Technology related blog posts

Explore how the US is run by lawyers, and faces challenges in innovation compared to China’s engineering-driven governance.

There are two primary ways to generate income on the consumer Internet: through subscriptions or advertising. Additionally, unlike the enterprise world, usage-based subscriptions are often hard and confusing for consumers. So, we end up with 10$ a month all-you-can-eat buffet or we end up with ads. Now, like it or not, not all users are created equal. Some are more valuable than others. And these valuable users indirectly pay more than the users with less spending power. In other words, these users subsidize the product for the less fortunate fellows. In fact, in some ways, ads are a transfer of wealth from rich to poor users of the same service. So, next time wonder when people complain about ads, they will always be rich and powerful. These rich users would prefer a minuscule 10-a-month price instead of being worth thousands, if not millions, for the advertisers. And if the product has network effects, like social media, then it is unavoidable for these richer folks. ...

The Mom Test is an intriguing book by Rob Fitzpatrick about how to do user research and validation of one’s product idea.

The book talks about what it means to be a staff engineer. It is an interesting read for those who would prefer to stay on the engineering as opposed to the management track of career growth.

The book summarizes the teachings of John from the course CS190 that he teaches at Stanford. Good system designers get to spend a larger fraction of time in the design phase. Poor designers spend most of their time chasing bugs in complicated and brittle code.

Digital Minimalism is a philosophy of technology in which you focus your online time on a few carefully selected activities that support the things you value.

The book takes a data-driven approach to analyze the world.

The book is Ben Horowitz’s memoir with a particular focus on his company Opsware and the lessons he learned there.

The book consists of the learnings which the author had while working on his startup IMVU. The book focuses on the concept of validated learning and the build-measure-learn feedback loop. It tries to bring in a systematic approach to measuring the progress of a startup. A startup has a true north, its vision. It employs a strategy that includes a business model, a product roadmap, and a view of partners, competitors, and customers. The product is the result of the strategy. Products constantly change ( engine tuning). Strategy changes occasionally ( pivot). Vision rarely changes. In general management, failure to deliver results is caused by failure to plan or failure to execute. Both are frowned upon. But in the modern economy, both are useful tools for testing new ideas. ...

The authors are founders of 37Signals. The book talks about how to go about remote work, its advantages and pitfalls. Here are some key takeaways from the book.