Startup Lessons Part 3: From Engineering To Product
In this part of the series, I discuss how to expand a pre-PMF engineering team, emphasizing effective hiring, onboarding and communication.
Here I share challenges and insights from my daily life.
Writing is a way for me to structure my thoughts and reinforce my learnings. Topics include web technologies, best practices, personal projects and whatever else keeps me busy.
2024
Startup Lessons Part 2: Scaling Beyond A One-Person Team
In this part of the series, I discuss how to expand a pre-PMF engineering team, emphasizing effective hiring, onboarding and communication.
Startup Lessons Part 1: Engineering Strategy Pre-Product Market Fit
In the first post of this mini-series I discuss key decisions made to optimise Engineering for development speed, particularly in the pre-PMF phase.
2020
A Bullet-Proof Approach to Storing Sensitive User Data in React Native
Keeping data on mobile devices secure is crucial. But did you know that the local storage mechanism in React Native is unencrypted be default?
How The Sustainable List came to life: journey of a side project
I usually write about technical topics, but I want to use this opportunity to share the journey of a project I’ve been working on for the last year.
2019
Common cross-platform pitfalls to avoid in React Native
Companies choose React Native because of its shallow learning curve, but what often gets missed is that you’re still catering to two different platforms.
Bridging the gap from JavaScript to native user preferences in React Native
While integrating a GDPR opt-out feature into an app I ran into a few interesting technical challenges carrying over JavaScript application settings to native code and vice-versa.
Upgrading React Native to version 0.59 and beyond: a step-by-step guide
The most popular complaint about React Native is upgrading, so let me walk you through this tedious process one step at a time.
Anti-patterns to avoid when building a component library in React Native
Recently I’ve helped a client migrate their e-commerce front-end to React Native and ran into some common issues that occur when a team lacks prior experience with React.
2018
The intricacies of nesting navigators in React Native using react-navigation
This is the last post in a 4-part series about building the iOS and Android app for uncovercity using React Native, which is all about the popular topic of navigators.
Supporting multiple languages in React Native with Expo’s Localization module
Another post about my experience building the mobile app for the surprise dinner startup uncovercity, which is all about bringing multiple languages into the app.
Battle testing a ridesharing API and React Native’s MapView in Expo
I had the pleasure to experiment with maps and API integrations in React Native while working on the mobile app for uncovercity. Here is how it went.
Speeding up the build of a surprise dinner app in React Native using Expo
React Native can be hard. But a lot of the heavy lifting can be done by its open source companion toolchain Expo, which I'm going to talk about in this post.
2017
How to automate your React Native deployment workflow using Bitrise
An important part of our workflow while building Prepd was deploying the app to our internal testers and stakeholders using Bitrise. Let me show you how!
Building Prepd: The pros and cons of launching a product with React Native
React Native has been doing the rounds for quite a while now and in this post, I want to talk about how we used it to launch the Prepd app for iOS and Android.
2016
Path to React Native: From Rookie to Rockstar
Building a hybrid mobile app seemed like a really big challenge just a few years ago. With React Native though, things have changed a lot.
The last thing you need is a programmer
One of the trickiest challenges that most startups face is validating product/market fit. In this post, I’ll explain why a programmer doesn't necessarily have to be your first hire.
2015
99% of my ideas are rubbish
We have more ideas in our head than we have time in our lives. Most of the ideas, although they may sound exciting and groundbreaking, end up being abandoned.
Why offline-first matters, and what developers should know about it
When developing applications, we assume that people have permanent access to a broadband connection, no matter where they are in the world. That's a mistake!
Here’s the tool we’ve built to overcome remote isolation in our team
Working remotely has a lot of benefits: you’re location-independent, enjoy flexible work hours, and usually have more autonomy and less distractions. But...
A simple experiment, a huge impact
One of the best parts of Hanno's team trip was a challenge where two teams competed against each other to build something deceptively simple in twenty minutes
2014
What I learned during my first 3 months at Hanno
A short story about my new work life at Hanno, and how I managed to get out of my comfy dark developer cave.
Company blogging for the win
It’s very common for blogging to be neglected carelessly in digital companies. Here’s why it shouldn’t.
If it is broken, why don’t you fix it?
A lot of times I find myself repeating the same thing over and over again. Here's how to eliminate broken workflows while staying mentally focused.
A lazy man's guide to task automation
Ever since the industrial revolution humans have aimed to make their lives more efficient using automation. Today, I'd like to share my 5 favourite automation tools with you.
Alfred workflows to increase your productivity
If you haven't been living under a rock for the last couple of years, you should be aware of the launcher app Alfred and the incredible power it offers to boost your productivity.
Three simple tricks to improve your attention span
We are living in a world of instant gratification and quick fixes. Sometimes we are not able to spend even a minute of focused effort without getting distracted.
The human factor
If you have been working in the IT industry for a while, it is probably not entirely new to you that projects don't always go as expected. Why is that?
The story of The Book Project
Today I'm going to tell you a bit about a side project I've been working on. "The Book Project" is a collaborative storytelling experiment turned into a printed book.
Every developer's most hated discipline
Who doesn't hate browser testing? There are probably few things more disappointing than firing up your website in an environment that is not your own, just to realize that everything gets screwed up.
2013
Making the web work offline first
I guess all of us have been more than once in this situation: While doing something on the internet the 3G status bar on our phone slowly disappears, and we're offline!
Is it better to work at home or at the office?
I have probably spent most of my working hours in one of the following environments : at home, at offices and at co-working places. So which one is the best?
Five key characteristics of outstanding web devs
There are many different web developers out there, all with different qualities and talents. So what is the most important criteria to watch out for?
Three design tools for a better responsive workflow
Since the breakthrough of responsive web design, I've been eagerly looking for ways to improve my design workflow. Let me show you three tools I've tested.
Timeless web development best practices
In today’s world, we are constantly confronted with new and innovative ways to solve problems. Let me share with you which of them I think are timeless.
How to cultivate your ideas
When we have a good idea, we usually would like to start acting on it immediately. In this post, I'm going to share a few strategies to turn them into action.
Boost your web development productivity with these rapid scaffolding tools
Scaffolding tools in web development are becoming more and more popular. Let me share three tools with you that can help you build web applications more quickly.
Why Valencia is an amazing city for start-ups!
I've been living in the Mediterranean city of Valencia for several years now, so let me recap why I think this is a great place for young companies.
2012
Coursera - Gamification course wrap-up
Recently I did a course on Gamification on the highly acclaimed learning platform Coursera. In this post I write about my experience with this topic.
Three essential debugging tools for mobile applications
In this post I wanted to go over some useful programs that have recently become indispensable for my daily workflow.
Optimizing productivity with Kanban Flow
During the past month, I have been trying out the productivity tool Kanban Flow to optimize my work speed and focus. Here's what I've learned.