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JD Lien

@jdlien.com
108 followers 243 following 154 posts

Web developer & entrepreneur.

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JD Lien @jdlien.com · 11/04/2026
My MacBook Neo review: webartisan.info/jd-s-2026-ma...
webartisan.info
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Reposted by JD Lien
Daniel Coulbourne @coulb.com · 30/04/2025
🔥 Want to use light mode on just one flux component in your otherwise dark-mode app?
@custom-variant dark (&:where(.dark, .dark *):not(:has(.light), .light *));
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Ana Tudor @anatudor.bsky.social · 01/05/2025
Want a checkerboard pattern? No need to use multiple `linear-gradient()` layers anymore. `conic-gradient()` has been supported cross-browser since 2020! PS: if you can, upvote stackoverflow.com/a/65129916/1... to make it the top answer and get more people (and AI) to use modern, well supported #CSS
html {
  background: 
    repeating-conic-gradient(#808080 0% 25%, #0000 0% 50%) 
      50% / 20px 20px
}
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Ash Allen @ashallendesign.co.uk · 07/01/2025
It's official! I'm releasing "The Web Dev's Guide to Freelancing" next week on Tuesday (14th Jan 2025) 🎉 👉 Pre-order: webdevfreelancing.com There's also an audiobook version that's been recorded by @jdlien.com! Let me tell you now, it sounds amazing! 🔥
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JD Lien @jdlien.com · 07/01/2025
If you work with databases enough, you’ll eventually need to migrate a database from one RDBMS to another. This can be challenging, but it doesn’t have to be! My latest article for @aaronfrancis.com covers planning migration of a DB from SQLite to Postgres. masteringpostgres.com/articles/mig...
masteringpostgres.com
Articles - Mastering Postgres
A guide to successfully migrating a large, complicated database from SQLite into PostgreSQL. This includes tips, advice, and a comprehensive migration checklist to help you create your own migration p...
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JD Lien @jdlien.com · 01/01/2025
It's that time of year when we look back at all the things we've done to remind us that maybe we've actually come further than we think we have. Here's my 2024 year in review going over a bunch of the crazy things I've done this year! webartisan.info/jds-2024-yea...
webartisan.info
JD's 2024 Year in Review
2024 was a strange year for me that was a mix of trying new things, accomplishing the best work of my career, and stark transitions into unexplored territory. I think it's important to take a moment every once in a while to step back and look at one'...
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JD Lien @jdlien.com · 20/12/2024
I love these sorts of handy reference sheets when trying to learn a new skill. Regex is so handy to have down cold as a programmer or sysadmin: media.datacamp.com/legacy/image...
media.datacamp.com
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JD Lien @jdlien.com · 20/12/2024
I'm reading @joshwcomeau.com's newsletter and it's fascinating seeing the difference between US and Canadian pay for developers as well as this interesting stat: If you call yourself an "Engineer" you make almost double what you do as a "Developer". And it's the same job. Ha!
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JD Lien @jdlien.com · 18/12/2024
I don't know what it is about me but it's almost like sprawling, messy legacy systems hunt me down and find me. How lovely it would be to just spend all my time on a beautiful, shiny greenfield Laravel app or something!
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JD Lien @jdlien.com · 17/12/2024
I've been freelancing from home for over six months. I have to say—the feeling of social isolation in this situation is a real thing, even for very introverted people like me. Some days I really miss how easy it was to chat with a coworker or grab a coffee. I'm bad about making a habit of that.
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JD Lien @jdlien.com · 17/12/2024
I've been writing a ton of stuff about databases lately, but I'm seriously considering a diversion into comedy writing. Heck, why not combine both? 🤔
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JD Lien @jdlien.com · 16/12/2024
If you've wondered whether SQLite or PostgreSQL would be a better choice for you or want to understand the differences between these popular (but very different) RDBMSes, here's my latest article for @aaronfrancis.com's DB blogs with a nice explainer: masteringpostgres.com/articles/pos...
masteringpostgres.com
Articles - Mastering Postgres
An explanation of the key differences between PostgreSQL and SQLite, including where each is best used, and what features PostgreSQL has that SQLite doesn't.
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JD Lien @jdlien.com · 12/12/2024
Hey, fellow database nerds! 👋🤓 I've written a fresh new article for the blog at @aaronfrancis.com's Mastering Postgres course. Today's topic: PostgreSQL vs. MySQL. You've heard of both and wondered what the differences are. I go deep in the article, but here's a teaser: 🧵
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JD Lien @jdlien.com · 12/12/2024
I don't know if all these AI tools are replacing software engineers wholesale, but if my credit card bill is representative of other developers', they are replacing a lot of software engineers' income with subscriptions! I don't know, maybe I'm just a sucker for wanting to tinker with these things.
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JD Lien @jdlien.com · 12/12/2024
I wonder what changed in iPhones that resulted in a torrent of people butt-dialing each other by accident. I’ve done it myself! I suspect a combo of things, but this went from something that never happened from 2007-2023, and now it seems quite frequent! 🤔 Good UI case study to be done here.
