Recompiled

Coding interviews are weird. We’re here to learn the patterns, expose the nonsense, and hopefully get jobs without sacrificing our sanity. Join Abi and Ariel as we work through interview questions, share tips and tricks, talk about the tech industry, and share our interview horror stories.

(but you probably should anyway). Abi and Ariel continue their Anthropic interrogation with a critical analysis of the Claude Constitution. Is this document protecting against harmful AI or encouraging it? We discuss the advantages and dangers of training AI chatbots to act like close personal friends. We also explore what we owe our community in terms of helpfulness and emotional support. Referen...

If humanity can’t agree on a code of ethics, can we really expect AI to behave responsibly? Abi and Ariel discuss Anthropic’s mission of safe AI development and the negative impacts caused by harmful AI. We also examine how Anthropic is using Constitutional AI, Reinforcement Learning From AI Feedback (RLAIF), and scale supervision to reduce harmfulness while maintaining helpfulness in its generati...

If coding can be automated, where do software engineers provide value in the workforce? Does software engineering require writing code? In this episode, Abi and Ariel talk about the future of software engineering and the “expectation vs. reality” of the demand to integrate AI. We also have a tangent about the value of Fruit Love Island. Transitions are hard. Though the day to day of the software e...

Is a masters degree in engineering worth it for everyone? We talk about our experience in the Online Masters of Science in Computer Science (OMSCS) program at Georgia Tech and the flexibility that this online education provides to full-time professionals. Motivation matters when pursuing any degree and we share our "why" for sticking with the program despite the work it tacks on to our busy schedu...

Ada Lovelace is well known as the first computer programmer, but is that really true? Learn about Ada from Abi and Ariel in this episode on Ada's life and controversy. Stick around to the end to hear about how Abi got to actually see Ada's letters! Resources: https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=qsY-AAAAYAAJ&pg=PA666&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q&f=false https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki...

Abi was affected by lay-offs and needs to process. Join Abi and Ariel as they discuss what it was like to go through a lay off and what next steps to take if you are ever impacted. Resources: https://www.indeed.com/career-advice/career-development/i-got-fired https://builtin.com/articles/survive-being-fired

Ariel won a hackathon! In this episode we chat about how work outside of work like hackathons and side projects can support growth and development as an engineer. We also recap our girls' trip to Chicago where we're convinced the city can fix any problem. Abi shares the side projects she's abandoned and the future ones she promises to finish. References: https://portfolio.abigailhendrick.com/ http...

Abi and Ariel are back! Listen to this episode to learn all about being a great mentee including how to get a mentor, what to talk about with a mentor, and Abi and Ariel's experiences as mentees and mentors. References: https://www.womentech.net/women-in-tech-mentorship-statistics https://medium.com/@polinakarasova/online-platforms-to-find-a-mentor-in-the-tech-industry-6fee1dd4ae49

When it's hard (and sometimes impossible) to detect AI-generated content, what role to engineers have in using LLMs ethically? Abi and Ariel discuss current laws surrounding AI and legal actions taken against individuals and businesses whose AI systems produce bias or defamation. They also cover IBM's and Microsoft’s stances on what constitutes responsible AI, as Ariel prepares for her hackathon w...

We have all heard about the Linux kernel but what does it actually do? In this episode, Abi and Ariel dive into the basics of OSs and poke around some interesting new developments. Resources: https://www.ibm.com/think/topics/operating-systems https://github.com/torvalds/linux/tree/master/kernel https://documentation.ubuntu.com/real-time/en/latest/explanation/schedulers/ https://www.geeksforgeeks.o...

Have you ever spent a whole day communicating, unblocking others, setting up meetings, and planning team building events...but you were supposed to be coding? You might be doing glue work. Abi and Ariel explore a talk given by Tanya Reilly on what glue work is and how to make it work for your career in this weeks episode. References: Tanya Reilly's excellent talk: https://www.noidea.dog/glue https...

Meetings can be productive... or painfully pointless. Abi and Ariel break down how to host meetings that people won’t dread - and might even enjoy. We cover how to decide if you need a meeting or if an email will suffice, how to plan effectively (including choosing attendees, setting a clear agenda, and accounting for time zones), and how to keep things engaging during the meeting itself. Plus, we...

Want to talk about blockchain without sounding like a block head? Check out this episode where we dive deep into the technology behind crypto, the history of bitcoin, the phenomenon of crypto bros, and even more! Errata: Jake Paul is mentioned when the person involved was Logan Paul Sources https://www.investopedia.com/tech/were-there-cryptocurrencies-bitcoin/ https://centerforneweconomics.org/pub...

An increasing number of software companies are adopting AI testing tools—but are they effective enough to replace engineers? Abi and Ariel explore this question by reviewing AI-generated unit tests for a REST API application using GitHub Copilot. They also dive into modern software testing methods, including Chaos Monkey, Testing on the Toilet, and Canary Testing. Plus, they share insights on buil...

It is Ariel's birthday!! Celebrate with us while we learn fun facts about software innovations the year she was born, famous software named Ariel, and a famous software innovator named Ariel. Sources: https://www.codemotion.com/magazine/infographics/the-story-of-google-infographic/ https://www.illumy.com/what-happened-to-palm-pilot/ https://www.techtarget.com/whatis/feature/The-history-of-USB-What...

Covid shook up the tech space by pushing companies into remote work, and now many employees are reluctant to return to office. Abi and Ariel share their experiences with in-person, remote, and hybrid work styles, discussing the pros and cons of each. They reveal hidden motives behind companies' return-to-office policies and examine data-driven strategies to build employee trust and boost productiv...

Have you ever felt personally attacked by the phishing training your company does every quarter? Get the inside scoop on real cyber security and why it matters in software in this exclusive interview with cyber security expert, Caleb Stagayama.

Abi and Ariel dive into reddit to find out what engineering students are talking about these days. Listen in to hear about study tips, interview tricks, and the hosts college days.

Agile gets all the attention, but can we find the rainbow in the value of Waterfall? Abi and Ariel discuss the benefits of different software project management approaches and share their experiences in what makes a project succeed or struggle. We also review the Scrum Guide to see how closely we've been following the most popular Agile method and share our tips for running a happy software team....

Meet Abi and Ariel! We're two friends who stuck together through the challenges of engineering college and made it into the professional world. In this episode, we share how we survived, the importance of maintaining strong friendships during college, and (most importantly) which programming language we think best represents us.