ThePolymathicEng

What are web sessions? Any data exchange on the web is based on a stateless protocol like HTTP. Every HTTP request is independent of the previous ones. However, users need to relate the requests to each other. For example, they want to stay logged in to a website…

Software engineers spend at least 20% of their time reviewing code. But many of them don't know what to focus on. They randomly scan code changes, rather than having a structured approach. Here is what to look for in the right priority: 1. Design Considerations. Is the code…

The 132nd issue of the Polymathic Engineer is out. This week we talk about what to look for in code reviews: - Design Considerations - Functionality Review - Complexity - Test Quality - Naming and Documentation - Style and Consistency Read it here: newsletter.francofernando.com/p/what-to-look…

If you want to improve your skills as a senior software engineer, read these 11 articles: ↓

As a software engineer, I spend a lot of time on code reviews. But the process is slow and inefficient. Many steps are manual, feedback is slow, and bugs make it through to production. I tried CodeRabbit on a project, and it has changed how I work. What I like the most: - It…

Every software developer needs to know how the HTTP protocol works. Here are the 8 fundamental things you need to grasp: ↓

Even if you don't use linked lists daily, they are asked in coding interview questions. To solve those problems, you need to be good at manipulating pointers. There are two concepts you need to master that will let you solve 99% of the questions: 1. Fast and slow pointers are…

The 131st issue of the Polymathic Engineer newsletter is out. This week we cover Linked Lists: - What is a LL? - Types of Linked Lists - Implementing a LL - Linked Lists vs. Arrays - Fast and Slow Pointers Technique - Reversing a LL Read it here: francofernando.substack.com/p/mastering-li…

As a senior software engineer, you should read these famous white papers from big tech companies (AWS, Google, Meta,..): ↓

When I started writing two years ago, I never imagined my newsletter would become a bestseller. I'm speechless. Thank you all for your trust and support 🥹 It means a lot to me and pushes me to always do better.

What is microservices architecture? Microservice architecture structures an application as a group of small, separate services. Each service has clear APIs and focuses on a specific business function. The following parts make up a standard microservices architecture: ↓

Coding interviews are scary even for smart engineers. You need to solve a problem on the spot, write code that works and also explain your thought process. But there is good news. With a structured approach, you'll do better. Here's a 7-step framework to boost your chances:…

The 120th issue of the Polymathic Engineer is out. This week we discuss an helpful framework to ace coding interviews: - Listen - Example - Brute Force - Optimization - Walk through - Coding - Testing Read it here: newsletter.francofernando.com/p/how-to-tackl…

If you're a software engineer who want to get better at algorithms and system design, read these 12 curated articles: ↓

Most software engineers are used to working in a single-process environment. But in a distributed system, you must change the way you think about problems. There are 5 main challenges that you should keep in mind: 1. Nodes must communicate over a network to work together.…

The 129th issue of the Polymathic Engineer is out. This week we talk about the challenges of distributed systems: - What is a distributed system? - Communication - Coordination - Scaling - Resiliency - Maintainability Read it here: newsletter.francofernando.com/p/the-challeng…

If you want to become a top-tier software developer, read these 10 books: ↓

Hash tables are the most used data structure in software development. They are critical to get quick access to data, and everyone should have a good understanding. The three main things to know about them are hash functions, how to build a hash table, and how to deal with…

Your public API has become popular. Many developers are creating apps that run on top of it. But what happens if you need to change the API or one of the users requests the addition of new features? This is where having a good API versioning strategy becomes critical. The…

The 128th issue of the Polymathic Engineer is out. This week, we talk about API versioning: - Why and When Version Your APIs - Versioning Strategies - Implementation Methods - Semantic Versioning - Lifecycle Management - Tools Read it here: newsletter.francofernando.com/p/apis-version…