WHAT WOULD THE CORGIS DO?

Thoughts on software remodeling and legacy code.
  • Portrait of an IBMi Modernization Project
     MAY 9, 2016 Written by Don Denoncourt

    I’m going to list tools and strategies that a state-of-the-art application development project should be using. Essentially a portrait of the infrastructure of a successful IBMi application start. I’ll start with suggestions on dealing with the daunting task of selecting a language and framework. Then, I’ll recommend tools for source control, testing, editing, collaborative communication, knowledge base management, and project management. And I’ll finish with some considerations for RPG integration strategies and database enhancements.

  • How We at Corgibytes Developed Our Core Values
     APR 28, 2016 Written by Andrea Goulet

    At Corgibytes, we have five core values: Think of Others, Calm the Chaos, Communication is Just as Important as Code, Adopt a Growth Mindset, and Craftsmanship in Context. These values are the nucleus of our company: the center of all decisions, big and small, for the Corgibytes executive team and staff. Here's a look at each one in detail.

  • Engineers, Interruptibility, and Inception Layers
     APR 15, 2016 Written by Andrea Goulet

    How do you interrupt your engineers appropriately? At Corgibytes, we use Inception Layers do describe how interruptible we are.

  • How Empathy Driven Development is Transforming The Tech Industry
     APR 1, 2016 Written by Andrea Goulet

    When we put empathy at the center of our technology, human connection becomes stronger. Infusing empathy throughout your organization and development strategy can have profound positive impacts on customer loyalty, employee retention, and vendor service.

  • Pyramid of Automated Tests
     MAR 28, 2016 Written by M. Scott Ford

    Integration tests? Unit tests? Acceptance tests? How do all these tests work together and what should you focus on first? We like to think of testing as a pyramid. The goal is to build an entire pyramid and keep it growing at scale.

  • Why We Stopped Estimating Ongoing Development
     MAR 4, 2016 Written by Andrea Goulet

    Estimates are useful. They help business owners predict and control their budget, scope, and timelines. Right? Well, not always. Over the years, we’ve learned that there are some projects where estimates work great and others where it’s a disaster.

  • Delayed Job on OpsWorks: A Chef Recipe Debugging Story
     JAN 5, 2016 Written by Don Denoncourt

    One of my current projects' Rails application is hosted on AWS OpsWorks. OpsWorks is a lower-cost alternative to Heroku and EngineYard that still provides a full-suite of features, from deployment to scalability and fail-over. As with most Rails applications, this application requires background tasks.

  • I Lied About My Role Model in a Job Interview
     OCT 25, 2015 Written by Don Denoncourt

    When I was interviewed by Corgibytes for a lead developer position, I was asked who were my role models. I responded David Heinemeier-Hansson (DHH) and Kent Beck. I expounded: DHH because he is a business developer rather than a computer scientist and he has great ideas about achieving excellence while maintaining a work/life balance. And furthermore Kent Beck because, as brilliant as he is, he still sees himself as a coder. Whatever.... The thing is, I lied.

  • 5 Reasons to Try bitHound for Your Next JavaScript Project
     OCT 13, 2015 Written by Andrea Goulet

    When a JavaScript project comes our way, we’ve found bitHound to be a fantastic tool to help us understand where we can have the most impact on a project. We love them, and not just because their company also has a dog in their name. So what makes bitHound stand out from other static analysis tools out there? We’re glad you asked.

  • Developer Differences: Makers vs Menders
     AUG 14, 2015 Written by Andrea Goulet

    While it's true that there are many software developers who do enjoy starting with a clean slate, there is also a group who loves working on making existing applications better. Rather than starting from scratch and building an 80% solution, these developers are ideal for taking over a project once it's become stable, and nurturing it for a long time. Neither developer is better. Both are needed in the software world. You just need to understand when to use each one.