Chris WiegmanIn April my role changes and I go back to being a developer (Sr. Staff Software Engineer, to be specific). As it’s been 2.5 years since I last wrote code for the day job I’ve been thinking about what that means for me this time around.
First, I’ve kept up on code with my own website, Kana and a host of other side projects so I’m not overly worried about that. What I haven’t done, however, is have much reason to learn some newer tech that simply doesn’t apply to my side projects.
JavaScript
I know some JavaScript as I’ve used it for years. What little code I wrote as an engineering manager is even typically in Node.js. What I’ve never had a reason to learn or use is the newer JavaScript libraries and other tech like TypeScript, Next.js and others.
My new role will keep me in Atlas and there will still be plenty of opportunity for me to get my hands dirty with this type of code. I’m kinda looking forward to that part.
More Go
Most of my side work, especially Kana, is written in Go. I love working in the tech but what I’m building doesn’t have need of some more of Go’s more advanced features. We have a lot of services written in the tech at work and I’m hoping this will be my chance to up level my own skills.
Python
I’ve dabbled with Django and some other Python over the years but I still think that the most I’ve ever done with the tech was way back during my computer science classes in university. For a lot of what most folks would turn to Python for I’ve usually just used Node.js for no other reason than easily accessible libraries and familiarity with the tech itself. I hope to find more reasons to dig in deeper now.
Rust
Finally, I really want to learn Rust. We don’t use it at my company so I really haven’t had a chance to dig in. That said, I have a few ideas for side projects where I think it might really be a good fit.
In the end, while reverting to a developer role wasn’t my choice, it is absolutely something I want to make the best of. I actually look forward to work days that aren’t spent in meetings and a chance to focus on engineering problems again. After all, when life gives you lemons, make lemonade, right?