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JD Lien @jdlien.com · 12/12/2024
I just finished narrating, recording, editing, encoding, and tagging the audiobook version of @ashallendesign.co.uk's book, The Web Dev's Guide to Freelancing! Whew! That was a lot of work. Over 5.5 hours of finished audio for your educational listening enjoyment. I'm stoked for its release!
Screenshot of the Apple Books app showing the cover of The Web Dev's Guide to Freelancing by Ash Allen
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JD Lien @jdlien.com · 11/12/2024
I feel this, and I bet a lot of my followers do, too.
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JD Lien @jdlien.com · 10/12/2024
@aschmelyun.com I hope you have a great day!
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JD Lien @jdlien.com · 09/12/2024
I’m helping @ashallendesign.co.uk with his book about Freelancing as a web developer. We are going to release it on the World Wide Web in both print and as an audiobook! I’ve heard there are stores that are trying to sell books online, but will this really catch on?
Screenshot of Amazon.com from 1995 showing a very basic, rudimentary homepage.
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Ash Allen @ashallendesign.co.uk · 09/12/2024
Access Route Model-Bound Models in Laravel Form Requests with "#[RouteParameter]" 🚀 ashallendesign.co.uk/blog/laravel...
ashallendesign.co.uk
Access Route Model-Bound Models in Laravel Form Requests with "#[RouteParameter]"
Read about the #[RouteParameter] PHP attribute that you can use in Laravel to access route model-bound models in your form request classes. The article covers how to use the attribute and the problem ...
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Addy Osmani @addyosmani.bsky.social · 08/12/2024
"Free background-image remover in the browser!" ⚡️ Excited to announce bg.addy.ie, a free little app that removes backgrounds from images directly in your browser! Privacy-friendly. Uses Transformers.js, RMBG-1.4 & MODNet.
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JD Lien @jdlien.com · 08/12/2024
Videos on YouTube now: Title: "DON'T make the mistake of buying this! Worst product ever!" Thumbnail: "Guy with pained expression looking like he was shot in the stomach" Video Content: Blasé video where guy runs benchmarks and concludes "Yeah, everything is pretty good, it's alright" So annoying.
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JD Lien @jdlien.com · 06/12/2024
This a thing that's so ridiculous that everyone asks "Why on Earth would you go through the trouble to build this?" but I love that one person said "Why not?" and just built it because they thought it'd be fun. It comes with a fascinating writeup of all the crazy challenges Nolen had to solve!
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JD Lien @jdlien.com · 06/12/2024
Ha. Clearly, OpenAI are doing some extreme price discrimination, but at least if you happen to be in a position to need a tremendous number of requests, you’ve got an option if it’s worth it for you.
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JD Lien @jdlien.com · 05/12/2024
I’ll leave this here. Someday when my wife won’t get upset about me spending all my free time on music production, I’ll have a go at remaking or remastering this album. I’m proud to have produced this even though it’s far from perfect. music.apple.com/ca/album/eur...
music.apple.com
Europa by Cosmic Cadet on Apple Music
Album · 2024 · 10 Songs
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JD Lien @jdlien.com · 05/12/2024
Apple Music has a 2024 Replay thingy, it’s kind of fun to see my top artists. My top album (Europa by Cosmic Cadet) was the one I made myself, so at least I made someone’s list! 😂
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JD Lien @jdlien.com · 04/12/2024
Ever wondered how primary keys work in SQLite? If you want to make the most of your databases, you'll need to understand these, as they are different from most RDBMS systems. I wrote an article for @aaronfrancis.com's High-Performance SQLite course covering this. Here's a rundown:
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JD Lien @jdlien.com · 04/12/2024
Truth. How can you not love this guy?
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JD Lien @jdlien.com · 03/12/2024
Very cool new feature, although I don’t own a Vision Pro. Absolutely not worth it yet, though it’s a cool tech demo. I just hope Apple adds some features to make an ultrawide display a bit more useful on macOS.
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Gergely Orosz @gergely.pragmaticengineer.com · 02/12/2024
There's this evergreen joke on software development that goes something like this: "We're done with 90% of the project. Which means we only have the other 90% left to go." It's funny because it's true. It's also why experienced engineers are in-demand: they are the "finishers." AI tools: not now.
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JD Lien @jdlien.com · 01/12/2024
Everyone is posting their “Bluesky profile roast”. What a clever little site! “@jdlien.com is like drinking a craft beer brewed with a hint of sarcasm—distinctive, bitter, but you keep coming back for more.” blueskyroast.com/roast/jdlien...
blueskyroast.com
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JD Lien @jdlien.com · 30/11/2024
I bet if Bluesky added the ability to edit posts, that'd be a nice big slap in the face to X. Sure, you can finally do it now, but only on paid accounts, and the way you can do it is pretty limited (for good reasons, as the potential for abuse is high).
