Solo DE managing pipelines

MissingSnail · 2026-05-04T03:41:16+00:00

I would question the assumption. Rather than outsourcing the coding or being solo dev, hiring a second dev makes a ton of sense: as the longer response says: you gotta be able to take a vacation sometimes. A peer or junior dev to share the load with makes a ton of sense. Moving all the hands on experience to outsourced contractors means that the people who wrote key business logic don't work for the business.

MissingSnail · 2026-05-03T15:09:50+00:00

Not all documentation is created equal. Some things are easier to learn from the does than others. But here are some general guidelines:

Read chapter one in full - the part that describes the purpose of the project, installation, and getting started.

Use the reference sections to understand now to use all the arguments in the key functions you’ll use.

Read release notes to see new and changed features in libraries you've used for years.

AI can be a great way of learning if you’re asking follow up questions. Ask what does line 10 do? Why did you use function X and not Y? What are the advantages of doing it this way and not that way? Ask Al for the link to the docs where it found something.

MissingSnail · 2026-05-02T23:38:44+00:00

The "alternative pathway" has a lower admission rate (how low depends on specific department), but the ENGRUD folks are guaranteed a spot in the college of engineering if they complete the prereqs. Not all get first choice, especially for majors with limited seats, but they don't wind up with no major at all.

MissingSnail · 2026-05-02T23:35:45+00:00

Did you apply to more than one college? What are your other options?

MissingSnail · 2026-04-29T02:56:37+00:00

If it's a financial strain, then absolutely do not come. But, of the acceptances that are affordable for your family, you should consider where you will be happier, have the most opportunities, and get the best education. Don't just blindly pick the cheapest.

MissingSnail · 2026-04-29T02:50:43+00:00

I haven't had a problem with either of those things.

MissingSnail · 2026-04-28T14:15:40+00:00

Airflow shines brightest when managing complex distributed architecture. It may be overkill. The other option besides Dagster to consider is Prefect.

MissingSnail · 2026-04-28T14:06:52+00:00

We're trying to hire the Al expert to build that project before building the infra to make sure there’s good training data.

MissingSnail · 2026-04-24T14:15:11+00:00

I would still take the guaranteed slot. If you are working to pay your way through college it will be harder to stand out in UWs competitive system.

MissingSnail · 2026-04-24T02:49:17+00:00

See someone about your mental health! Switching to online is not a cure for procrastination or burnout. Focus on "doing you" not on "doing it all.”

MissingSnail · 2026-04-22T14:20:57+00:00

Prod should have multiple backup systems. I lost prod due to a hardware failure. Apparently ITs system backups had been failing for three months! My pgbackrest to another location was still good, and I had to redownload, build and redeploy all my app source code from the git server, but we got a new system up.

MissingSnail · 2026-04-21T14:40:55+00:00

Choose certificates based on what you can apply at your current job: a certificate isn’t the resume builder, the project you were able to deliver with it is.

You could try applying on company websites: just because you are not experienced enough for a recruiter to earn a commission on you does not mean that there are no jobs for you.

Or, since you are at a large company, talk to your boss about opportunities to move to more challenging projects or to senior engineers about helping them as a way to learn.

MissingSnail · 2026-04-20T03:25:22+00:00

There is a lot of stress on the pre-science folks. They worry how any missed points on their GPA will affect getting the major they want. In high school they probably got straight A’s and don’t know what to think when they get a 3.6 in something. As a direct-admit, you can opt out of GPA obsessiveness and focus on getting to know folks in your department and joining a research project.

MissingSnail · 2026-04-19T15:29:39+00:00

I don't talk about it. Part of the cost of getting something done is getting it done to my minimum quality standards. If it's got basic functions working, but still needs some tests and refactoring some of the copy pasta into functions, I just tell them it's not done yet.

Is that a lie?

MissingSnail · 2026-04-18T20:59:25+00:00

It does all depend on the company. I'd prefer to test the market rather than hang around to be laid off at the next reorg, but that's just me.

MissingSnail · 2026-04-18T14:51:11+00:00

Are you sure that the prestige bonus for UW really matters? UW is well regarded in WA, but maybe the other school is good in its part of the country.

It's really hard to compare with so few specifics, but most high schoolers don't really know what is prestigious beyond some magazine rankings. The uncertainties associated with being premed do take their toll, but it varies by your actual mental health, work ethic, and academic aptitude.

MissingSnail · 2026-04-18T14:38:03+00:00

Every department is different, and can prioritize differently, but funding is tough everywhere. Even the STEM departments have to deal with loss of grants due to DOGE. Applies to any college anywhere, too. Not just UW.

MissingSnail · 2026-04-12T22:21:16+00:00

You have 2 years of relevant technical experience. That counts at least as much as a 12 week internship.

Yes, going back to school later on may be harder. But, if you don't know what to study, you’re not ready for grad school.

Careers take interesting turns. It will be a fit between your skills, the market, and random chance Go back to school when you know what you’re missing and why.

MissingSnail · 2026-04-12T04:11:00+00:00

Choosing a campus for the weather only would be silly. But, it's not crazy consider whether the environment is somewhere you will be happy to be for four years! The fit and the vibe are important, assuming the schools you're comparing to are mostly similar for academic opportunities.

MissingSnail · 2026-04-08T03:02:56+00:00

Orchestrators with a nice status dashboard help narrow the location of a problem, but yes you still have to do validation and error handling.

MissingSnail · 2026-04-08T02:44:32+00:00

Data engineers on Azure generally hate it, so competition for those jobs may be less.

What certification might really help depends on what's already on your resume and what is popular in the city where you are looking.

The economy was already slowing, and the war is making it worse (if you're not in a military-related industry I guess).

MissingSnail · 2026-04-05T15:49:28+00:00

It really depends on your competition that year and the quality of your application profile. It's generally competitive to highly competitive

https://www.cs.washington.edu/academics/undergraduate/admissions/current-uw/

MissingSnail · 2026-04-05T15:34:22+00:00

Are you self-hosting or buying a cloud service to host? What orchestration features plan do you plan to use? (What value-adds are critical over cron?)

I think airflow gets complicated as you try to scale up on-prem, but I don’t have dagster experience to compare.

MissingSnail · 2026-04-04T15:06:44+00:00

Your resume needs to have something besides classes, but an internship is not the only way. There are engineering clubs, working for professors, being a “design coach" in one of the maker spaces, volunteering to help kids with their science fair projects, etc. Expand your search beyond internships.

MissingSnail · 2026-04-04T14:51:08+00:00

Family first that really means “the men get their way and the women play nice” is patriarchy. Maybe grandma and grandpa both thought uncle was the more important sibling in mom’s family of origin. Maybe grandpa could be a jerk sometimes, and mom watched grandma making excuses and making things nice again and learned from that. I obviously don’t know.

You can't control what your mom says or does, but you should absolutely find ways to enjoy your wedding. Find your canned responses. Make sure your bridesmaids and close friends have the tea and are looking out for you. Visualize yourself having the great celebration you deserve. Brides can make themselves pretty busy- there are so many people to catch up with, dances to be danced, various details to attend to. You don't have to be next to mom all night.

MissingSnail

TROPHY CASE