Hacking the Grepson

Hacking the Grepson 121: Famous Laws of Software Development, Part 2

Wed, 10 Jun 2026 08:00:00 -0700

A continuation of discussion about the laws of nature, vis a vis software development, are bandied about by Matt and Mike in this episode. Some of them include Linus's Law, the Pareto Principle, and even the Ninety-Nine Rule.

* Famous Laws of Software Development

Hacking the Grepson 120: Famous Laws of Software Development, Part 1

Wed, 27 May 2026 08:00:00 -0700

There are some truisms in the world of software development that have been codified into laws, adages, and principles. Matt and Mike discuss some of them in this episode, including ones named after people like Murphy, Hofstadter, and Conway.

Hacking the Grepson 119: Three Pillars of JavaScript Bloat

Wed, 13 May 2026 08:00:00 -0700

Matt and Mike discuss the issues that arise when you try to be everything to everybody for every time, thanks to an insightful blog post about the ever-increasing size of programming language dependencies.

* The Three Pillars of JavaScript Bloat

Hacking the Grepson 118: Claude Mythos

Wed, 29 Apr 2026 08:00:00 -0700

Anthropic created a new Claude model called Mythos, and it's apparently super-duper good at detecting software vulnerabilities. It's so good, in fact, that it can't be released publicly without basically giving the Internet as we know it a death warrant. Matt fills us in and Mike responds with a mixture of awe and fascination.

Hacking the Grepson 117: The World Outside

Wed, 15 Apr 2026 08:00:00 -0700

Where outside do you want to go today?

Hacking the Grepson 116: Godot Sandbox Tinkering

Wed, 01 Apr 2026 08:00:00 -0700

Matt has created a 2D overhead sandbox project in Godot with the help of Claude Code. Mike looks at it and thinks it is pretty neat. Then both Matt and Mike talk about it. Gamedev continues apace!

Hacking the Grepson 115: Rorasuketo Creator Interview

Wed, 18 Mar 2026 08:00:00 -0700

Last time on the podcast we talked about a game in development called Rorasuketo. This time we talk about it again, but with one small change: the creator is with us! Matt and Mike and Cam chat about game development in RPGMaker, roller derby, and creative constraints, among other things.

* Rorasuketo Soundtrack

* Rorasuketo Dev Blog

* Rorasuketo on Steam

Hacking the Grepson 114: Rorasuketo

Wed, 04 Mar 2026 08:00:00 -0800

Roller derby, JRPGs, blogging, existential panic...Matt and Mike cover it all by introducing a long-running game project by a fellow developer nearly done with their own game, Rorasuketo.

* Rorasuketo

* Rorasuketo Dev Blog

* Rorasuketo on Steam

Hacking the Grepson 113: Gaming with Godot

Wed, 18 Feb 2026 08:00:00 -0800

In order to expand their gamedev sensibilities a bit more, Matt and Mike talk about their decision to give Godot a try in helping them create a game.

* Godot

Hacking the Grepson 112: Game Dev Blahs

Wed, 04 Feb 2026 08:00:00 -0800

It's been a while since we talked about game development and, more specifically, Let's Make a Game!, our project to actually make a video game together. Holidays and Advent of Code happened, which means momentum was lost and interest waned a bit. Matt and Mike talk about games they've been playing, their effects on our game development, and how to get the ball rolling again.

Hacking the Grepson 111: Happy New Grep 2026

Wed, 21 Jan 2026 08:00:00 -0800

Happy New Year, as it is officially 2026, according to when this was recorded. Matt is out for this episode, so Mike shares some silly HtG songs he's made with source material from the first 100 episodes.

Hacking the Grepson 110: Advent of Code 2025, Day 7-12

Wed, 07 Jan 2026 08:00:00 -0800

Matt and Mike wrap up the 2025 edition of Advent of Code by going through days 7 through 12.

* https://adventofcode.com/2025

Hacking the Grepson 109: Advent of Code 2025, Day 7 Live

Wed, 24 Dec 2025 08:00:00 -0800

Matt and Mike take a look at Advent of Code 2025, Day 7 live on the episode! We try to make heads or tails of it in half an hour. Will we solve it? Clickbait description demands you listen and find out.

