Colin Campbell - The Daily Habits of Effective Engineers

Robby has a chat with Colin Campbell, the Director of Engineering at Tucows. Colin delves into the professional ethos of software development, emphasizing that the caliber of an engineer’s work is a reflection of their daily habits. He stressed the importance of humility for software engineers, arguing that it is crucial for continuous improvement and effective teamwork. He also talked about the strategic approach of doing nothing during Sprint Zero, suggesting that thorough planning and groundwork are essential before diving into actual code deployment.

The conversation transitions to the practical aspects of the craft, sharing insights from his experience of refactoring the OpenSRS platform at Tucows. Colin expresses a strong stance against total rewrites of systems, except when transitioning to new platforms, advocating for the incremental and strategic improvements using the Strangler Fig pattern. He also describes the satisfaction derived from identifying and rectifying “code smells” through refactoring, underscoring this practice as a source of professional fulfillment. 

Moreover, he provides a glimpse into the life of platform engineers, detailing the intricacies of supporting application developers and the necessity of being decisively focused when addressing specific programming tasks, hence being “ruthless” to the ticket at hand to ensure quality and efficiency. For that and so much more, tune in to the episode on your favorite podcast platform.

Book Recommendations:

• The Creative Act By Rick Rubin

Helpful Links:

• Colin on LinkedIn
• https://www.tucows.com/
• https://tucowsdomains.com/
• https://opensrs.com/
• https://martinfowler.com/bliki/StranglerFigApplication.html

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