by John Macdonald | Apr 12, 2026 | AI, Technology, The250
Documentation has always been a problem in engineering. We hate writing it. We think it’s a waste of time. Less is more. I started my career before we had computers with word processors on our desk. We wrote documents by hand, on paper, handed it to the admin.... by John Macdonald | Apr 11, 2026 | AI, Human, Technology, The250
The LinkedIn feed looks a bit useless to me right now. It’s dominated by content about AI, but that’s not the problem. The problem is that AI’s generating the content with what looks like no human oversight. Here are the smoking guns: Emoji’s Dashes and lots of line... by John Macdonald | Apr 10, 2026 | AI, Leadership, Technology, The250
Good leaders provide clarity. Clarity of purpose, priorities, direction, requirements, things we care about, mission, procedure, etc. When you’re part of a team, this helps you focus on and deliver your part. With AI, everyone’s a leader. You too. AI can appear as if... by John Macdonald | Apr 9, 2026 | AI, Human, Technology, The250
I had a scary moment with AI. I vibe-coded a power detector for my house (rPi + some IoT switches I have controlling lights). As part of that work, I asked Codex: “Do a survey of my local network and tell me about all of the devices you see.” That’s the first skillset... by John Macdonald | Apr 8, 2026 | Human, Leadership, The250
Every April 15 comes around, and either you’re excited or annoyed. Even though April 15th is the day, it has no magical properties. April 15th doesn’t determine whether you get a refund or have to pay. You’re in control. You should know what’s coming. Don’t give away... by John Macdonald | Apr 7, 2026 | Human, Leadership, The250
When everything is number one priority, how do you decide what to do? Do what you want? Do what you think they want? Do something not related? Do nothing? Right. Pick one. “It’s all important. It’s all number one,” isn’t leadership. So don’t be surprised when it...