* https://adventofcode.com

Hacking the Grepson 108: Advent of Code 2025, Day 1-6

Wed, 10 Dec 2025 08:00:00 -0800

It's December, which means it's Advent of Code time! Taking a break from our "Let's Make a Game!" project to instead help elves figure out programming problems is what this episode is all about. Matt and Mike go over the first 6 days of logic conundrums.

* https://adventofcode.com

Hacking the Grepson 107: Gamely Checking

Wed, 26 Nov 2025 08:00:00 -0800

More words and thoughts and ideas and progress on our combined efforts at figured out both Defold and Love2D to make a game. Matt talks about playing around with his slingshot prototype and Mike talks about rejiggering his entire Astronaut tutorial so he can load a different level.

Hacking the Grepson 106: Gamey Checky

Wed, 12 Nov 2025 08:00:00 -0800

Mike shares some updates on the game-making progress achieved recently (still no finished game to share with each other yet, but working on it!).

Hacking the Grepson 105: Game Checkin: Sprites and Animation

Wed, 29 Oct 2025 08:00:00 -0700

Matt and Mike continue their Let's Make a Game experiment, spending time going over the progress made so far in their Love2D and Defold prototypes. Matt also shows how Claude works on the command line and Mike is entranced.

Hacking the Grepson 104: Game-Making Check-In

Wed, 15 Oct 2025 08:00:00 -0700

Matt and Mike check in again on their progress of making a game. More discussion ensues about preferences, recent games played, and about Defold and Love2D, including some recent efforts made by both.

Hacking the Grepson 103: What Game Engine Should We Use?

Wed, 01 Oct 2025 08:00:00 -0700

Matt and Mike continue to discuss more details about the game they're going to make. On this episode the decision of which engine/language/IDE they're going to primarily use is made...sort of.

Hacking the Grepson 102: What Kind of Game Should We Make?

Wed, 17 Sep 2025 09:15:06 -0700

Our new season, focused solely on making a video game of some sort, continues apace. This is a lengthy one, filled with discussions of game mechanics, likes/dislikes, and potential ideas to follow up on. Matt and Mike don't know what they're going to make yet, but they're getting further into what about games they enjoy (or don't).

Hacking the Grepson 101: Let's Make a Game!

Wed, 03 Sep 2025 08:09:37 -0700

For Season 2 of Hacking the Grepson, we're going to make a game! What kind of game? Which platform(s)? What genre/theme/setting? Who knows?! Let's try to start attempting to figure it out.

Hacking the Grepson 100: Season 1 Recap

Wed, 20 Aug 2025 08:00:00 -0700

We've done a hundred episodes of this podcast. Wow. Matt and Mike come to terms with this fact, and perhaps give an idea of what's to come with the next hundred episodes.

Hacking the Grepson 099: Teams

Wed, 06 Aug 2025 08:00:00 -0700

You can't always do everything by yourself. That's when you need a group of people! Are those people working towards a common goal? Well, then you might have a team. Matt and Mike, as a team, talk about the benefits of such cooperation.

Hacking the Grepson 098: Tutorialization

Wed, 23 Jul 2025 08:00:00 -0700

How much can a developer assume about a user of their software? It's not always immediately clear, but as time has gone on the way that tutorials have presented themselves has changed. Mike uses an anecdote about a recent gaming experience with a friend to open up discussion with Matt on the topic.

Hacking the Grepson 097: Troubleshooting

Wed, 09 Jul 2025 08:00:00 -0700

Systems and mechanisms usually work, but they don't always. When they don't, what to do? Shoot that trouble, chum! Matt and Mike talk about their magic problem seeking-and-destroying abilities in this episode's discussion.

Hacking the Grepson 096: The Curse of Knowing

Wed, 25 Jun 2025 08:00:00 -0700

Gaining knowledge of anything is ostensibly good, but it also potentially brings with it a price to pay. Matt and Mike discuss a very intriguing blog post about the ethical and moral burden that knowledge can bring.

