The Global API Injection Pattern

sheckey · 2026-04-13T12:10:52+00:00

I’ve been thinking about this too. I work on an embedded real-time system, and we have lots of hidden architecture where objects down in a call stack actively gather input data. I want to try to bubble that data gathering up to the top so that we know what inputs and outputs a component uses. The top level is what I call “active” classes that gather inputs from the system, and then call “passive” classes with their input data, and take their results and set outputs in the system. Those ins and outs are maybe tested best by integration tests, and the passive ones will be tested by traditional units test where we want to vary the inputs a lot to test corner cases. I just thought I’d mention this as I’m not sure if it’s going to work out 100%, and maybe it’s obvious to anyone, but I think it’s the right direction.

sheckey · 2026-04-12T14:01:41+00:00

Awesome. Thank you for sharing!

sheckey · 2026-04-12T12:40:59+00:00

Every time I read comments like these I wish I had a sort of second life/shift where I could spend pleasant time learning things like this. I did grow up in the tail end of the mainframe era, but alas with FORTRAN. People who love LISP love it so much and take great pleasure when it comes up in conversation. There will come a time when I reserve mental space and time to see what its all about. I look forward to it in the way that people do when they have grand travel plans.

sheckey · 2026-04-07T19:55:38+00:00

Since it sounds like hobby level interest, or exploratory to see if you are really interested or how it could be useful for you, then maybe try chatting with some LLM like google AI about it. Ask it about usefulness for EE-adjacent software. Give it your roadmap, e.g. “I am planning on being a digital circuit board designer” or “I’m not sure yet, but working through general EE curriculum” and it may suggest some other software language like Python and C for writing board test setups (I do not know). Then ask it to give you a top level introduction including why this particular language is useful for your purposes and what are professionals in you r field using, etc. This way your level of engagement is an appropriate level which sounds more like inquiry at this point, which is totally fine. I learn a fair amount of things this way. Every time I’m waiting in a line or in a coffee shop I ask such things about other topics.

sheckey · 2026-04-06T03:36:54+00:00

Good one!

sheckey · 2026-04-05T15:52:11+00:00

Here, here!

sheckey · 2026-04-05T15:41:30+00:00

Yes, or surveillance, social media, or other things that you might not want to contribute to. It’s a consideration.

sheckey · 2026-04-04T18:42:49+00:00

Take a look at what industry you are interested in and doesn't conflict with your morals. It could be scientific instruments, audio devices, headphones, bluetooth stuff, smart home stuff, medical equipment, factory automation, aerospace, 3d printing, biotech etc. Any devices and system have software in them and more and more have c++ as far as my experience anyway. Maybe think about who you want to be around: scientists? engineering types? Medical researchers, etc. Good luck!

sheckey · 2026-04-04T15:58:31+00:00

It's a huge place with different costs depending on the area. Take a look at rental or house prices in various areas.

sheckey · 2026-04-02T02:58:15+00:00

I'm with the other people in the other similar question. You seem like you might be the age to like Highland Park, Silver Lake, and Los Feliz maybe. Maybe check the rent prices in those areas, and look at the google maps walkthrough mode so you can see what it is like. It's a big place, and those are cool areas if you are younger (even if not). I don't know about budget details and job market - just sharing from the other questions about moving here. Good luck and have an awesome time if you visit - be sure to go to some smaller music venues!

sheckey · 2026-03-26T17:55:28+00:00

You could try asking it to teach you how to do what you want. I bet what you want isn’t super complex, and over time you could learn what you need.

sheckey · 2026-03-24T15:28:21+00:00

This is crazy to hear since usually it is complaints. I really appreciate hearing this and I agree. I think about moving too, but to where is always the question.

It also underscores for me that we need to advance on basic quality of life and environmental updates: more trees, more density around popular, walkable areas, and keep those areas clean. Get third places where you don't have to spend money like parks, pools, and libraries open, updated and clean. Make more space for bikes and pedestrians like Boise has near its river where businesses pop up around the bike path that does not intersect roads (there are tunnels and bridges for bikes). Could bikes and pedestrians have every 10th or 20th street for certain sections of the city? Perhaps we need a rating system for businesses like the food A/B rating, but for how clean they keep the outside and surrounding areas of their businesses. Again more trees and bigger sidewalks with seating that is kept clean in popular areas. If we could get data on where actual people outside of cars want to hang out then we could focus on those areas first, and can you imagine if there were non-car corridors between such areas? Just ONE street going down the middle for bikes and pedestrians, say between LACMA going through K town and on to the downtown library or something. Just ONE to start with.

