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  • Using Machine Learning on Microcontrollers: Decreasing Memory and CPU Usage to Save Power and Cost

    According to Eirik Midttun, artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) are useful tools for interpreting sensor data, especially when the input is complex, such as vibration, voice, and vision. The main challenges of using machine learning on microcontrollers are the constraints in computing power available and cost-related requirements that come with microcontroller-based designs,

  • Why Software Developers Need to Build Their Personal Brand

    Growing your personal brand can improve your credibility, give you greater impact, and lead to better opportunities, Pablo Fredrikson said at QCon San Francisco. As a staff plus engineer, helping others solve problems creates value for the company. His advice is to find out what you are passionate about, learn more about it, get better at it, and share it, to build your personal brand over time.

  • Shaping an Impactful Data Product Strategy

    Lior Barak and Gaëlle Seret advocate proactive, business-focused strategies for data engineering. Barak proposes a 3-year roadmap using his Data Ecosystem Vision Board to align teams on strategic capabilities and measure ROI, cost, and impact. Seret promotes a "data as a product" approach, co-creating visions with stakeholders and evolving shared taxonomies to ensure long-term alignment.

  • Agile Alliance Joins the Project Management Institute

    The Agile Alliance has officially joined the Project Management Institute (PMI), forming the PMI Agile Alliance. The partnership aims to enhance global project management by integrating Agile principles with PMI's resources and reach. While many celebrate the opportunities for collaboration, development and innovation, critics express concerns about the potential dilution of Agile values.

  • Learnings from Internal Tool Migrations to Support Software Engineering Efficiency

    In her presentation at QCon San Francisco, Ying Dai shared two critical software engineering migration stories - one focused on production monitoring and the other on production deployments with automated validations. Both migrations were driven by the goal of enhancing engineering efficiency, but each came with its own challenges and lessons.

  • How to Go from Copy and Paste Deployments to Full GitOps

    InnerSource helped reduce the amount of development work involved when introducing GitOps by sharing company-specific logic, Jemma Hussein Allen said at QCon London. She showed how they went from copy and paste deployments to full GitOps. She mentioned that a psychologically safe environment is really important for open and honest discussions that can help resolve pain points and drive innovation.

  • How to Do National Language Adaptation in C++

    As customers take on a more active role in national language adaptation, the process should be simple, using tools they are familiar with, Daniela Engert stated in her talk at NDC TechTown. They decided to use GetText in C++ where they provide tools and procedures for their customers to provide translations.

  • Exploring Factors that Drive Software Engineering Productivity

    Understanding what drives software development productivity is the key to making high-impact investments in engineering productivity, Emerson Murphy-Hill said at QCon San Francisco. He presented the results of their investigation into factors that predict developer productivity and shared what they learned from exploring inequities in software engineering.

  • How to Use Property-Based Testing as Fuzzy Unit Testing

    According to Eivind Jahren, property-based testing is an invaluable tool for its ease of use and effectiveness. It is flexible in what requirements one can formulate and is simple and lightweight enough to put in the hands of software developers to perform iterative testing on a daily basis, less test code is required, and it’s easier to reuse test data generators for complex structured data.

  • Exploring AI's Role in Automating Software Testing

    QA professionals are increasingly turning to AI to address the growing complexities of software testing. AI-driven automation can improve test coverage, reduce test cycle times, and enhance the accuracy of results, leading to faster software releases with higher quality.

  • How Slack Used an AI-Powered Hybrid Approach to Migrate from Enzyme to React Testing Library

    Enzyme’s lack of support for React 18 made their existing unit tests unusable and jeopardized the foundational confidence they provided, Sergii Gorbachov said at QCon San Francisco. He showed how Slack migrated all Enzyme tests to React Testing Library (RTL) to ensure the continuity of their test coverage.

  • How to Use Programming Rules and Guidelines

    According to Arne Mertz, using programming rules and guidelines helps developers work together, as they result in more consistent and better code. However, using them the wrong way can have the opposite result - code that is cumbersome to read or solves problems in suboptimal or even wrong ways.

  • How to Delight Your Developers with User-Centric Platforms and Practices

    By focusing on the users, platform development teams can ensure that they build a platform that tackles the true needs of developers, Ana Petkovska said at QCon London. In her talk, Delight Your Developers with User-Centric Platforms & Practices, she shared what their Developer Experience (DevEx) group looks like and what products and services they provide.

  • Using DORA for Sustainable Engineering Performance Improvement

    DORA can help to drive sustainable change, depending on how it is used by teams and the way it is supported in a company. According to Carlo Beschi, getting good data for the DORA keys can be challenging. Teams can use DORA reports for continuous improvement by analysing the data and taking actions.

  • What Developers Can Do to Continue to Program as They Age

    Trouble seeing, pain, and stiffness are some of the things that can make it harder to program as you age. But there are solutions like changing fonts, using glasses, and rearranging the office layout. Some older programmers' mental concerns included a lack of motivation and cynical feelings. According to Gregory, exercising and getting good sleep help to keep the abilities needed as a developer.

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