* The Curse of Knowing How, or; Fixing Everything

Hacking the Grepson 095: Forest vs Desert

Wed, 11 Jun 2025 06:01:37 -0700

Teams could be said to be working together in one of two different ways: a desert or forest. What do those terms mean, and what does it mean to move from one to the other? Matt and Mike discuss a series of blog posts from Kent Beck and Beth Andres-Beck that attempt to illuminate these nature metaphors.

* Forest vs Desert

Hacking the Grepson 094: Whatcha Doing?

Wed, 28 May 2025 08:00:00 -0700

Matt and Mike are often working on things outside of preparing to record this podcast. On this episode, we explore the question: "What are you working on lately?"

Hacking the Grepson 093: Blue Prince

Wed, 14 May 2025 08:00:00 -0700

An exciting new Roguelike deck-building puzzle game has taken the industry (and Mike (and possibly later Matt?)) by storm: Blue Prince. It's a very light take, development-wise, on the subject matter, but games are a huge inspiration and problem space for programming, so we think it's worth the praise and discussion.

* Blue Prince

* Roguelike

* Deck-builder

Hacking the Grepson 092: Frontend vs Backend

Wed, 30 Apr 2025 08:00:00 -0700

Software development loves the concept of binary. On/off, 1/0, true/false, and all that. The way users interact with a system vs the way it works in the code/data area is very similar. Matt and Mike discuss the differences between frontend and backend, and how it can apply to more than just web development.

Hacking the Grepson 091: Compilers vs Interpreters

Wed, 16 Apr 2025 08:00:00 -0700

In general, no one writes much assembly code (let alone raw zeros and ones) anymore, and apps that computers run usually fall into two camps: compiled and interpreted. Matt and Mike try to explain the distinction.

Love this related blog post: https://ntietz.com/blog/python-is-an-interpreted-language-with-a-compiler/

Hacking the Grepson 090: Practicalities of AI

Wed, 02 Apr 2025 08:00:00 -0700

In 2025, LLMs, Machine Learning, and AI are being used in all manner of technology. But how can I, asks the average computer user, take advantage of it? Matt and Mike offer some guidance.

Hacking the Grepson 089: Bottom-Up vs Top-Down

Wed, 19 Mar 2025 08:00:00 -0700

Do you process new information from the bottom-up, or from the top-down? The potential answer to this can be complicated. Matt and Mike use the usual software development to answer the question, but also branch off into everything from woodworking to ecological concerns.

Hacking the Grepson 088: Abstractions

Wed, 05 Mar 2025 08:00:00 -0800

Facades, adapters, interfaces...these are all types of abstractions, a powerful tool in programming to hide a more complex system so that users or consumers can better utilize the power contained underneath them. Matt and Mike peel back the layers.

Hacking the Grepson 087: Version Control

Wed, 19 Feb 2025 08:58:52 -0800

You could work on a software project without version control. It doesn't impede your ability to change things and deploy. But you'd be working without a net. Matt and Mike dive into the wonderful world of not having to keep both file1.js AND file1a.js.

Hacking the Grepson 086: Advent of Code 2024, Day 20-25

Wed, 05 Feb 2025 08:00:00 -0800

The final days of Advent of Code 2024 have finally concluded. Matt, Mike, and Richard finish up their discussion of Days 20-25.

* Advent of Code

* Richard's Day 21 notes

* Richard's Day 24 notes

Hacking the Grepson 085: Advent of Code 2024, Day 15-19

Wed, 22 Jan 2025 08:00:00 -0800

Our recounting of the trials and tribulations of Advent of Code 2024 continue apace, this time with returning special guest Richard, here to help Mike and Matt use intelligence, both human and artificial, to tackle Day 15 through 19.

* https://adventofcode.com

Hacking the Grepson 084: Advent of Code 2024, Day 8-14

Wed, 08 Jan 2025 08:00:00 -0800

More Advent of Code 2024, coming your way. Matt and Mike dig into Day 8 through Day 14, as the puzzles get harder and more complex.

