https://devnulldigest.com/Tech humor, satire, and commentary for developers.en-ushttps://devnulldigest.com/post/why-i-dont-use-ai-to-write/https://devnulldigest.com/post/why-i-dont-use-ai-to-write/Sat, 10 Oct 2026 00:00:00 GMTAt /dev/null digest, we don't use AI to write content and we never will (at least here on this blog).https://devnulldigest.com/post/how-sputnik-created-the-internet/https://devnulldigest.com/post/how-sputnik-created-the-internet/Tue, 17 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMTSputnik beeped in 1957 and the resulting scramble produced ARPANET, TCP/IP, and the modern Internet. How a Cold War overreaction led to internet porn and cat memes.https://devnulldigest.com/post/what-is-dev-null-anyway/https://devnulldigest.com/post/what-is-dev-null-anyway/Tue, 17 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMTLearn what /dev/null is on Unix-like systems, how it discards data, and why developers use the null device in shell commands and scripts.https://devnulldigest.com/post/what-is-a-vpn-really-doing-to-your-internet-traffic/https://devnulldigest.com/post/what-is-a-vpn-really-doing-to-your-internet-traffic/Mon, 16 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMTA practical, no-nonsense breakdown of what a VPN actually does to your internet traffic, how it tunnels, encrypts, and reroutes your data, and what privacy it truly delivers.https://devnulldigest.com/post/manager-adds-new-process-denies-he-has-a-problem/https://devnulldigest.com/post/manager-adds-new-process-denies-he-has-a-problem/Wed, 11 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMTA local software engineering manager applies workplace process optimization techniques to his everyday life, insisting he remains fully in control and that this is completely normal behavior.https://devnulldigest.com/post/wait-what-happened-to-notepad-plus-plus/https://devnulldigest.com/post/wait-what-happened-to-notepad-plus-plus/Tue, 10 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMTOur old friend Notepad++ was hijacked by Chinese state-sponsored actors via its update mechanism. Most users were fine, but it’s a cold world out there. Stay frosty.https://devnulldigest.com/post/how-to-write-requriements-so-engineers-dont-hate-you/https://devnulldigest.com/post/how-to-write-requriements-so-engineers-dont-hate-you/Sun, 08 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMTIt’s a dirty job, but somebody’s gotta do it. Writing a good requirement is the secret sauce for finishing projects on time without traumatizing your engineering teams.https://devnulldigest.com/post/no-more-free-celsius-shareholder-value-plunges/https://devnulldigest.com/post/no-more-free-celsius-shareholder-value-plunges/Sat, 07 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMTChicago-based LoopBetAI faces chaos as ditching free Celsius from the office fridge slashes $200M in shareholder value.https://devnulldigest.com/post/top-myths-getting-software-engineering-job/https://devnulldigest.com/post/top-myths-getting-software-engineering-job/Sat, 07 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMTEverybody and their mother has advice about breaking into software engineering, and much of it is wrong. This post debunks common hiring myths and explores what actually helps you land the job.https://devnulldigest.com/post/is-it-worth-learning-new-programming-languages-in-the-age-of-ai/https://devnulldigest.com/post/is-it-worth-learning-new-programming-languages-in-the-age-of-ai/Fri, 06 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMTReflections on whether learning new programming languages and frameworks is moot in the age of AI-assisted tools.https://devnulldigest.com/post/cute-code-is-not-helpful/https://devnulldigest.com/post/cute-code-is-not-helpful/Mon, 19 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMTCute code is fun to write but hard to read. Write for clarity and maintainability, your future coworkers will thank you.https://devnulldigest.com/post/man-awakens-from-coma-founds-blockchain-startup/https://devnulldigest.com/post/man-awakens-from-coma-founds-blockchain-startup/Sat, 17 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMTSan Francisco man wakes from a seven-year coma and immediately launches blockchain startup.https://devnulldigest.com/post/why-do-we-call-it-spam/https://devnulldigest.com/post/why-do-we-call-it-spam/Sat, 17 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMTA brief history of how a Monty Python sketch from the 1970s became synonymous with unwanted communicationhttps://devnulldigest.com/post/email-security-is-kind-of-sketchy/https://devnulldigest.com/post/email-security-is-kind-of-sketchy/Fri, 16 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMTEmail is old, weird, and full of surprising quirks. It's the internet's tortoise, slow, stubborn, yet somehow indispensable.https://devnulldigest.com/post/war-against-the-em-dash/https://devnulldigest.com/post/war-against-the-em-dash/Sat, 10 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMTA eulogy for the em dash, a misunderstood punctuation mark that has become the center of AI accusations and workplace finger-pointing.https://devnulldigest.com/post/analysts-increase-outlook-34-percent-jira-sprint-planning/https://devnulldigest.com/post/analysts-increase-outlook-34-percent-jira-sprint-planning/Sat, 04 Oct 2025 00:00:00 GMTMillennium Technology Solutions sees a 34% stock boost after announcing a new Jira