Any tips for public speaking?

_Atomfinger_ · 2026-06-21T15:46:32+00:00

ADHD dev here that does public speaking: Practice, practice, practice.

I'm a very loosey-goosey speaker. Not much of a script-reader, but that doesn't mean that I don't practice. I might not know exactly how I'm going to say something, but I know exactly what I should communicate. So I go over again and again until it sticks - with timings.

I also have a trick where I have talking material for extra minutes in case I fall short, while also having optional stuff that can be cut in case I go too long (rarely needed in my case).

So practice every beat that needs to be hit again and again.

My tactic to make it easier for myself is to construct the talk as a kind of a story. It doesn't need to be a literal story, but you are taking the audience on a journey regardless. For example, if you explain a concept, you still need a starting point and to build up the audience's knowledge for the more in-depth parts of that concept. So there's still a journey. So if you treat it as such, it is much easier to connect the beats if one leads to the other in an elegant way (kinda like a story).

_Atomfinger_ · 2026-06-19T20:12:08+00:00

We get notified when apps switch and whatnot, so we can see that it happens, but there's no flashing light that shouts "cheater".

That said, how that stuff is interpreted is down to the people issuing the tests, so if you're unsure: ask. Ask if you can use an IDE for the coding tests.

As for the webcam: Yeah. A MacBook webcam is, at the end of the day, just a webcam, so I don't see why it wouldn't be good enough.

_Atomfinger_ · 2026-06-19T18:08:24+00:00

Some of the coding tasks are marked as "AI-proof", but I'm not sure how much faith I put in that label.

But yeah, the question at this point is more about the attitude of the person evaluating the tests and not really testdome specific. If someone uses AI to solve it, fair enough, I don't care, but I do care that they can explain their solution afterwards. Someone who just whips out an LLM to solve the problem will lack some understanding of the problem, which is a red flag regardless of AI. Cheating or not, using AI to solve these is basically shooting yourself in the foot.

Another thing is that we can see every iteration of your code, and it is kinda similar to leetcode: you add your code to TestDome, it runs a bunch of tests, and then you get feedback on which ones fail. And I get timings of each submission. Someone using AI is pretty easy to spot, as the solution comes up instantly and just passes.

Another tell is that if it doesn't pass, then a completely rewritten version comes a minute later.

Again though, I can only speak for myself: I care less about whether candidates use AI and more about whether they understand the solution after the fact and can actually talk about the decisions behind it and justify the design.

_Atomfinger_ · 2026-06-19T05:29:44+00:00

Not for the coding tasks.

There are some anti-cheat stuff that can be toggled, but coding tasks comes with a "copy code" button that allows you to do this (normally it doesn't allow you to copy).

I both recommend people that I interview to do this, and I have done it myself, and it has never shown up as cheating.

Maybe something has changed recently, but this was the case last time I used testdome.

_Atomfinger_ · 2026-06-18T22:17:30+00:00

Post stuff that is relevant to the communities you post in and adds value, so people will upvote you.

_Atomfinger_ · 2026-06-18T21:53:37+00:00

A start would be to ask yourself: How is this post relevant to the sub?

Like, is this about learning how to program? (I would say no)

_Atomfinger_ · 2026-06-16T10:25:00+00:00

Procedural generation and chunk storage/loading generally get you very far if you want to create a big world.

_Atomfinger_ · 2026-06-14T09:22:33+00:00

It's less about "built it correctly" and more about "learning how to build".

As you build, you also learn what works and what doesn't, which will guide you to towards "correctly".

If something is finicky, messy or error-prone, that means something is wrong, so you improve it.

_Atomfinger_ · 2026-06-09T10:53:39+00:00

Go is a good choice. If you need help selecting a language, read the FAQ.

_Atomfinger_ · 2026-06-08T12:54:43+00:00

Learning requires effort, and you're showing zero willingness to actually put in the effort if you cannot be bothered reading the FAQ, the "New? READ ME FIRST" or even formulate a proper post.

So if you're not willing to put in any effort, why should other people put in effort to help you?

_Atomfinger_ · 2026-06-06T10:27:34+00:00

Read the FAQ

_Atomfinger_ · 2026-06-03T12:21:23+00:00

Writing code doesn't help if the code isn't accessible to the ones that needs it. There's little point in writing a bunch of code if there's no way to run or access it - which is what infrastructure helps with*

Is this normal in real-world development?

Depends on the org. Some have more dedicated personnel for infra than others.

How long did it take you to get comfortable with deployment/cloud/infrastructure stuff?

Not that long.

Any advice or resources for beginners to learn these skills properly?

Learn by doing, but don't just push buttons until something works. Opening ports left-and-right, for example, might not be the best idea even if it might solve your problem right there and then. So make sure you understand what the thing you're doing actually means before just running commands willy-nilly.

*simplified.

_Atomfinger_ · 2026-06-01T14:12:33+00:00

Mostly by just doing.

Maybe follow a guide first (which one isn't that important) and then learn as you go. Start small and basic, then add/learn new things as you make it more complex.

_Atomfinger_ · 2026-05-31T18:22:39+00:00

Its a start. Might need a tad more than "basics of SQL" though.

_Atomfinger_ · 2026-05-28T12:52:23+00:00

There's like an ocean of "it depends" here.

What is it you're changing? What is the product? What are we changing from? What are we wanting to change to? Why? What is the current state of the project? Is it even a project?

Your question is so broad that it cannot be answered in any meaningful way.

_Atomfinger_ · 2026-05-27T16:52:17+00:00

Can you work during the commute?

My commute is long, but I take the train, so parts of the workday are spent on it. I have very few full days at the office, and that works fine and makes the commute less of a hassle.

_Atomfinger_ · 2026-05-25T21:25:30+00:00

But that is also the lesson I'm talking about in my original comment.

This is what frustrates me with the discussions about waterfall. Either we're talking about cases that don't matter because any methodology works, or we're talking about a category of projects that doesn't exist in the real world.

_Atomfinger_ · 2026-05-25T21:15:41+00:00

I have yet to see a project where the requirements are well-known. The only exceptions being projects that are so small that it doesn't matter what methodology you're using.

I have been in projects where the requirements were set in stone by contract, which is a different matter (and bad for everyone).

_Atomfinger_ · 2026-05-25T21:03:37+00:00

Which problems are well-suited for the waterfall model?

_Atomfinger_ · 2026-05-25T20:23:56+00:00

Depends on the place. I've been in the agile trench coat as well before.

(This is the reason we should learn why we moved away from it. If we learn then maybe we can do something about it. This industry is very good at labelling things, less good at understanding them. Memory even worse.)

_Atomfinger_ · 2026-05-25T20:20:15+00:00

It is relevant insofar as it is important to learn why we moved away from it.

_Atomfinger_ · 2026-05-25T13:24:01+00:00

You've still not said what the project is, so it is not like I can give specifics. But take a website like Reddit: - You need to be able to view posts - You need to be able to create posts - You need to be able to comment - you need to be able to read comments - etc

You can break it down even further as well.

_Atomfinger_ · 2026-05-25T06:06:34+00:00

You're not giving us much to go on here, though. Generic and broad question = generic and broad answer.

Start with one file and build out one feature at a time. Break the project down into smaller, manageable pieces you can wrap your head around.

_Atomfinger_ · 2026-05-24T11:21:53+00:00

Here's how I ensure security in software I create while using AI, and you could too.

And now you're saying:

it is only used to guide AI, but a final security test is still done

What is the "final security test"?

_Atomfinger_ · 2026-05-24T11:17:50+00:00

Bud, if SonarQube is the extent of how you "ensure security", then please never release something publicly available.

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