Hacking the Grepson 083: Advent of Code 2024, Day 1-7

Wed, 25 Dec 2024 08:00:00 -0800

It's finally Advent of Code time again! Matt and Mike kick things off by going through the first 7 days of 2024's puzzles.

* https://adventofcode.com

Hacking the Grepson 082: Everybody Codes

Wed, 11 Dec 2024 08:00:00 -0800

Advent of Code is not the only periodic programming puzzle game in town. Matt and Mike discuss Everybody Codes, a similar development challenge that is inspired by it.

Note: we spoil the first 2 of 20 quests with our approaches and answers.

* Everybody Codes

* Advent of Code

Hacking the Grepson 081: Factorio

Wed, 27 Nov 2024 08:00:00 -0800

Ever wanted to automate industry on an alien world? Factorio has got you covered. Matt and Mike finally dig into this fascinating factory simulator that features familiar programming challenges.

Hacking the Grepson 080: The Big Notation

Wed, 13 Nov 2024 08:00:00 -0800

Matt explains the computer science behind Big O notation. Mike mainly listens.

Big O notation
Previous related episode: P v NP

Hacking the Grepson 079: Deckdle

Wed, 30 Oct 2024 08:00:00 -0700

Matt and Mike talk about Mike's latest web game: Deckdle. Try your hand (oof, sorry) at a new solitaire setup each day, as you attempt to move all the cards in the tableau to your base before your stock runs out!

* Deckdle, a daily solitaire card game

* Solitaire (Wikipedia)

* Golf variant (Wikipedia)

Hacking the Grepson 078: Rubberducking

Wed, 16 Oct 2024 08:07:10 -0700

Rubber duckies may make bath time lots of fun, but they can also make debugging easier. Matt and Mike discuss this curiosity of the development world.

Hacking the Grepson 077: Dev Blogging

Wed, 02 Oct 2024 08:00:00 -0700

Blogging is a way to share your thoughts about something in a long-form way, and doing so about development or programming can be helpful to others, as well as yourself. Matt and Mike chat about it.

Hacking the Grepson 076: Scoring the Grepson

Wed, 18 Sep 2024 10:27:55 -0700

What's with all the sound in this podcast that isn't talking? Mike explains.

Hacking the Grepson 075: Code Reviews

Wed, 04 Sep 2024 08:00:00 -0700

You write code, you run it through linting, you run it through tests, it gets built somewhere and gives you a report. But did you have another human being look at it, regardless? Code reviews can have benefits and drawbacks, and Matt and Mike discuss them.

Hacking the Grepson 074: Data Formats

Wed, 21 Aug 2024 08:00:00 -0700

While we probably spend just as much, if not more, time on file formats, the crux of this episode is data formats. What are they? Why so many? Matt and Mike discuss.

Hacking the Grepson 073: Refactoring

Wed, 07 Aug 2024 08:00:00 -0700

Sure, you wrote some code. But have you considered...rewriting it? Actually, just refactor it a little, for the sake of Future You. Matt and Mike talk about a man who once tried some IRL "refactoring" and the realizations that came from it.

* How refactoring almost ruined my marriage

Hacking the Grepson 072: The Twelve-Factor App: VI - XII

Wed, 24 Jul 2024 08:00:00 -0700

The Twelve-Factor App is a methodology for building web apps, especially those referred to as SaaS (Software as a Service). Matt and Mike continue diving into this intriguing concept and go over factors 6 to 12.

* 12factor.net

* Github source for 12factor.net

Hacking the Grepson 071: The Twelve-Factor App: I - V

Wed, 10 Jul 2024 07:50:00 -0700

The Twelve-Factor App is a methodology for building web apps, especially those referred to as SaaS (Software as a Service). Matt and Mike introduce this intriguing concept and go over factors 1 to 5.

* 12factor.net

* Github source for 12factor.net

Hacking the Grepson 070: Data Analytics

Wed, 26 Jun 2024 08:00:00 -0700

All the software we use these days is much better at getting, retaining, and deciphering user data than it was in the past. How that's done and whether it's a net positive is a good discussion topic, and Matt and Mike are here to do some analysis.

