At the very beginning of 2014 I decided to track my reading habits and share the best stuff here, on Baeldung.
2014 has been quite the year, covering each week with a review. I’ve been doing a lot more reading to make sure I cover and curate stuff that has value and is actually worth reading.
Let me know in the comments if you’re finding my reviews interesting and useful.
Here we go…
1. Spring and Java
>> How to batch INSERT and UPDATE statements with Hibernate
Batching write operations is super useful, and configuring it properly with Hibernate is a must.
>> Roll Your Own Pirate-Elvis Operator
The next best thing, since the Elvis Operator won’t likely be introduced into Java.
>> Getting Started with Couchbase and Spring Data Couchbase
A good, ops-focused intro to Couchbase within the Spring ecosystem.
>> Custom Jackson Polymorphic Deserialization Without Type Metadata
An interesting approach to dealing with semi-structured data by leveraging Jackson.
Also worth reading:
>> Automated Error Reporting in Eclipse Mars
>> Using rx-java Observable in a Spring MVC flow
>> Async Goes Mainstream: 7 Reactive Programming Tools You MUST Know
>> Validating XML Against XSD(s) in Java
>> What is the point of Optionals? and >> Avoiding Null Checks in Java 8
Webinars and presentations:
>> A Single-Page Application with Spring Security and Angular JS
**>> Groovy for Java Developers and >> Groovy Browser Automation
**
Time to upgrade:
2. Technical
>> My Answers for Microservices Awkward Questions
Insightful thoughts on Microservices, just in case you’re jumping on this particular trend.
>> The 10 Things Everyone does Wrong when Committing Pull Requests
2 must reads in one week? Crazy I know, but if you’re doing any kind of open source work, please do read this one – it’s important if you actually want your work to go in.
Also worth reading:
3. Musings
>> Getting Started as a Blogger: A Contract with Your Readers
I find myself dispensing with advice on how to start a blog at least a few times a month. Sometimes I need to talk someone out of wasting time with fancy tech stuff. Other times drive home the point that you don’t start with 100 topics in your queue. You start with a handful and a commitment to show up.
If you’ve been circling around the idea of blogging – get with the clicky clicky and read this piece.
On an unrelated note, I need to clear my fridge.
>> Reflections on a year in DevOps
You’re going to have to do Operations. Maybe not on the scale of TripAdvisor, but if you have software running in production, you’re going to have to do Operations. This is about that.
>> Goldilocks process
A must read about intentional process, understanding tradeoffs and what they mean for your organizations ability to ship software.
>> How to Land a Software Engineering Job?
A bit of sanity in the hiring process – if you’re on either side of the line, it’s a quick good read.
>> Employers: Put Your Money where Your Mouth Is
An interesting thought exercise about auditing the practices of various companies. It would be cool to ask the question – does company X do TDD? – and have an answer you can trust.
Also worth reading:
4. Comics
And my favorite Dilberts of the week:
>> Engineer credibility
>> Indecision
>> Dumbing down jargon
5. Pick of the Week
Earlier this year I introduced the “Pick of the Week” section here in my “Weekly Review”. If you’re already on my email list – you got the pick already – hope you enjoyed it.