I finally wrote up how to get passwordless SSH and sudo using 1Password-managed SSH keys, following @ethanschoonover's example from a month or so ago:

https://scottstuff.net/posts/2025/07/04/passwordless-ssh-and-sudo-with-1password/

This is relatively easy with a Mac laptop, but I have it working with a Linux desktop and a Yubikey Bio for authentication, using the same keys, so I can work from either my work laptop or my personal Linux desktop.

The key to coding productivity is your Mental Model: your own understanding of how all the software and APIs are interacting.

With AI, you aren’t strengthening the mental model in your head and really that’s what employers are paying you for: your experience just boils down to the knowledge in your head.

For junior developers, AI is candy: no nutritional value at all. Eat your vegetables, read lots of code and develop that mental model.

I think people would be surprised at how few productivity tools or utilities I use as a programmer. I have only two tips to improve your coding productivity:

- read lots of code, especially your dependencies. Being curious will teach you the entire app stack.

- write lots of tests. Test-Driven Development (TDD) is still the best way to design a high quality API.

AI can supercharge productivity in the short term but be careful that you don’t become dependent on it. /1

No CS degree? Join the club.

That's why we wrote a guide to Big-O notation for Rubyists who've been avoiding it. It turns out it's not that hard to learn:

O(1) = 😎, O(n) = 😕, O(n²) = 😫

Learn why your Rails app keeps getting slower in production (hint: it's your database queries.)

https://www.honeybadger.io/blog/a-rubyist-s-guide-to-big-o-notation/?utm_source=mastodon&utm_medium=social

#Ruby #RubyOnRails #Performance #Programming

Today we’re quietly (and finally!) opening up Railfinder to the public! This is our beta version and - hopefully - the first step towards that one booking site for trains across Europe that we all dream of.

Lots of work has gone into this and equally lots still to do before reach that vision, but if you’d like to try what we’ve built you can now just go to https://www.railfinder.eu and have a go!

Any and all feedback more than welcome 🙏

Ruby's humble Rake could use a slick website, similar to https://bundler.io.

https://github.com/ruby/rake#readme

#ruby #freeprojectidea

If you are one of us, the ELITE that use @panic 's macOS text & code editor *Nova*, download @eirvandelden 's sweet new implementation of my Solarized color scheme for it: nova://extension/?id=com.eirvandelden.SelenizedRails&name=Selenized%20%26%20Solarized

Microsoft just released a tool that lets you convert Office files to Markdown. Never thought I'd see the day.

Google also added Markdown export to Google Docs a few months ago.

https://github.com/microsoft/markitdown

Amazon has shut off the feed that allowed Delicious Library to look up items, unfortunately limiting the app to what users already have (or enter manually).

I wasn’t contacted about this.

I’ve pulled it from the Mac App Store and shut down the website so nobody accidentally buys a non-functional app.

If you're worried about storing your data with US tech companies in light of the election results, this link has a list of European alternatives. These include:

- Email hosting
- Cloud storage
- Domain name registration
- Navigation apps
- Many other services

Stay safe.

https://european-alternatives.eu/

Edit: Follow the creator at: @european_alternatives

Liking the new "maintainer" role for rubygem maintainers.
https://blog.rubygems.org/2024/11/07/maintainer-role.html

#rubygems #rubysec

Today I find myself looking for work, like everyone else. If you need a programmer who likes to speak to humans, even for a month or two, let me know. I’m a generalist, a quick learner and will happily turn my hand to almost anything, given a little time. I’m in Scotland, near Edinburgh, but have worked remotely for US and European companies for almost 25 years so very happy to work remote. #getfedihired

Apple's own documentation doesn’t know about watchOS 11’s biggest feature https://justin.searls.co/posts/apple-s-own-documentation-doesn-t-know-about-watchos-11-s-biggest-feature/

Opened an issue https://bugs.ruby-lang.org/issues/20882

Pie in the sky.

I18n has received 4.5 million downloads in 3 weeks (so about 75 mil for the year?). I get about $75 a month from GitHub sponsorships (which I’m grateful for!). But if companies paid their way, it would be thousands, not hundreds, per year. https://hachyderm.io/@mitsuhiko/113271990237406378

When learning a new Rails application, start at the root and work your way up.

Check out `application_controller.rb` and `application_record.rb` to see if there is commonality between all models. This could put you in the right mindset for how the senior authors intended to scale the application in the long run.

#rubyonrails #ruby

#PSA #PayPal is changing their privacy statement/terms of service starting November so that they can sell your information to merchants.

You CAN opt out, but you have to do it before they start:

Settings > Data & Privacy > Manage shared info > Personalized shopping, and toggle that shit off

ETA: this is probably country specific, due to differing privacy laws.

You can try privacy>settings>recommendations

Check replies, people have found the same toggle under a different header.

Two and a half weeks are left, to make the official European Citizens Initiative #TaxTheRich work!

We still need 6̶9̶0̶.̶0̶0̶0̶ 673.000 signatures, which sounds like a lot, but for a union of 450 million people, it should be a piece of cake!

We also still need 4 more countries to reach their national threshold of supporters:

BE, NL, IT, ES, SE are on a good way.

If you are an #EU citizen, and have not signed yet:

What are you waiting for?

Edit: Number updated.

https://eci.ec.europa.eu/038/public/#/screen/home

As I listened to talks expressing hope for the future of Ruby, I recalled how hard it was for me 2 years ago to find a job after graduating from a ROR bootcamp. I was truly torn between learning more about Rails or completely switching to a different programming language. Were it not for @andycroll taking a chance on me, I am honestly not sure if I would be working with Ruby today. In order for Ruby to keep going strong, I hope that more ROR companies can take action and hire more juniors.

I was also excited to hear about the Ruby Europe initiative. It is my hope that revitalising local Ruby meetups and conferences, as Ruby Europe proposes to do, will have a positive impact for those who want to join the Ruby community, as it could lead to more beginners developing their knowledge and making connections with professionals that can potentially help them get commercial experience.