Welcome to the recommendations page!
Explore tech-related media shared by our very own members and their connections in the industry. Search for keywords based on topics that you are interested in, and explore the media types that you prefer using the tabs below.
Explore tech-related media shared by our very own members and their connections in the industry. Search for keywords based on topics that you are interested in, and explore the media types that you prefer using the tabs below.
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Books
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Podcasts
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Newsletters
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Videos & Channels
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Movies & TV
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Often a preferred way to learn! Whether you want to explore your interests with a physical library or find pieces to add to your Kindle, books can be troves of knowledge about tech. Check out the recommendations below in whatever format works best for you. Consider supporting your local bookstore or library when looking for content to consume.
How Computers Really Work by Matthew Justice
Summary: “How Computers Really Work is a hands-on guide to the computing ecosystem: everything from circuits to memory and clock signals, machine code, programming languages, operating systems, and the internet. But you won’t just read about these concepts, you’ll test your knowledge with exercises, and practice what you learn with 41 optional hands-on projects. Build digital circuits, craft a guessing game, convert decimal numbers to binary, examine virtual memory usage, run your own web server, and more.” - No Starch Press Keywords: computers, software, hands-on, circuits Link: Amazon, small press |
The Well-Grounded Rubyist by David A. Black
Summary: “Expert authors David A. Black and Joseph Leo deliver Ruby mastery in an easy-to-read, casual style. You'll lock in core principles as you write your first Ruby programs. Then, you'll progressively build up to topics like reflection, threading, and recursion, cementing your knowledge with high-value exercises to practice your skills along the way.” - Manning Press Keywords: introduction, Ruby, reflection, threading, recursion Link: manning books |
Practical Object-Oriented Design: An Agile Primer using Ruby by Sandi Metz
Summary: “Author Sandi Metz has distilled a lifetime of conversations and presentations about object-oriented design into a set of Ruby-focused practices for crafting manageable, extensible, and pleasing code. She shows you how to build new applications that can survive success and repair existing applications that have become impossible to change. Each technique is illustrated with extended examples, all downloadable from the companion website, poodr.info.” - Amazon Keywords: Ruby, hands-on, novice, programming Link: amazon, website |
Letters to a New Developer: What I Wish I Had Known when Starting my Development Career by Dan Moore
Summary: “Wouldn’t it be nice to learn from others’ career mistakes? 'Soft' skills are crucial to success, but are haphazardly picked up on the job or, worse, never learned. Understanding these competencies and how to improve them will make you a more effective team member and a more attractive hire.This book will teach you the key skills you need, including how to ask questions, how and when to use common tools, and how to interact with other team members. Each will be presented in context and from multiple perspectives so you’ll be able to integrate them and apply them to your own career quickly.” -Amazon Keywords: teams, start, first month, code, non-technical skills Link: amazon, blog |
Recording America: Why Government is Failing in the Digital Age and How We Can Do Better by Jennifer Pahlka
Summary: “A bold call to reexamine how our government operates and sometimes fails to―from President Obama’s former deputy chief technology officer and the founder of Code for America Just when we most need our government to work―to decarbonize our infrastructure and economy, to help the vulnerable through a pandemic, to defend ourselves against global threats―it is faltering. Government at all levels has limped into the digital age, offering online services that can feel even more cumbersome than the paperwork that preceded them and widening the gap between the policy outcomes we intend and what we get."- RecodingAmerica website Reason for recommendation: Fascinating read about Government IT, what is wrong with it and some possible explanations. Very well written, accessible and interesting. Great for Managers and Developers alike. Keywords: government, policy Link: publisher, amazon |
Sustainable Web Development with Ruby on Rails by David Bryant Copeland
Summary: Practical tips for each part of Rails, with examples. Learn to use Rails, not abstract it away! Manage & isolate your business logic without fancy patterns or libraries. Reason for recommendation: Focus on Ruby, well written. Keywords: Ruby, Ruby on rails, handbook Link: website |
The Code Book: The Science of Secrecy from Ancient Egypt to Quantum Cryptography by Simon Singh
Summary: “The first sweeping history of encryption, tracing its evolution and revealing the dramatic effects codes have had on wars, nations, and individual lives… Throughout the text are clear technical and mathematical explanations, and portraits of the remarkable personalities who wrote and broke the world's most difficult codes. Accessible, compelling, and remarkably far-reaching, this book will forever alter your view of history and what drives it. It will also make you wonder how private that e-mail you just sent really is." - Amazon Reason for recommendation: Very well written and interesting. Although it ends in 1999 and the world of cryptography has changed since then, this is a very engaging and entertaining read. Keywords: Cybersecurity, encryption, cryptography Link: amazon |