Hacking the Grepson 069: Pair Programming

Wed, 12 Jun 2024 13:40:38 -0700

Sometimes a job that is done well solo can be done even better with a compatriot. Matt and Mike discuss the pros and cons of reciprocal development.

Hacking the Grepson 068: APIs

Wed, 29 May 2024 08:00:00 -0700

Programs you interact with, especially on the Internet, usually have some kind of Application Programming Interface. Matt and Mike query this episode's API and let you know the results.

Hacking the Grepson 067: Solo vs Team Development

Wed, 15 May 2024 08:00:00 -0700

There are both pros and cons to developing alone or with others. Matt and Mike discuss what those are, unsurprisingly, as that is the point of our podcast.

Hacking the Grepson 066: SPAs

Wed, 01 May 2024 08:00:00 -0700

They may not be as relaxing to experience as the lowercase version, but SPAs, or Single Page Applications, are just as, if not more, important to our modern world wide web. Matt and Mike book an appointment and tell you how it goes.

Hacking the Grepson 065: Job Changes

Wed, 17 Apr 2024 08:30:21 -0700

One or more of the hosts of Hacking the Grepson is changing their job! Matt and Mike discuss the ups and downs of moving from one work establishment to another.

Hacking the Grepson 064: Dailies

Wed, 03 Apr 2024 08:00:00 -0700

Everyone's got their daily routine. Ours just happens to involve a lot of web games. Matt and Mike go over their gotta-dos each day.

Hacking the Grepson 063: Containerization

Wed, 20 Mar 2024 07:47:47 -0700

Matt and Mike discuss how our concept of what a "computer" is has always been a box -- it's just that nowadays those boxes are much smaller and digital.

Hacking the Grepson 062: Problematic Tech Talk

Wed, 06 Mar 2024 08:00:00 -0800

Matt and Mike discuss the ongoing debate over certain tech terms that don't always sound right to modern day ears.

Hacking the Grepson 061: Multi-Lingualism

Wed, 21 Feb 2024 08:00:00 -0800

Much like the many written/spoken human languages that exist, there are quite a lot of programming languages, too. As a result of Advent of Code 2023, Mike and Matt discuss how diving into the backlogs and trying to create a project that talks Python, Ruby, and more, all at once, can be both challenging and fun.

Hacking the Grepson 060: Advent of Code 2023, Wrapup Part 2

Wed, 07 Feb 2024 08:00:00 -0800

Our final discussion on the Advent of Code 2023, covering days 17 through 25, is upon your ears. Will Santa's elves successfully fix snow production and save Christmas? Erm, sorta?

Hacking the Grepson 059: Advent of Code 2023, Wrapup Part 1

Wed, 24 Jan 2024 08:00:00 -0800

Matt, Mike, and a special guest discuss day 11-16 of the Advent of Code 2023. Join us as we expand the cosmos, roll rocks on platforms, and drive an unreliable crucible.

* Advent of Code 2023

Hacking the Grepson 058: Advent of Code 2023, Day 4-10

Wed, 10 Jan 2024 08:00:00 -0800

It may be 2024, so Advent of Code 2023 is done, but our minds are still catching up, trying to solve its puzzles. On this episode, Matt and Mike discuss days 4 through 10, and even a meta idea to figure out the difficulty curve for future problems.

Hacking the Grepson 057: Advent of Code 2023, Day 1-3

Wed, 27 Dec 2023 10:10:53 -0800

While the awesome programming challenge known as the Advent of Code has officially ended for 2023, the discussion can now begin. Matt and Mike discuss the first three days and their successes and difficulties with them.

Hacking the Grepson 056: Advent of Code, Preamble

Wed, 13 Dec 2023 10:58:05 -0800

The current month is December, and you know what that means. It means the Advent of Code is afoot again! Matt and Mike yet again share their thoughts on this annual programming challenge after a few days of solving.

