Andrew Kasper

Technologist. Dad. Nerd. Homeschooling and Homesteading curious.

[Andrew Kasper @andrewmkasper]

Love @valvesoftware’s @Steam Deck and Steam Cube. Steam Rack when?

[Andrew Kasper @andrewmkasper]

The year is 2026. Diablo 2, Spacechem, and Portal 2 receive updates.

wat

[Andrew Kasper @andrewmkasper]

In the past six months, I’ve lost four different pairs of sunglasses. Imagine my surprise discovering today that they’ve been on my head this whole time.

[Andrew Kasper @andrewmkasper]

Some spices stain certain specific surfaces!

[Andrew Kasper @andrewmkasper]

Certain specific spices stain.

[Elon Musk @elonmusk]

There was (still is) a massive cyberattack against 𝕏.

We get attacked every day, but this was done with a lot of resources. Either a large, coordinated group and/or a country is involved.

Tracing …

[Andrew Kasper @andrewmkasper]

When you’re on a Zoom call and someone asks you a question so you hold up your finger to indicate “please wait” and while you’re looking for your unmute button everyone says “YOU’RE ON MUTE WE CAN’T HEAR YOU”

[Andrew Kasper @andrewmkasper]

@JamesonZaballos @netcapgirl @JamesonZaballos I am still laughing about this comment weeks later

[Ordinary Nobody @OrdinaryNobody]

Strangely, they all met to screw in a light bulb.

[Andrew Kasper @andrewmkasper]

@Rothmus FFVI

[Andrew Kasper @andrewmkasper]

@GigaBasedDad Every time.

[Andrew Kasper @andrewmkasper]

Excited to play the exclusive titles, and grateful for this new toy. Just frustrated with the high-friction experience so far.

[Andrew Kasper @andrewmkasper]

The family opened a top-of-the-line XBox this morning.

So far the experience feels like… well, what it would be like if Microsoft made a game console. 😐

[Andrew Kasper @andrewmkasper]

It’s the logical opposite of the PlayStation5 and Nintendo Switch experiences.

[Andrew Kasper @andrewmkasper]

Sharing uncritically because I want it to be true:

[Eric S. Raymond @esrtweet]

Quoted post irresistibly triggers a rant from me on how forcing RTO on software engineers is idiotic.

Software engineers are at an extreme in their need to concentrate deeply and for long periods of time in order to do productive work. Accordingly, an environment in which they are comfortable and have the capability to limit interruptions is hugely important, and employers should bend heaven and earth to make that happen. At least, if they care about little things like, say, shipping software and making a profit.

I'm not just speculating here. There have been large studies on optimal work environments for software engineering going back to the 1980s; one of the simultaneously best and most ignored books on software project management ("Peopleware: Productive Projects and Teams") had the importance of avoiding uncontrolled interruptions as a major theme.

Sadly, everything that book had to teach was ignored during the move from enclosed offices to cubicle farms and open-plan workspaces.

That move was an utter disaster for software-engineering productivity. The pandemic-era shift to remote work reversed much of this disaster by giving SWEs back control of their working environments, but since the productivity gains were difficult to see and measure management largely failed to notice.

Software engineers did not fail to notice, which is why they've been among the stubbornest and most persistent opponents of RTO.

I've been a software developer for pushing 45 years now. That's a lot of experience. If there is one single lesson I could choose to pound into the heads of software development managers, it's exactly this: back off and let them concentrate!

Under modern conditions, with the world full of idiots who think open-plan offices are wonderfully economical because they can't measure what high distraction levels are throwing away, work from home is about the only way to let them do that.

[Andrew Kasper @andrewmkasper]

Just now becoming aware of and am seeing for the first time “Where No Fan Has Gone Before,” the Star Trek episode of Futurama.

@WilliamShatner does a spoken word rendition of “Slim Shady,” and it is perhaps the greatest thing I’ve ever seen.

Whole episode is a masterpiece.

[World of Engineering @engineers_feed]

A Machine Learning Engineer walks into a bar.

The bartender: What will you have?

Machine Learning Engineer: What's everyone else having?

[Andrew Kasper @andrewmkasper]

Social media is forever. Please use your thinking brains before creating a mark that will last forever.

[Andrew Kasper @andrewmkasper]

@cb_doge Alien.