Menu

Level up your skills with...
no nonsense coding guides, resources and tools
on a variety of topics and programming languages
Get battle-tested coding strategies straight to your inbox. No fluff, just code.
Subscribe
* No spam. Unsubscribe at any time.

Dev Stream

Automatically Logging Errors in Express with Pino
Walter posted an update - #New post published
Automatically Logging Errors in Express with Pino

Logging errors is crucial for debugging and monitoring your Express.js applications. While Pino is known for its high-performance logging, it doesn’t automatically log errors unless explicitly configured. In this guide, we’ll walk through a simple method to automatically capture and log errors using pino-http in Express.

Walter posted an update - #New post published
Building a Simple CSV File Preview with Pure JavaScript

Ever wanted to let users preview CSV files right in their browser without any complex libraries?

In this guide, we'll build a simple yet effective CSV file preview using nothing but vanilla JavaScript. Perfect for developers who want to understand the basics of file handling and data parsing in the browser.

Walter posted an update - #New post published
Code, Context, and AI: Why Human Developers Still Matter

This year has been somewhat of a wake up call to the developer community in terms of A.I. It seems like each and every month now a new tool comes out that can produce code faster and more accurately than the models before it.

Needless to say, this is going to keep happening for the foreseeable future. And many newer developers find themselves at a crossroads.

Walter posted an update - #New post published
Implementing Argon2id Password Hashing in C#

Argon2id is the gold standard for password hashing, combining the best features of Argon2i and Argon2d to provide excellent security against both side-channel and GPU-based attacks.

In this comprehensive guide, we'll explore how to implement Argon2id in your C# applications effectively.

Walter posted an update - #New post published
Setting Up a Dev Server Proxy in Vite (Avoiding CORS Issues)

During local development with Vite, you'll often encounter CORS (Cross-Origin Resource Sharing) errors when your frontend tries to communicate with a backend API running on a different port or domain.

This guide will show you how to effectively set up a dev server proxy in Vite to bypass these CORS restrictions and streamline your development workflow.

Walter posted an update - #New post published
Is Argon2 Better Than bcrypt?

If you've worked on any authentication system in the last decade, you've probably used bcrypt. It's been the go-to password hashing solution for years, and for good reason. But lately, Argon2 has been getting a lot of attention in the security community, and many developers are wondering if it's time to make the switch.

Walter posted an update - #New post published
It's Not A.I. - Junior Developers Have Always Struggled to Code

AI, as of late, is taking the blame for making junior developers “worse” at writing code, but in my 20 years of experience—junior devs have always struggled to code well. Well being the keyword. It’s not a new problem. The difference? AI is just simply just highlighting the fact.

Walter posted an update - #New post published
Is SHA-256 Alone Sufficient for Password Security?

You've built a sleek new web application with user accounts, and now you need to store passwords. Like any security-conscious developer, you know never to store passwords in plain text. 😅

Walter posted an update - #New post published
Have you considered using ENUM's?

If you haven't heard of ENUM's just yet, then check out my latest article in which I break them down and discuss the pros and cons of having them in your database.

Walter posted an update - #New post published
GitHub Copilot convinced me finally

I've been daily driving GitHub Copilot for the past few weeks (the Pro account) and I can confidently say that it is good...pretty good. Check out my new article where I break down what finally convinced me.

Walter posted an update - #New post published
A brief introduction to cryptography

If you're a software engineer of any kind in this day and age, then you no doubt work (or have worked) with cryptography. Whether your hashing passwords, generating unique random ID's or deciphering random user generated input in your database, some form of cryptography is at play.

Walter posted an update - #New post published
Implementing the Rail Fence Cipher in JavaScript

The Rail Fence Cipher is one of the simplest ciphers when it comes to cryptography, but it still relies on a pretty cool visual concept that makes it unique.

H . . . O . . . L . .
. E . L . W . R . D .
. . L . . . O . . . .

Check out how it works and how to implement your own in JavaScript right over here 👉 Implementing the Rail Fence Cipher in JavaScript

Walter posted an update - #New post published
Need to reset your PostgreSQL password on windows?

Now a year goes by that I don't need to do a hard reset on my local PostgreSQL password. I don't typically use Postgres for my personal work (SQL Server all the way), but when I do I pretty much go to this article in order to remember how to rest it.

Walter posted an update - #New post published
Need a Google Analytics alternative?

I've been using GA for over a decade now, and for the most part it tracks just fine. But, there are alternatives out that offer extras that you don't typically get on free platforms.

Fathom is one of those alternatives. It's got a super simple interface that makes checking traffic a no-brainer every day and Fathom never deletes data, which is huge for sites that plan on being around for a while.

And there's alot more to like as well. You can read my full comparison right over here 👉 Why I'm Switching from Google Analytics to Fathom in 2025

Walter posted an update - #New post published
What is the state of ASP.NET Web Forms in 2025?

As a long-time ASP.NET Web Forms developer who has maintained applications in this framework for over a decade, I understand the uncertainty many developers face regarding its future. Let's take a clear-eyed look at where Web Forms stands in 2025 and what it means for developers and businesses still using this aging, but still robust, technology.

Check out the full article.

Walter posted an update - #New post published
I finally fixed my database emoji issue

If you’ve ever run into the dreaded ?? problem, then you are not alone. I've had this issue on this blog for years now, and I've finally gotten around to looking into it. Which means that I can finally add emojis 🍵

You can find out how I fixed it over here.

Code Your Own Classic Snake Game – The Right Way

Master the fundamentals of game development and JavaScript with a step-by-step guide that skips the fluff and gets straight to the real code.

🐍 Hands-on learning - Build a working game from scratch
🚀 Clear and concise - No unnecessary jargon or filler, just actionable steps
💡 Real-world skills - Learn the fundamentals of game development and JavaScript

Download Now

Master new skills fast with bite-sized coding guides

Skip the fluff—get straight to the code. These quick guides tackle real-world programming challenges with clear, actionable steps.

Explore the guides

Latest Articles

Automatically Logging Errors in Express with Pino
Published on: 3/14/2025 - 3 min read
## Introduction Logging errors is crucial for debugging and monitoring your Express.js applications. While Pino is known for its high-perfo...
Building a Simple CSV File Preview with Pure JavaScript
Published on: 3/11/2025 - 16 min read
Ever wanted to let users preview CSV files right in their browser without any complex libraries? In this guide, we'll build a simple yet e...
Code, Context, and AI: Why Human Developers Still Matter
Published on: 3/6/2025 - 5 min read
This year has been somewhat of a wake up call to the developer community in terms of A.I. It seems like each and every month now a new tool ...