* Advent of Code 2023

* Advent of TypeScript

Hacking the Grepson 055: ImprovDev - Teams and Trust

Wed, 29 Nov 2023 08:05:54 -0800

It's time for another installment of ImprovDev, the first since the, uh, only other one thus far! Matt explains the importance of trust when working with a team, and Mike listens and nods sagely while occasionally interjecting other, related words.

Hacking the Grepson 054: Web Accessibility

Wed, 15 Nov 2023 08:23:37 -0800

It's important to make software as accessible as possible, because diversity of experience is valuable. The web is a gigantic system of communication in our society, and on this episode Matt and Mike discuss some ways you can make it more accessible and inclusive.

* ARIA

* WCAG Standard

* Inclusive Microsoft Design

Hacking the Grepson 053: Tech Interviews, Part Deux

Wed, 01 Nov 2023 08:13:08 -0700

Matt and Mike share more insight into the sometimes complex world of technical interviews. We also thoroughly discuss a timely new potential interview question.

Hacking the Grepson 052: Slay the Spire

Wed, 18 Oct 2023 09:55:06 -0700

Matt and Mike attempt to break down the roguelike deckbuilder known as Slay the Spire into its component game development parts.

Hacking the Grepson 051: Hacking the Grepson Check-In

Wed, 04 Oct 2023 10:24:08 -0700

It's been a while since we started this podcast. Let's do a check-in.

Hacking the Grepson 050: Hackers

Wed, 20 Sep 2023 08:06:06 -0700

For our 50th episode, Matt and Mike finally discuss the movie, and its iconic quip "Hack the Gibson", that inspired this whole podcast business. Yes, we jack into cyberspace and get psychedelic by giving our thoughts on the mid-90s sci-fi film, Hackers.

Hacking the Grepson 049: Improv of Code (AoC 2019.1)

Wed, 06 Sep 2023 07:53:49 -0700

As a bit of an experiment on this episode, Matt and Mike decide to look at an Advent of Code problem from the archives, one never seen before, and then solve it together. Spoiler alert for AOC 2019, Day 1!

* Advent of Code

Hacking the Grepson 048: P vs NP

Wed, 23 Aug 2023 07:42:22 -0700

Matt and Mike dive into a rather heavy problem that has been confounding computer scientists for decades: P vs NP. Find out whether it's peanut-related or not, and what the ramifications of it being either about peanuts or not about peanuts actually are.

Hacking the Grepson 047: MusicDev - Web Audio API

Wed, 09 Aug 2023 14:17:47 -0700

Another episode in the MusicDev series is ready for your ears, and this time it's all about the Web Audio API. Want to build interactive web apps that use audio? Then this episode is a high-level overview of how to do that.

* Web Audio API (MDN)

* Mike's impressive Excalidraw diagram

* Nebyoodle

* SoundLister

* Keebord

* AudioHash (still a wip, actually)

* GemWarrior

Hacking the Grepson 046: The Builder’s Trap

Wed, 26 Jul 2023 08:06:28 -0700

Matt and Mike explore the phenomenon known as "The Builder's Trap", wherein builders end up building stuff even when it's not the best solution to a problem.

* https://www.patkua.com/blog/the-builders-trap

Hacking the Grepson 045: Bad Coding Habits

Wed, 12 Jul 2023 09:41:40 -0700

Matt and Mike discuss a blog post talking about some potentially suboptimal character traits of programmers that one should avoid.

* 10 Coding Habits That Make You a Bad Programmer: https://levelup.gitconnected.com/10-coding-habits-that-make-you-a-bad-programmer-96be9b1c2289

Hacking the Grepson 044: The XY Problem

Wed, 28 Jun 2023 08:19:26 -0700

Matt and Mike dive into the phenomenon that leads to questions like "How do you get the last 3 characters of a file?", "What is Dykstra's algorithm?", and "Where is the bleach?".

Hacking the Grepson 043: Data Types and Structures, Part 2

Wed, 14 Jun 2023 08:16:16 -0700

Matt and Mike continue their moderate dive into programming fundamentals by moving on from basic/primitive variable types to complex types, such as Arrays and Structs.

