Much was made last week over the topic of micro optimization in PHP. Most of these argued that micro optimization was a bad idea, from the perspective of unit testing, the idea that “premature optimization is the root of all evil”, the fact that it takes too much time, and that it violates the rules [...]

Much has been written about technical debt, and the way it’s both accrued and paid off. For the uninitiated, here’s the definition of technical debt:

Before we actually get started hacking on our code, let’s make sure we’ve got the right questions asked and answered. We’re going to need some resources, the help of others in our organization, and probably some understanding of the current system structure before we’re successful in our goal.

How many times have we heard it? Our bosses, colleagues, everyone, it seems, reminds us time and time again that we’re actually customer service professionals, as well as developers. Seems we’d get it, right?

NOTE: I no longer feel strongly that Slicehost is a good provider. I presently use ServerGrove for my hosting. This post remains as an archived piece, but no longer reflects my views.