sprint planning process with updated metrics, swimlanes, and alignment meetings.https://devnulldigest.com/post/company-seeks-10-years-experience-for-six-user-dashboard/https://devnulldigest.com/post/company-seeks-10-years-experience-for-six-user-dashboard/Sun, 31 Aug 2025 00:00:00 GMTStartup responds to criticism: ‘Maintaining internal dashboards requires top-tier talent’https://devnulldigest.com/post/buzzword-swear-jar-volume-2/https://devnulldigest.com/post/buzzword-swear-jar-volume-2/Sat, 30 Aug 2025 00:00:00 GMTWe return to buzzwords, roasting "low-hanging fruit," "best practices," and "build vs. buy" because leadership often means stating the obvious.https://devnulldigest.com/post/eli5-how-do-llms-work/https://devnulldigest.com/post/eli5-how-do-llms-work/Mon, 21 Jul 2025 00:00:00 GMTLLMs are here to destroy us or help us, sources say is too early to tell. In effort to know thy enemy, let's take a bit of a deep dive.https://devnulldigest.com/post/man-afraid-of-project-planning-solves-problem-with-quick-sync/https://devnulldigest.com/post/man-afraid-of-project-planning-solves-problem-with-quick-sync/Wed, 07 May 2025 00:00:00 GMTA profile on Jason Washington, the project manager revolutionizing procrastination with "quick syncs." No agenda, no decisions, just vibes. Discover how avoiding accountability and blaming others has become his strategy for success.https://devnulldigest.com/post/firefighter-hose-platform-team-refuses-put-out-fire/https://devnulldigest.com/post/firefighter-hose-platform-team-refuses-put-out-fire/Mon, 05 May 2025 00:00:00 GMTSeattle firefighters watch a house burn to the ground while debating the responsibilities of the hose platform team. The lack of coordination and refusal to act leaves city officials and homeowners furious, with $7 million in damages and no clear resolution in sight.https://devnulldigest.com/post/did-ai-kill-stack-overflow-postmortem/https://devnulldigest.com/post/did-ai-kill-stack-overflow-postmortem/Wed, 30 Apr 2025 00:00:00 GMTDid AI kill Stack Overflow? Not quite. This postmortem dives into how developers now turn to AI for help, and why Stack Overflow’s still around, though its role has definitely evolved.https://devnulldigest.com/post/not-ready-to-regulate-ai/https://devnulldigest.com/post/not-ready-to-regulate-ai/Sun, 20 Apr 2025 00:00:00 GMTAI is transforming society, but who's in charge of regulating it? From self-driving car accidents to AI errors in customer service, current laws are struggling to keep up. This post dives into the risks of AI and how lawmakers, who can barely understand basic tech, are nowhere near ready to regulate it.https://devnulldigest.com/post/nfts-proved-just-as-stupid-as-expected/https://devnulldigest.com/post/nfts-proved-just-as-stupid-as-expected/Mon, 14 Apr 2025 00:00:00 GMTNFTs were once hailed as the future of digital ownership, but they devolved into a speculative mess that left many holding the bag. From celebrity endorsements to outright scams, let's take a look at the rise and fall of the NFT craze.https://devnulldigest.com/post/ai-startup-revealed-openai-api-wrappers-trenchcoat/https://devnulldigest.com/post/ai-startup-revealed-openai-api-wrappers-trenchcoat/Sat, 12 Apr 2025 00:00:00 GMTAI startup Promptly, fresh off a $350 million valuation, has been exposed as nothing more than three OpenAI API wrappers in a trenchcoat. Analysts predict its next funding round will be valued even higher.https://devnulldigest.com/post/hbo-silicon-valley-10-years-later-jared-best-lines/https://devnulldigest.com/post/hbo-silicon-valley-10-years-later-jared-best-lines/Sat, 12 Apr 2025 00:00:00 GMTCelebrating 10 years since Silicon Valley debuted, we’re honoring one of the show’s most bizarre and unforgettable characters: Jared Dunn. In tribute to this iconic character, let’s revisit some of his most memorable and absurd lines.https://devnulldigest.com/post/buzzword-swear-jar-volume-1/https://devnulldigest.com/post/buzzword-swear-jar-volume-1/Sun, 06 Apr 2025 00:00:00 GMTWe take a dive into the most overused corporate jargon like the 80/20 rule and "tiger teams," revealing how these buzzwords turn real conversations into the least-fun version of Mad Libs.https://devnulldigest.com/post/what-are-you-doing-on-blind/https://devnulldigest.com/post/what-are-you-doing-on-blind/Sun, 06 Apr 2025 00:00:00 GMTBlind, once a hub for transparency in tech, has evolved into a space dominated by toxic negativity, career insecurities, and personal frustrations. How did it get here, and what can we do about it?https://devnulldigest.com/post/local-engineer-masters-7th-javascript-framework-still-clueless-about-company-revenue/https://devnulldigest.com/post/local-engineer-masters-7th-javascript-framework-still-clueless-about-company-revenue/Sun, 30 Mar 2025 00:00:00 GMTA profile of local engineer Gus Manchot, a 10x developer who has reportedly mastered his 7th JavaScript framework. While executives at his company secure multi-million-dollar deals, Gus remains steadfastly focused on what truly matters, rewriting internal tools, optimizing analytics dashboards, and staring with contempt at product managers.https://devnulldigest.com/post/what-is-agile-anymore/https://devnulldigest.com/post/what-is-agile-anymore/Sat, 29 Mar 2025 00:00:00 GMTSome opinions and rants examining the current state of "Agile" practices (or what masquerades as Agile these days) and how modern software development has drifted from the original principles of Agile.