Exploring the human factors that make software engineering so unique, so difficult, so important and all consuming. Learning to work with the systems, not against them.
The Human Software 284 - Pluribus
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Aside from being a writer, I'm also an avid film and TV watcher. This week we were blessed by the arrival of Pluribus on AppleTV. It's a speculative science fiction series written by Vince Gilligan, co-creator of Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul. He's someone who knows what they are doing when it comes to writing, producing and directing these incredibly successful series. More than that though, he picks the best people and directs them with ease. Here's a bit on when Vince Gilligan knew that Rhea Seehorn would be his next lead: https://www.instagram.com/reel/DQxG6OyDfwJ/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA== Also, if you're a super fan of Better Call Saul (as I am) then you could do a lot worse then watch some of the table reads. Here is a perfect example of the art of Rhea Seehorn and Bob Odenkirk in action. Pluribus itself? It's great - go watch the first two episodes immediately. It also deserves its own blog post which is already in the works. Talking of promoting new shows, this week I'm embarking on a podcast tour and next week I'll be talking about Human Software in front of some real humans! Eek! You can help me out in the meantime, I hear that if you get 20 followers on Amazon than this unlocks extra insights. Would you do me a favour and visit my author profile on Amazon and follow me! That will help with the algorithm. Thank you! https://www.amazon.com/stores/Richard-Bown/author/B0FRK6KMYW Have a great Sunday! |
The Human Engineer
Exploring the human factors that make software engineering so unique, so difficult, so important and all consuming. Learning to work with the systems, not against them.
REBRAND ALERT!! So it's been a while since I renamed this newsletter but I feel it's due a slight sidestep following the launch of my book. So welcome to episode 286 overall, but episode #1 of The Human Engineer. Despite me constantly rename this newsletter, over these years the subject has never really varied too much. I talk about software systems and how they relate to human systems. I find my work increasingly focusses on the human side of the this divide - because it is a divide right?...
Last couple of weeks, I've been rebuilding some Windows base images in order to comply with corporate patching policies. The new images are CIS hardened which means they follows guidelines set out by the Center for Internet Security benchmark. This ultimately means that the images are restricted in what they can do, what they can access, what is installed upon them by default. These security measures work in opposition to the automation we already have in place for our customers. This is the...
Greg Wilson of Software Carpentry fame knows how to write a headline. His recent talk Cocaine and Conway's Law is a mine of brilliant ideas and books to add to your reading list. They talk invested me immediately through his excoriation of Mark Andreessen's "Techno Optimist Manifesto" as a part of the Peter Thiel/Elon Musk narrative - work harder and longer, fix all problems via tech. Conway's Law, for those who are unfamiliar is the implicit link between social organisation of a company and...