The hottest Coding Substack posts right now

And their main takeaways
Category
Top Technology Topics
Rod’s Blog 39 implied HN points 12 Dec 23
  1. The hacker in the story had a personal connection to one of the characters, making the situation more intense and personal.
  2. Using Kusto Query Language (KQL), the characters tried to analyze the hacker's network traffic and database activity to uncover clues about the hacker's identity and location.
  3. Despite challenges in decoding the hacker's data, the characters discovered a message from the hacker in the database logs, prompting them to solve a mysterious puzzle involving numbers.
Splattern 39 implied HN points 27 Nov 23
  1. ChatGPT can help you build a simple website quickly, even if you have little coding experience. You can get a lot done with just a few prompts.
  2. It's easy to ask ChatGPT to tweak and improve your code, making debugging simpler. You can keep refining your work until it fits your needs.
  3. While ChatGPT is great for generating code, it might struggle with complex math or writing tasks, but you can guide it to get better results.
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Breaking Smart 45 implied HN points 16 Feb 24
  1. The essay discussed contrasting viewpoints on the level of detail present in reality, questioning if there might actually be a surprising lack of detail.
  2. The post highlighted two major AI developments, Sora and Gemini 1.5, emphasizing the importance of boring inference advances over flashy training advances.
  3. The complexity of reality and the intricacies of AI advancements were juxtaposed with simple examples, prompting readers to reconsider their perceptions about reality's level of detail.
lcamtuf’s thing 42 HN points 01 Mar 24
  1. Memory safety in programming languages like C and C++ is a significant issue due to the risk of buffer overflows and other coding errors.
  2. Although there is a push to adopt memory-safe languages like a mandate from The White House, the practicality and necessity of such a move is questionable.
  3. Challenges in enforcing a complete shift to memory-safe languages include the limited exposure of critical code to attacks and the fact that other security vulnerabilities are more common in causing breaches.
Weekend Developer 39 implied HN points 21 Oct 23
  1. Writing code in enterprise organizations is different from startups due to legacy code, lack of tests, and constant changes.
  2. To write effective code in enterprise organizations, understand the system, write more tests, and collaborate with testers.
  3. Refactoring code, troubleshooting issues, and getting a birds-eye view are key to improving code quality and system understanding.
Step-by-step Product 39 implied HN points 31 Mar 23
  1. The future of product development may involve AI tools like 'Prompt to Product' for rapid prototyping and testing.
  2. Product people may need coding skills now, but advancements in technology are making product creation more accessible for non-coders.
  3. To stay ahead in the AI wave, product people should refresh coding skills, understand LLMs, and improve prompt design skills.
Step-by-step Product 39 implied HN points 13 May 23
  1. LLMs allow people with little or no coding skills to become developers, expanding possibilities for creating products faster.
  2. Planning and preparation are key before building an app with ChatGPT, considering the tech stack, structure of prompts, and debugging strategies.
  3. Creating an app with ChatGPT can be fast and insightful, but requires caution with APIs, defining the tech stack, and utilizing the tool's assistance for aspects like backend development and SEO.
The Hive 39 implied HN points 24 Jul 23
  1. Sometimes things may seem hard or impossible, but seeing others do it can change your perspective.
  2. Try short spikes of work to test if something is actually as difficult as it seems.
  3. Competition in your space can be beneficial, as you can learn from others' mistakes and plans.
The ZenMode 42 implied HN points 14 Feb 24
  1. Strategic planning is key: Designate crucial coding tasks that ignite your passion the night before to fuel deep focus and better code.
  2. Create a distraction-free coding environment: Silence your phone, limit browser tabs, and resist multitasking to enhance true focus in a minimalist space.
  3. Take care of your body and experiment with coding blocks: Stay hydrated, consider supplements, move physically, and adapt your coding sessions to find your unique rhythm.
Rod’s Blog 19 implied HN points 06 Feb 24
  1. A major security breach has occurred with sensitive data stolen, leading to a need for urgent action to track down the threat actor.
  2. Jordan quickly jumps into action, using KQL queries to analyze data and identify patterns associated with the suspected threat actor.
  3. The story leaves readers with a cliffhanger, hinting at upcoming developments and ensuring engagement for the next chapter.