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JD Lien @jdlien.com · 30/11/2024
This sucks — if you're a well-known person and choose to use your own domain, you should probably register the typical account names you use to avoid this (e.g., I registered @jdlien.bsky.social for this reason, although I originally used that for a bit before @jdlien.com
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JD Lien @jdlien.com · 30/11/2024
This is spot on!
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JD Lien @jdlien.com · 29/11/2024
Wow, for the years I've worked with PostgreSQL, I only now realized that I (and everyone else) pronounces it incorrectly! It was named "Postgres" because it came after "Ingres", and in 1996 tacked on "QL" after adding SQL support. It's "Post-GRES-cue-el" www.craigkerstiens.com/2018/10/30/p...
craigkerstiens.com
The biggest mistake Postgres ever made - CRAIG KERSTIENSBluesky
Postgres has experienced a long and great run. It is over 20 years old and has a track record of being safe and reliable (which is the top thing I care about in a database). In recent years it has bec...
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Vite @vite.dev · 26/11/2024
Vite 6.0 is out ⚡️ vite.dev/blog/announc...
vite.dev
Announcing Vite 6
Vite 6 Release Announcement
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JD Lien @jdlien.com · 28/11/2024
There are so many fun things you have to know when you alternate between editing large quantities of prose in British, American, and Canadian English.
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JD Lien @jdlien.com · 28/11/2024
I'm on the homestretch editing @ashallendesign.bsky.social's book "The Web Dev's Guide to Freelancing". I'm stoked for its release! After an all-nighter going through "Client and Project Management", Ash's sage advice gives me the confidence to go out and take on big new projects. Great info here.
An ultrawide computer monitor with another monitor on top, purple and pink lights in the background, a purple-backlit keyboard on a desk, and a large studio monitor speaker on the right.
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JD Lien @jdlien.com · 27/11/2024
I almost can't believe it, but I just booked General American accent training. Soon I'll be able to say "A loud shout went about the house when the cat found a mouse, and
pounced." without all the United Statesians laughing at me. Well, probably not, but that's the dream.
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JD Lien @jdlien.com · 25/11/2024
This is a neat video from @veritasium-science.bsky.social about what happened to Amelia Earhart. I was (briefly) an aviator when I was younger so it was fascinating for me to learn more about that. youtu.be/zTDFhWWPZ4Q?...
youtu.be
The Physics That Doomed Amelia Earhart
YouTube video by Veritasium
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JD Lien @jdlien.com · 24/11/2024
I’m just gonna leave this here:
A thermal receipt that reads:

He's making a database.
He's sorting it twice.
SELECT * from contacts WHERE
behavior = 'nice'
SQL Clause is coming to town!
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JD Lien @jdlien.com · 24/11/2024
Hard agree, here. There are so many way better ways to evaluate if someone will be a competent developer. Leetcode is so irrelevant to the actual day-to-day work of a SWE.
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JD Lien @jdlien.com · 24/11/2024
Super cool! This platform will be so great for us nerds sharing coding tips!
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Jay 🦋 @jay.bsky.team · 23/11/2024
Did you know there’s a site to search for starter packs of people to follow? Built by @mubashariqbal.com blueskydirectory.com/starter-pack...
blueskydirectory.com
Bluesky Starter Packs - Bluesky Directory
Browse a list of Bluesky Starter Packs. Discover and connect with your community on Bluesky
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JD Lien @jdlien.com · 23/11/2024
I’ve been using Tailwind 4.0 since it went Alpha and it has been incredible. Now that it’s in Beta, you’ve got to give it a try. Just a beautiful developer experience. Way to go, @adamwathan.com and team! tailwindcss.com/blog/tailwin...
tailwindcss.com
Tailwind CSS v4.0 Beta 1 - Tailwind CSS
After a long alpha period, we're excited to release the first public beta of Tailwind CSS v4.0.
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JD Lien @jdlien.com · 23/11/2024
This bit resonates with my experience so far. Bluesky feels fresh and fun in a way that Twitter nor X hasn’t for a long time and the quality of engagement is better. I’m not ready to leave X yet, but that time may come soon!
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JD Lien @jdlien.com · 23/11/2024
Clearly Anthropic is no joke and is a serious player in the frontier LLM space. It’s my go-to for code generation at the moment.
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JD Lien @jdlien.com · 22/11/2024
SQLite has a reputation for being slow but can perform extremely well, especially when configured with PRAGMA commands. @aaronfrancis.com and I wrote an article explaining what these commands are and what the ideal settings are for most databases: highperformancesqlite.com/articles/sql...
highperformancesqlite.com
Articles - High Performance SQLite
SQLite has several settings that can be changed through
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JD Lien @jdlien.com · 22/11/2024
This @kentcdodds.com article implies most opportunities come from relationships borne of in-person interactions. I agree. Most opportunities in my life came from real-world relationships. When so much is AI slop and scams, relationships are more important than ever. kentcdodds.com/blog/ai-is-t...
kentcdodds.com
AI is taking your job
AI is changing how hiring works, and that makes in person connections even more important.
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