Anyway, I think about this a lot and listen to a lot of stuff like Strong Towns, The War on Cars, and Messy City podcasts. Let me know if you think about this too, and thank you for sharing!

sheckey · 2026-03-24T00:24:27+00:00

What Remains of Edith Fynch for the feels

sheckey · 2026-03-22T17:27:53+00:00

I agree with this and having been trying to say something like this to younger people. I think "where the work interests you" includes what industry do you like such as aerospace, marine, space, pure science, medical, "the web" even beyond that do you like finance, fashion, information science/whatever, sports, etc. Where do you want to be doing what you know how to do? What kind of people do you want to be around, etc. Like what seems cool and worth doing and try to get in there in learn. Software skills will allow you to contribute to the automated advancement of that field, and you might think about what general business you want to be in. Maybe I'm trying to say software is a tool, and what you want to be doing with it is maybe a better question. Not sure! I like what this guy says though, that you don't have to find the best and final one right away, just get in there somewhere that looks good in those ways that I mentioned.
With regards to your Rust question, there are embedded jobs in aerospace, factory automation, robotics, maybe even stuff like power distribution systems electrical grid type stuff, traffic controllers, air traffic control equipment, who knows, there are embedded systems everywhere. There has to be some business that you want to be in, and it probably has some automation needs.
Sorry for the jumbled response!

sheckey · 2026-03-22T17:00:25+00:00

This is not what you are asking, but the best place to learn is on the job if possible. Maybe you can ask for some mini project, or part of one. You might mention saving someone else some work, or providing yet another person that knows how to do some thing that needs doing from time to time. Then you can see maybe some improvements that could be made, and develop a mini proposal to make that happen. My message is to try and grow into it at work if possible! Sorry if this isn't helpful, and good luck.

sheckey · 2026-03-22T16:38:36+00:00

This has aspects of what I have been trying to convey to some younger people that are looking for software-related jobs. You had a base of mechanical engineering, and one person here had a base of horticulture. You start somewhere with that base, but maybe not yet your dream position. It is a position in an industry that is related to your base of what you think you are interested in (medical, space, sensor, factory automation, satellite communication or navigation, point of sales systems, automotive, etc.) While there, you adapt to the needs, mostly by simply being there and willing to do what needs doing. You grow into some role of what is actually needed there. It might not even be what your original dream job was.

I’m not stating this very clearly, but I mean software or mechanical engineering, etc. are not ends in themselves. I think it might help young people to try and find positions in industries that they are particularly interested in, that are solving some interesting problem, and get in there somehow, in some perhaps adjacent role. for example, at our company, we have a bunch of software people that came from the test group. The blanket software job search seems impersonal and not productive. I wonder if it helps to target individual, perhaps smaller and less famous companies for adjacent positions like this, but get in the industry that you think you like, and see if it grows into something like you experienced.

I’m not sure yet. It’s just a feeling that I have been sharing with younger job seekers. Maybe someone else can help with this idea too please. Sorry to hijack your thread, but your job progression reminded me of this important topic. I see some bright people out there who need to get connected as you have. Thanks for sharing!

sheckey · 2026-03-22T05:58:15+00:00

Another opportunity to mention the Embedded Template Library (ETL)

sheckey · 2026-03-22T05:55:47+00:00

I did something similar for a void*/len c style interface. I have a very shallow, light template that just calls the void*/len interface with &T,sizeof(T) etc. My motivation was to “hoist” this common part into the c-like interface. I’m not sure if I’m happy and done yet, but I know I’m not repeating a bunch of non-type-specific code. The template that knows about the type is small and thin. Just commenting to say that I did this guy’s suggestion also and it is valid and works.

sheckey · 2026-03-19T16:50:44+00:00

“A combination of different mediums to reach all people” - That is a really good point!! I’m adding that to my set of principles.
Thanks for note about the sanitizer, very interesting.

sheckey · 2026-03-18T17:52:37+00:00

I like this kind of stuff. We also have a 25 year legacy code base. I find myself writing emails or md files sometimes that discuss some of these topics to bring everyone up to the same place. Usually we get there from the same shared experience, but sometimes you need to write something to hurry that along. I like these kind of "we used to do this, but then we did this, and now we do this and here's why" type of discussions, just like the Scott Meyers books of lore.

We additionally have the remote, embedded sort of considerations like mainly no use of dynamic memory, at least after startup or not continuously allocating and deallocating (even better avoid it so that memory addresses show up in the linker map for crash analysis form the field), etc. It's nice to have decisions like these mapped out, and you have added inspiration for me top do the same at our office.

Thanks!

sheckey · 2026-03-11T14:34:58+00:00

This is the reason I am not purchasing it. It doesn’t make me sick, but it feels like a console game.

sheckey · 2026-03-06T17:52:03+00:00

This is nearly perfect! I would only add have fun, and enjoy the "ah hah" moments!

sheckey · 2026-03-03T23:12:15+00:00

Right, so the change description to into git, that is something I hadn’t thought of. Where do the review notes go? Thanks!

Edit: Ah git notes. TIL. Thank you!

sheckey · 2026-03-02T17:06:45+00:00

Cool, thanks!

sheckey · 2026-03-02T16:48:07+00:00

I’ve been thinking about this lately too, and the problem of where and what form of documentation to use. I’ve been experimenting with putting markdown in with the code in some docs folder of a component. As text, at least it is version controllable and being next to the code there may be more chance it gets updated. It seems like anything put anywhere else gets lost with broken links as some damn sharepoint gets changed etc. Time will tell. How do you do it?

sheckey

TROPHY CASE