Hacking the Grepson 042: Data Types and Structures, Part 1

Wed, 31 May 2023 09:25:17 -0700

Matt and Mike finally get to some fundamentals about programming: variables. In Part 1, we discuss so-called "primitive" types, such as Boolean and String.

Hacking the Grepson 041: Tech Taxonomy Redux

Wed, 17 May 2023 08:27:53 -0700

It's best not to get too hung up on terminology, especially as it relates to people's skills and job titles. That being said, Matt and Mike decide to ignore this advice and bikeshed the intention of three tech terms for a time.

Hacking the Grepson 040: MusicDev - Iteration

Wed, 03 May 2023 09:17:23 -0700

All things come to fruition through process. In programming, as in music, that process can be called iteration. In another installment of the MusicDev series, Matt and Mike go over (and over (and over)) this phenomenon.

Hacking the Grepson 039: Progle

Wed, 19 Apr 2023 08:32:59 -0700

Matt and Mike discuss a new daily obsession, Progle, which tasks one with identifying programming languages from both their attributes and their actual code.

https://progle.net

Hacking the Grepson 038: Pause Giant AI Experiments

Wed, 05 Apr 2023 07:57:55 -0700

Artificial Intelligence is having a real hey-day late-lay in the form of ChatGPT, and it seems like advances are happening at a rapid pace. Fear of our potential robotic overlords resulting from said advances have spurred a recent petition to pause said efforts. Matt and Mike discuss.

* ChatGPT 4: https://openai.com/product/gpt-4

* Petition to pause: https://futureoflife.org/open-letter/pause-giant-ai-experiments/

Hacking the Grepson 037: Game Automation

Wed, 22 Mar 2023 11:27:05 -0700

Mike and "Matt" and "Matt2" discuss a form of programming in gaming: automation. Two examples, PlateUp! and Minecraft, offer up their own version of this particular skill.

PlateUp!: https://www.plateupgame.com

Minecraft: https://minecraft.net

Hacking the Grepson 036: Backlogs and Planning

Wed, 08 Mar 2023 07:54:13 -0800

Matt and Mike discuss the importance (and sometimes harmfulness) of backlogs, and an interesting model of software development, framed as plain old human interaction.

* Backlogs are Useless: https://lucasfcosta.com/2023/02/07/backlogs-are-useless.html

* RailsConf 2020: Tidy Up?: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BFFY9Zor6zw

Hacking the Grepson 035: Uncovering Your Code’s House

Wed, 22 Feb 2023 09:57:11 -0800

Codebases are like houses, in that they can take on different shapes, sizes, and levels of organization and maintenance. Matt and Mike explore an article called "Uncovering Your Code's House" and discuss this interesting metaphor.

https://betterprogramming.pub/uncovering-your-codes-house-120d8f31075d

Hacking the Grepson 034: Software Ethics

Wed, 08 Feb 2023 07:59:06 -0800

Sure, writing code can be fun, but is it always "right" to write that code? Matt and Mike discuss the boundaries and responsibilities programmers should be aware of when developing.

Hacking the Grepson 033: Technical Debt

Wed, 25 Jan 2023 08:06:32 -0800

Matt and Mike explore the messy, but inevitable, topic of technical debt. Developing the "correct" way is often less efficient and less immediately satisfying, but it can avoid a potentially insurmountable mountain of spaghetti code later.

Hacking the Grepson 032: MusicDev - Loops

Wed, 11 Jan 2023 08:19:40 -0800

Matt and Mike dive in, once again, to that intersection of patterned audio and computer programming: MusicDev. This time, the discussion revolves, potentially endlessly, around loops, a fundamental concept in programming and also maybe in music.

Hacking the Grepson 031: Advent of Code 2022, Part 4

Wed, 28 Dec 2022 09:05:28 -0800

Advent of Code 2022 is officially over! Matt and Mike gather around the ol' podcast microphones to discuss Day 19-25, and our final thoughts about the whole shebang.

