Hot Takes, React, and WebAssembly with Jack Herrington

By now we know that an engineer with skin in the game is a senior engineer. Experience teaches wisdom and Jack Herrington, Principal Full Stack Engineer, has plenty of it.

Jack dissects the various programming languages from old school to new school, sharing anecdotes and opinions on PHP, ColdFusion, and React. He explores the ongoing JS fatigue phenomenon and emerging alternatives like Deno and Quick. Though Jack is up to date on the latest in tech, he questions the need for complex toolchains and whether simpler solutions, like HTML and JavaScript, might suffice.

In this episode, Jack talks to Robbie and Chuck about polarizing tech topics, whether React Server Components changed React, and the state of Web Assembly.

Key Takeaways

• [01:15] - Intro to Jack Herrington.
• [02:04] - A whiskey review: Barrell Private Release Amaro Cask Finish.
• [09:53] - Tech hot takes.
• [19:51] - Did RSCs turn React into PHP?
• [29:00] - Big architectural changes at Vercel.
• [30:31] - Jack’s opinion on the future of the web.
• [36:09] - Jack talks about interesting things happening on Nextdoor.
• [39:43] - Jack gives Chuck pizza-making tips and tricks.
• [44:49] - What Jack’s career would be if he weren’t in tech.

Quotes

[14:04] - “If you give somebody else your problem to solve, they’re becoming a better engineer while you are not.” ~ Jack Herrington

[32:30] - “There’s a whole form validation system right in the browser, and nobody uses it.” ~ Jack Herrington

[48:05] - “The approach that I have to coding is very practical. I like building stuff for customers, so that's the way I teach it.” ~ Jack Herrington

Links

• Jack Herrington
• Jack Herrington Twitter
• Jack Herrington LinkedIn
• The Blue Collar Coder
• YouTube
• React
• Next JS
• Rust
• The Primeagen
• Barrell Private Release Amaro Cask Finish
• Tailwind CSS
• Panda CSS
• Svelte
• Twitter
• GitHub
• Oregon State University
• ChatGPT
• WordPress
• Kindle
• Deno Fresh
• Qwik
• Astro
• Node JS
• Redux
• Elm
• Lego
• Ember
• Tanner Linsley
• Angular
• Vercel
• Apple
• Nintendo
• Vue
• Microsoft Edge
• Disney
• National Geographic
• Nextdoor
• Ooni
• Safeway

Connect with our hosts

• Robbie Wagner
• Chuck Carpenter
• Ship Shape

Subscribe and stay in touch

• Apple Podcasts
• Spotify
• Google Podcasts
• Whiskey Web and Whatnot

Top-Tier, Full-Stack Software Consultants

This show is brought to you by Ship Shape. Ship Shape’s software consultants solve complex software and app development problems with top-tier coding expertise, superior service, and speed. In a sea of choices, our senior-level development crew rises above the rest by delivering the best solutions for fintech, cybersecurity, and other fast-growing industries. Check us out at shipshape.io.

Veteran web developers RobbieTheWagner and Charles William Carpenter III host this informal, whiskey-fueled fireside chat with your favorite web devs. They discuss all things web development including JavaScript, TypeScript, EmberJS, React, Astro, SolidJS, CSS, HTML, Web3, and more. They take a unique approach and focus on getting to know the human side of developers and their hobbies outside of work, all while sampling a new whiskey that they rate on their unique tentacle scale.