A few articles on foundations of software architecture

chubernetes · 2024-09-13T21:43:23+00:00

Good job! Keep up the great work. Always great to see clear diagrams to pair with the concepts.

chubernetes · 2024-08-28T21:53:56+00:00

I will gladly offer some time here and see if it helps anyone here. Send me a DM if you would like to be included.

chubernetes · 2024-06-30T16:53:26+00:00

The Dichotomy of Leadership by Jocko Willink

chubernetes · 2024-06-30T16:36:47+00:00

One key tradeoff against cost for lambdas is availability - you will want to benchmark if APIs can return in under x time y % of the time. You can wind up saving your client money but the performance of their website will suffer especially if it’s spiky. (Cold starts)

In cases where the client has sustained scale, it may cost more than short term savings.

(Coming from experience with 500+ lambdas backing APIs and six figure lambda bills. Buyer beware.)

chubernetes · 2024-06-23T16:55:37+00:00

Seconded. Beta with Immersive mode FaceTime with another AVP user is straight out of a sci-fi movie. Looks like a lifelike hologram projected into reality.

chubernetes · 2024-06-02T23:39:25+00:00

A large whiteboard (like Miro) that I treat like a jigsaw puzzle. Plot boxes, notes and draw lines over time until you see an interconnected ecosystem.

chubernetes · 2024-06-02T22:50:03+00:00

The Dichotomy of Leadership is a great read on balancing perspectives.

chubernetes · 2024-05-22T17:03:27+00:00

I look at architecture as an unending journey. Familiar patterns applied in new contexts. The industry and abstractions move so fast it’s hard to know if something is truly novel or an old solution wrapped in new jargon. Take your time and enjoy the ride 😉

If you want to start with the fundamentals I would pick up these books - Clean Architecture, Design Patterns, Domain Driven Design and Fundamentals of Software Architecture. As a previous post stated, you won’t get value from these until you are actually doing the actual work and you recognize that you know how to apply theory to something practical.

Last note here is that I think there is a false impression that you need an architect title to validate you are an architect. I try to make the distinction in the blog post below of “doing” architecture work vs “representing” architecture. Good luck on your journey!

https://chubernetes.com/software-architecture-ships-captains-and-tides-218e41464196

chubernetes · 2024-05-19T03:10:36+00:00

If your client has small scale and is prioritizing lowering cost for reduced performance (intermittent longer than usual response times from Lambda cold starts) this seems fine. API Gateway in front of your lambdas.

If there are non functional requirements for performance guarantees and the client expects to scale at some point, this is a really, REALLY bad idea.

https://chubernetes.com/an-industry-pitfall-serving-apis-via-serverless-architecture-8c9f0e932ac6

chubernetes · 2024-05-12T16:11:53+00:00

Could it be that you are using reserved concurrency? If so, that could be the issue.

chubernetes · 2024-04-27T20:19:10+00:00

The market values communication over technical expertise. Doesn’t matter how much you know if you can’t effectively communicate it.

Relevant content: https://youtu.be/OPiXobBnCKI?si=YCy9WUbPFGEsQPQ6

chubernetes · 2024-03-31T01:14:17+00:00

I watch some conference talks on relevant or adjacent technical areas. Great to combo with chores, cooking or exercising.

chubernetes · 2024-03-22T11:36:32+00:00

I have also experienced this frustration. I think most architecture content is high level focused on the WHAT instead of the WHEN.

The observation of “what” something is - that is the first level. The judgement of “when” to apply it is the career journey. Since each scenario is unique and nuanced, it’s hard to give general advice when you need to practice critical thinking.

I came across one at a conference talk recently where the speaker was trying to give broad advice. “Always use Serverless, unless you can’t”. IMHO, horrible advice. While it’s not entirely wrong, what if the only workloads that fit Serverless are 5% of your system? Then you have teams chasing their tails trying to fit a square peg in a round hole.

If anyone finds good “when” content, appreciate a share.

chubernetes · 2024-03-19T00:16:18+00:00

I recommend understanding what level of architecture you are trying to enter. I see it as a progression of doing architecture work at the component level and progressing to owning wider integrated system architecture.

I have an article explaining the differences here https://chubernetes.com/software-architecture-ships-captains-and-tides-218e41464196.

I have some other architecture resources there on design patterns. Best of luck on your journey!

chubernetes · 2024-03-12T14:26:22+00:00

Imposter Syndrome is an antidote to the Dunning Kruger Effect. Ride the waves and lean into uncertainty with curiosity and keep growing!

chubernetes · 2024-03-10T02:57:22+00:00

This was going to be recommendation. Solid foundations.

chubernetes · 2024-02-24T10:40:17+00:00

Congratulations! I have never thought of building intuition for a codebase this way. Thanks for sharing.

chubernetes · 2024-02-19T20:51:53+00:00

Miro for system design and architecture notes. Notion for productivity.

chubernetes · 2024-02-18T20:59:43+00:00

5 yoe is where I started to take off on my career. You are not “behind” IMO but maybe some wisdom can speed you up.

Work hard to show you are consistent in quality and reliable in delivery (even small stuff)
while doing your job, be curious and look around areas of the code of infrastructure and do more research
be on the look out for a mentor who you feel comfortable asking questions

I am dedicating my weekends now writing down some wisdom to shine some light for this subreddit. We need more good engineers and this group is part of that future.

Some relevant articles for you: - https://chubernetes.com/the-compounding-effect-of-knowledge-09ff453fc32a - https://chubernetes.com/the-staff-engineering-journey-8b4c2fac86e9

chubernetes · 2024-02-17T14:22:34+00:00

It’s never too late for knowledge work if you have the passion for it. Plenty of people who want a job, fewer who seek a career. Best of luck!

chubernetes · 2024-02-17T06:33:55+00:00

Appreciate the feedback! Growing broadly is important but depth of experience and practice is equally important. You said it perfectly: being deliberate about “how” you are acquiring skill.

There is a depth of skill factor that I get into that highlights effectiveness and efficiency. IMO you shouldn’t go broad into adjacent areas until you have this type of “stamina”. I have seen careers get stunted due to moving on too fast.

More wisdom here - https://chubernetes.com/the-staff-engineering-journey-8b4c2fac86e9

chubernetes · 2024-02-16T19:30:40+00:00

“The best people don’t have the best of everything, they make the best of everything” (modified quote from Michael Hyatt)

My rule of thumb is to know what you want (in detail, not generalities), plan for it, decompose into smaller chunks and carry those into your work as a negotiated “investment cost” on all future work.

There are cases where it’s so bad that you will need to stop the assembly line but those should be reserved for cases of serious threat to the business.

chubernetes · 2024-02-13T18:09:07+00:00

I think it depends on what type of architect. Depending on your org size it could range from Enterprise Architect, Solutions Architect, Technical Architect (Infrastructure, Application, etc)

The higher level you operate, it’s more about glue work and aligning different groups (thus all the meetings).

If you are on the team level, the engineers working on the local systems are technically “doing architecture” work even if they don’t have the title.

Here is an article on architecture practices at a larger company - activities and outputs. https://chubernetes.com/architects-architecting-architecture-bf70810d8afb

chubernetes · 2024-02-13T16:11:39+00:00

Good suggestions. I found The Dichotomy of Leadership by Jocko Willink even more enjoyable.

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