* Advent of Code: https://adventofcode.com

* Tiny Code Challenge: https://tcc.lovebyte.party

* LowRez NX: https://lowresnx.inutilis.com

Hacking the Grepson 030: Advent of Code 2022, Part 3

Wed, 21 Dec 2022 11:17:09 -0800

It's time for another weekly wrap-up of Advent of Code puzzles. On this episode, Matt and Mike discuss Day 12 through Day 18, but also with a side diversion through another daily coding challenge that Mike stumbled upon. Puzzles got harder and completion was no longer guaranteed this time!

* Advent of Code: https://adventofcode.com

* Tiny Code Christmas: https://tcc.lovebyte.party

* Cracking the Coding Interview: https://www.crackingthecodinginterview.com

Hacking the Grepson 029: Advent of Code 2022, Part 2

Wed, 14 Dec 2022 08:00:00 -0800

Another week in December, another episode about the Advent of Code! The programming puzzle generator threw Day 5-11 at us this time, and we dig in.

It's a super-sized episode because there's just that much to discuss!

* Advent of Code: https://adventofcode.com

Hacking the Grepson 028: Advent of Code 2022, Part 1

Wed, 07 Dec 2022 08:44:28 -0800

Hey, everybody! It's time for the Advent of Code again! AoC is, of course, a yuletide set of logic puzzles usually solved using some kind of programming. Matt and I did it for the first time last year, had a lot of fun, and are doing it again this year.

On this episode we go over our thoughts about how it's going after 4 days of not-too-grueling-yet Christmas elf-themed word problems.

* Advent of Code: https://adventofcode.com

* Eric Wastl Behind the Code: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mb8WwKS6ajk

* aoc-cli: https://github.com/scarvalhojr/aoc-cli

* solving AoC using GPT: https://github.com/max-sixty/aoc-gpt

* discussion on reddit about the ethics of such a thing: https://www.reddit.com/r/adventofcode/comments/zc27zb/2022_day_4_placing_1st_with_gpt3

Hacking the Grepson 027: Content Tagging

Wed, 30 Nov 2022 07:47:14 -0800

There's a lot of digital stuff across all the computers and devices that exist in the world. Somehow, you, the user, must find specific things in all that stuff, and content tagging is one way to make it easier. Matt and Mike explain how.

Hacking the Grepson 026: Twitter in Decline

Wed, 16 Nov 2022 07:57:06 -0800

Usually, this podcast goes for more evergreen content, but the shakeup at Twitter over the last few weeks is too juicy to ignore with a new CEO and a daily influx of restructuring and drama. Join Matt and Mike as they try to make sense of it all, while also explaining microblogging and software development leadership.

* It Begins: Elon Musk purchase timeline, courtesy of NPR: https://www.npr.org/2022/10/27/1131378869/twitter-elon-musk-timeline

* Breaking news on "Twitter 2.0": https://www.cnbc.com/2022/11/16/elon-musk-demands-twitter-staff-commit-to-long-hours-or-leave.html

Hacking the Grepson 025: Who is the Artist?

Wed, 02 Nov 2022 16:06:20 -0700

When a creative work is, uh, created, the question of who deserves the credit for its, um, creation is not an easy one to answer. Matt and Mike, er, try to do that, though, in this particular episode.

Hacking the Grepson 024: ImprovDev - Yes, And

Wed, 19 Oct 2022 08:42:24 -0700

Matt: We should do a podcast episode about Improv, and the concept of "Yes, And".

Mike: No, that sounds bad.

Matt: ...

Mike: I mean, uh...yes! And it should be how it relates to programming!

Matt: Let's do it!

Hacking the Grepson 023: MusicDev - Libraries

Wed, 05 Oct 2022 09:04:36 -0700

Matt and Mike start a new recurring segment about the similarities between creating music and creating code, starting with their shared usage of libraries.

Hacking the Grepson 022: Artificial Intelligence

Wed, 21 Sep 2022 09:36:47 -0700

Intelligence usually refers to the ability for humans to acquire new knowledge and apply it accordingly. Computers can do this, too, so...are they human-like? Maybe! Matt and Mike do the thing about that.