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Officially Partnering with WPBeginner

July 2, 2015 / Tom

As evidenced by this entire blog, one of the things that I enjoy most is writing about software development within the context of WordPress.

That is, I enjoy writing about taking techniques learned in computer science, software engineering, object-oriented analysis and design, and so on and then applying them in the WordPress space.

I’ll also talk about front-end development, and web application development. Sure, I’ll occasionally cover things like databases, though that’s not really my strongest area and I try to leave that to those who are far more skilled than I am.

But one of the tough spots that comes with having a site like this is making sure that you’re able to make the information as accessible to those who are just starting out in WordPress. As much as I would absolutely love to help bring others up to speed on where to start, it’s really hard to do that without giving them a strong foundation off of which to build.

Hopefully, we can change that.

My Time On The Grumpy Developer Podcast

June 30, 2015 / Tom

Last week, I talked about The Grumpy Developer podcast, what it’s about, and why I like it. For those who didn’t read the post or who just happen to be stumbling across this page, here’s the gist of the podcast:

If you’re a designer or project manager, you can consider me your friendly developer translator. I’m here to help you bypass the Grumpy Developer Syndrome and achieve a happy transition from design to launch. If you’re a developer…well…you’re welcome. Let’s all celebrate a departure from Happy Designer Land to a world where design-dev-project managers can all get along.

Sounds fun, right?

The Nature of WordPress Debates

June 29, 2015 / Tom / 0 Comments

Last week, I talked about when people claim that they are Getting Out of the WordPress Bubble and some of the perspectives others have when reading things like this.

The flip side of this is that there are some people who are deeply ingrained within WordPress and who pour their day in and day out into the software and into the economy around it.

I’m not one to say if either one is better than the other because I think they both offer their own set of advantages and disadvantages though, at this point in my career, I tend to be deeply immersed in WordPress – and I am by choice.

One of the challenges that comes with being ingrained in a culture is that you’re exposed to both the good, the bad, and the ugly sides of all of it. And, to be clear, it’s not just WordPress – all software communities, online communities, offline communities, etc. – all have this behavior, but when it’s what you do every day, I think it can leave you with a bit of a distorted perspective.

The TL;DR to all of this is simply that when entering the foray of WordPress debates, it’s important to remember that not everything you read reflects the perspective of all involved.

My Priorities (Balancing Work and Home)

June 26, 2015 / Tom

For an upcoming project, Andy Adams and I are working to build [what I consider to be] a really cool site for a client. Details of the project aside, he and I had a really interesting conversation earlier this week the details of which I thought were worth sharing. Specifically, we talk about developer pragmatism and balancing work with our home lives.

To some degree, I almost consider this to be a sort of letter-to-my-20-year-old-self, but I think it’s relevant to anyone who may be young and starting out in the field of development or who may be about to experience a major life change for whatever reason.

For those not wanting to read the entire post, the gist of it is this:

The ability to sit at your computer and consume as much information as possible regarding programming, software development, and so on is likely to change as you experience major changes in your life.

The thing is, this can sound like a major bummer if you’re someone on the cusp of a major life change. But it’s not and I thought I’d share why – at least as far as my experience allows me to do so.

A Strategy For Estimates in Software

June 25, 2015 / Tom / 0 Comments

This is one of those posts that’s driven by my own personal experience and nothing more. I know there are tons of books, articles, blogs, and probably even tweets that would disagree with what I’m going to share, but as someone who has worked for himself for the last half a decade or so, I figure it’s something worth talking about if it’s only tangentially related to WordPress (or running your own business).

Furthermore, I rarely discuss business-related topics here. There are others – like Chris and Curtis – who do a far better job than I ever could.

Nonetheless, as someone who’s done enough project proposals and free estimates – just like most freelancers, agencies, and so on – I’m coming to the conclusion that, at some point, estimates in software aren’t enough if they are free. There’s more to it than that.

And when you’re livelihood depends on your business and your business depends on cash flow and putting effort into trying to land a project that results in no cash flow negatively affects your livelihood. Thus, there has to be more that goes into drafting a proposal that just coming up with a document to send to your potential client.

So I suppose that’s the TL;DR version of the experience(s) on which I’m going to elaborate.

Tom McFarlin

Officially Partnering with WPBeginner

My Time On The Grumpy Developer Podcast

The Nature of WordPress Debates

My Priorities (Balancing Work and Home)

A Strategy For Estimates in Software