I started as an embedded programmer. For the first five years of my career, I worked on the lowest layer of the software. I mainly coded in C, built protocol stacks, firmware, and media middleware.

A few of my colleagues started an internet company and I decided to join them irrespective of my inexperience in the technology they were building. I am glad I took this decision.

I faced many problems learning the application and backend development.

A lot happens under the hood

As a C programmer, you have to code everything yourself with very few open-source libraries at your disposal. …

Work from home was something we all wanted before the pandemic changed everything. It saved us time, no need to commute to work, and more time with the family. Or at least we used to think that way.

I must say, I used to love working from home occasionally in the pre-pandemic era. Traveling to work was a pain and I used to spend a lot of time on the road. Not to forget the interrupts, tea breaks, and meetings you need to attend at work. I used to feel these activities take up a lot of time.

The pandemic…

The best way to experience a place, its culture, and people is to walk through. Most of the time it's not feasible to do so due to our limitations and commitments. The next best way is to take a motorcycle trip.

As a rider, I can tell how amazing it is riding on roads surrounded by beautiful landscapes. The experience of feeling the breeze, rain, dust, and sometimes harsh weather is mind-blowing and can not be explained in words.

I was scared on my first long ride and was eager to reach the destination. …

Around 8 years ago, my friend and I played a game of Laser Tag for the first time. We loved it so much that we started thinking of opening our own Laser Tag arena.

When we inquired about the equipment we realized that the equipment was too expensive. We saw an opportunity there and wanted to encase it.

We pivoted before starting and started developing our own equipment. Plan to have our own arena was on as well.

We wanted to have our own arena to showcase our equipment to potential buyers.

Development from Scratch with Our Own Funds

We started developing Laser Tag from scratch. Two…

That’s no joke and it’s a reality.

I graduated with a Computer Science degree. I was a decent programmer, had good knowledge of the concepts. Being in a tier 2 city and in a market that was going through the recession, there was no campus placement.

Within a week after my final semester exam, I decided to head to Bangalore. Two of my close friends decided to join me.

I had heard a lot about Bangalore from a friend who was studying there. He used to say — “Just come to Bangalore, there are a lot of jobs there. …

It is evident that each time a problem is given to a programmer to solve he tends to kick off with the code. This comes from habit, the eagerness of finding a solution, or the pleasure a programmer experiences from writing the code.

Regardless of the domain and the expertise of the developer, if the code is being written without putting a design in place, it's like constructing a building without the foundation.

I have come across many such occurrences. I have done it myself quite a few times. Software design plays a critical role in the software development process.

…

Let’s break the suspense, it is Bhutan. Bhutan is a kingdom situated at the eastern edge of the mighty Himalayas.

A couple of years ago, I rode to Bhutan, a small landlocked kingdom with breathtaking landscapes.

Why such a high fee

I know, it is intriguing to pay between $200 — $250 per day per person, but you get a lot of things in the package —

• Visa to Bhutan
• A local guide who kind of manages your trip
• Transportation and a driver
• Accommodation
• Entrance fees to tourist sights
• Food
• Trekking gear

Well, I did not pay any of that, because for Indians the fee…

Introduction

Open source is the driving force on which most modern software is built. It’s hard to think of developing any solution today without open source. Nowadays, developers don’t think twice before using open source to solve their problems.

When you install a package, it runs in the context of your app. A malicious or vulnerable package can cause severe implications like the penetration of your server. There have been instances of malware code hiding in the open source packages.

As a developer, we battle on many fronts every day. Open source libraries and packages come in handy to solve our…