Technology Made Simple 79 implied HN points 29 Sep 22
  1. Problem involves finding the kth largest element in a stream, not the kth distinct element.
  2. The 'KthLargest' class has methods to initialize the object with 'k' and a stream of integers, and to add integers to the stream and return the kth largest element.
  3. Constraints include bounds on 'k', the length of the array, and the values in the array, with at most 10^4 calls to the 'add' method.
Technology Made Simple 39 implied HN points 23 Mar 23
  1. The problem discussed in the post is about finding unique paths in a grid using dynamic programming and recursion.
  2. The example solutions provided in the post illustrate how a robot can navigate from the top-left corner to the bottom-right corner in different grid sizes.
  3. The author also shares personal information about being a university student seeking work post-graduation and invites readers to check out their resume and LinkedIn profile.
Technology Made Simple 59 implied HN points 14 Dec 22
  1. You can check if a number is a power of 2 by doing a simple comparison using bitwise operations.
  2. Using logical operations and bit shifting to check powers of 2 is computationally efficient and essential for coding interviews.
  3. Mastering AND, OR, and NOT operations can significantly improve your programming skills and make you a more effective software engineer.
Technology Made Simple 79 implied HN points 07 Sep 22
  1. Understanding the context is crucial when learning a new codebase, not just the technical details
  2. Start by understanding the purpose and problem the codebase solves before diving into technical details of components
  3. When stuck on a component, focus on understanding input/output and move forward for efficient learning
Technology Made Simple 39 implied HN points 08 Mar 23
  1. To find the middle of a singly linked list, use 2 pointers - one fast and one slow. This approach simplifies the process and is efficient.
  2. The reasoning behind finding the middle involves understanding the ordered structure of values in a linked list. It exploits this organized structure to bisect the list and locate the middle.
  3. Learning to think in abstract groups instead of specific data types can enhance problem-solving skills. This technique can be extended to more complex structures beyond linked lists.
Technology Made Simple 59 implied HN points 18 Nov 22
  1. A fixed point in a sorted array is an element whose value matches its index. Binary search can be used to efficiently find a fixed point if the array is sorted.
  2. When optimizing algorithms, focus on improving the major components like loop traversal to enhance the overall performance.
  3. In sorted arrays, utilizing comparators and the inherent comparison order can simplify the coding process and boost efficiency.
Technology Made Simple 59 implied HN points 17 Nov 22
  1. A fixed point in an array is an element whose value is equal to its index in a sorted array of distinct elements.
  2. To solve the problem of finding a fixed point in a sorted array, return the fixed point if it exists, otherwise return False.
  3. Understanding your audience's needs and feedback is crucial for improving content quality and user experience.
Technology Made Simple 79 implied HN points 18 Aug 22
  1. Understanding the problem clearly is crucial in finding efficient solutions. This particular problem doesn't require special knowledge, just logic and basic algebra.
  2. Recognizing patterns and properties of the data can significantly enhance the algorithm. In this case, the unique rules about the sorted matrix rows were key to optimizing the search process.
  3. Optimizing code by leveraging insights about the data structures can simplify solutions and reduce unnecessary complexity. It's important to make the most of the given information to write efficient algorithms.
Technology Made Simple 39 implied HN points 17 Feb 23
  1. The post discusses a solution for rearranging a linked list in a specific pattern, providing examples and constraints.
  2. It encourages problem-solving skills by reinforcing fundamental concepts through problem-solving and preparing for technical interviews.
  3. Consider subscribing to access more articles and support the creator's work, appealing to a broader audience.
Technology Made Simple 39 implied HN points 16 Feb 23
  1. The newsletter discusses a coding problem about reordering a linked list, which requires understanding of linked lists, pointer manipulation, and problem-solving skills.
  2. There is emphasis on focusing on important problems rather than mindlessly solving a large number of problems, suggesting that quality over quantity is key in interview preparation.
  3. The post also offers a premium subscription service to enhance tech skills, providing expert insights, tips, and resources, with a discount for new subscribers.
CodeFaster 72 implied HN points 23 Jul 23
  1. The Unix one-liner uses commands like cat, tac, cut, and less to process a CSV file.
  2. Using 'cat' reads the file, 'tac' prints it in reverse, 'cut' selects specific columns, and 'less' displays data page by page.
  3. This one-liner is handy for quickly examining and navigating through large CSV files in the terminal.