrain.com/course/getti...

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Cory House @housecor.com · 11/03/2025

I published my 16th course today (this time with a new publisher, Dometrain). Before every course I think "I know this topic well". Then I start writing, and realize I need to dig deeper. The act of teaching is powerful: - Exposes knowledge gaps - Explaining things fosters deeper understanding

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Cory House @housecor.com · 10/03/2025

It's live! 📢 The course explores -Typing primitives, arrays, functions, classes, modules -Structured vs nominal types -TS config tips -Using TS with Node and Bun -Converting from JS to TS -Features to avoid, and what to use instead You can watch now on Dometrain: dometrain.com/course/getti...

dometrain.com

Getting Started: TypeScript

Get started with learning the TypeScript programming language

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Cory House @housecor.com · 09/03/2025

Just submitted the final clips for "TypeScript: Getting Started". 🎉 The course explores primitive types, arrays, tuples, enums, interfaces, functions, classes, modules, using TS with and without a compiler, features to avoid, and much more. Publishing this week on Dometrain!

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Cory House @housecor.com · 01/01/2025

V0's system prompt specifies these naming and casing rules. I agree with all this. For years, I used PascalCase for React components. But I now I use kebab-case instead to avoid casing issues.

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Cory House @housecor.com · 24/12/2024

In my experience, it’s rare to find someone in QA who is as good at writing automated tests as a developer. My theory on why: If you’re good at writing automated tests, then you’re probably good enough to become a dev and make more money.

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Cory House @housecor.com · 19/12/2024

What I love about Tanstack start: Simplicity. Competitors have larger, more confusing APIs because they have to support previous “mistakes”. Tanstack pulled an Apple - they waited and watched the early movers, then executed supremely well. Result? It’s wonderfully elegant.

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Cory House @housecor.com · 19/12/2024

Situation: You have a separate QA team or SDET embedded with your team. When should QA / SDET test a new feature? 3 options: 1. Before merge, in an ephemeral environment, or by pairing with dev 2. After merge in QA/UAT/staging environment 3. In prod My take? Prefer 1. 1/2

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Cory House @housecor.com · 13/12/2024

Controversial opinion: 🌶️ I prefer for all quality checks to occur *before* merge. Here's why. Merging code that hasn't been fully quality checked leads to batching work. It means we need to maintain a long-lived environment (like QA, UAT, or Staging) to integration test all our changes... 1/3

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Cory House @housecor.com · 13/12/2024

"Playwright Visual Testing Best Practices" just went live: youtube.com/watch?v=F0Aw... In this video, I explore visual testing best practices using two techniques: 1. Playwright's built-in snapshot testing 2. Applitools Eyes

youtube.com

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Cory House @housecor.com · 13/12/2024

My preferred development workflow for 2024: 1. All devs have their own DB instance. The DBs run locally, and can be reset via static SQL scripts via a single command. The scripts are committed to source control. So, we can code without internet, demo reliably, repro bugs, and write reliable tests.

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Cory House @housecor.com · 12/12/2024

Problem: How do we allow people to test our work before go live *without a staging environment*? Two options: 1. Automatically create an ephemeral environment for each branch with a url. Share that link. 2. Dark launch. Only expose the new feature in prod via a unique url or certain user.

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Cory House @housecor.com · 08/12/2024

Wow, Supabase is 🔥. So far I'm enjoying: Edge functions Built-in user auth Solid docs and SDKs Granular row level security Web-based DB Admin interface Realtime updates via websockets Auto-generated REST API with docs Generate TS types from the DB schema I'm impressed.

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Cory House @housecor.com · 04/12/2024

I’ve found the fewer environments a software team has the better. Every additional environment adds cost, management overhead, out of sync risk, and delays deployment. My ideal? Just two environments - Dev and prod. Merge to main auto deploys. Feature flag as needed. 🔥

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Cory House @housecor.com · 02/12/2024

I used to use Google and use Stackoverflow. Now I ask ChatGPT. It summarizes complex decisions quickly and lays out the information in a helpful manner. For example, I am considering a GUID primary key. ChatGPT summarizes the tradeoffs nicely.

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Cory House @housecor.com · 27/11/2024

The State of Frontend 2024 report is out. Lots of interesting insights. Also, this year I was invited to write a summary of the automated testing results. tsh.io/state-of-fro...

tsh.io

The State of Frontend 2024

Based on surveys filled in by 6028 developers from 139 countries, the State of Frontend 2024 is supported by 23 expert commentaries about frontend trends and the future.

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