Close to the Machine: Technophilia and its Discontents by Ellen Ullman
Summary: “In 1997, the computer was still a relatively new tool---a sleek and unforgiving machine that was beyond the grasp of most users. With intimate and unflinching detail, software engineer Ellen Ullman examines the strange ecstasy of being at the forefront of the predominantly male technological revolution, and the difficulty of translating the inherent messiness of human life into artful and efficient code. Close to the Machine is an elegant and revelatory mediation on the dawn of the digital era.” - Goodreads Keywords: Technology, memoir Link: amazon |
Weapons of Math Destruction by Cathy O'Neill
Summary: “We live in the age of the algorithm. Increasingly, the decisions that affect our lives—where we go to school, whether we get a car loan, how much we pay for health insurance—are being made not by humans, but by mathematical models. In theory, this should lead to greater fairness: Everyone is judged according to the same rules, and bias is eliminated. But as Cathy O’Neil reveals in this urgent and necessary book, the opposite is true…. Welcome to the dark side of Big Data.” - Amazon Keywords: Big data, government, modeling, algorithm Link: amazon |
The Visual Display of Quantitative Information by Edward Tufte
Summary: “The classic book on statistical graphics, charts, tables. Theory and practice in the design of data graphics, 250 illustrations of the best (and a few of the worst) statistical graphics, with detailed analysis of how to display data for precise, effective, quick analysis. ” - Amazon Keywords: Statistics, graphics, graphs, charts Link: amazon |
Podcasts can be about anything: leveling up your engineering skills, updates and latest developments in the Software sphere, soft skills, debugging, design etc… One of the great things about listening to these is that they can increase your fluency in a subject. So even if you do not have a new skill at the end of the episode, or even completely understand what you just heard, you will have more vocabulary, a few ideas and at least an awareness of the topic. Another great thing is that you can listen while doing something else– like driving, laundry, or exercising.
The Real Python Podcast
Summary: A weekly Python podcast including interviews, discussion about coding tips and technique. It is hosted by Christopher Bailey. He often has guests from around the Python community. Keywords: Python Link: spotify |
Maintainable Software Podcast
Summary: A broadcast about general software development strategies. The host often interviews tech team managers who often have very practical advice and concrete examples of how strategies they've implemented have made a big impact. Keywords: software development, interviews, advice, real-world approaches, challenges Link: amazon, apple podcasts, spotify, website |
The Ruby on Rails Podcast by Elise Shaffer and Brian Mariani
Summary: The Ruby on Rails Podcast is a weekly conversation about Ruby on Rails, open source software, and the programming profession. Keywords: Ruby on Rails, open source Link: website, apple podcasts, google podcasts, spotify |
The Ruby Rogues
Summary: Podcast for the Ruby programming community, by Ruby developers. Listen to weekly discussions with Ruby developers about programming, life, and careers. Keywords: Ruby on Rails, developers, programming Link: website |
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For visual learners, video tutorials can be a great way to gain new knowledge. Many online creators have ample amounts of content to browse, so be sure to check out their other videos!
Continuous Delivery - YouTube Channel
Summary: “Explores ideas that help to produce Better Software Faster: Continuous Delivery, DevOps, TDD and Software Engineering.” - Channel Description Reason for Recommendation: Dave Farley talks about Continuous Delivery, Devops, TDD and software engineering. Videos are around 10 min long. He also has a blog: http://www.davefarley.net/ Keywords: software development, design, quality, reliability Link: YouTube |
Go Rails - Online Tutorial Database (*Requires subscription)
Summary: “We can help with every aspect of learning Ruby on Rails. Learn with our tutorials, building SaaS products with our template, and deploying to production with our hosting service.” -GoRails Website Reason for Recommendation: Great content for non-beginners Keywords: Ruby on Rails Link: register |
Real Python - Free Tutorials
Summary: “Real Python is an online learning platform that teaches individuals and companies the skills they need to work with Python in the real world…We publish high-quality learning resources, such as tutorials, books, email newsletters, podcasts, and courses to an audience of 3,000,000 developers, data scientists, and machine learning engineers each month.” - Real Python website Reason for Recommendation: Articles and bite sized videos covering a range of topics and experience levels Keywords: Python Link: website |
Go By Example - Free Tutorials
Summary: “Go by Example is a hands-on introduction to Go using annotated example programs. ” - Go by Example website Reason for Recommendation: Talks about go concepts, more examples than the standard docs, and links to go playground for the examples. Keywords: Go, examples, software development Link: website |
Seeking a combination of information & entertainment? Check out these movies and TV shows that are sure to broaden your understanding of tech topics while simultaneously grabbing your interest!
Abstract: The Art of Design - TV Show
Summary: “Step inside the minds of the most innovative designers in a variety of disciplines and learn how design impacts every aspect of life” - Netflix Keywords: design Link: Netflix |
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