Programming Leftovers

posted by Roy Schestowitz on May 17, 2025

• The Register UK ☛ How sticky notes saved UK's Universal Credit digitization

  "They would sit opposite each other. When somebody within the DWP [Department for Work & Pensions] side or the digital engineers side hits a problem, you don't wait and email somebody; you write the problem on a Post-It note, you stick it on the board, and say, 'Here's my problem, give me a shout.'

• Lee Yingtong Li ☛ A modern theme for cgit

  cgit is a lightweight web frontend for git repositories. As opposed to modern git forges such as GitLab, Gitea and Forgejo, cgit provides view-only access, and does not have attached bells and whistles such as issue tracking or pull requests. This allows cgit to be lightweight and simple; it is a single self-contained binary (plus one JS and one CSS file). In 2019, I adopted cgit as the frontend for my own git repositories.

• Rlang ☛ Animated population pyramids for the Pacific by @ellis2013nz

  A short blog post today which is just all about producing this animation, which I used for a work presentation yesterday: [...]

• Rlang ☛ User parameters for Shiny applications

• Rlang ☛ Bridges and Communities. My Journey as an rOpenSci Champion

  To be part of the rOpenSci Champions program has been an experience of professional growth and an opportunity to contribute to the rOpenSci community.

• Alley Chaggar: Hi GSoC and GNOME

  Hey GNOME and GSoC! 👋

  This is my first blog post on Planet GNOME and actually, my first blog post ever! I’ll be using this space to share updates on my Surveillance Giant Google Summer of Code 2025 project and other GNOME contributions I make along the way or even after GSoC ends. Of course, most posts for now will focus on my GSoC work.

• KDAB ☛ Streamlining Development by Mastering Modern Development Practices

  Efficient embedded development relies on consistent environments, smart dependency management, and robust CI pipelines. Containers ensure reproducibility and streamline onboarding, while balancing source builds and pre-built packages keeps dependencies manageable. Optimized CI with parallel tests and hardware-in-the-loop improves feedback and quality. Incremental refactoring with atomic commits enables continuous improvement without disrupting development.

• Andy Wingo: guile on whippet waypoint: goodbye, bdw-gc?

  Hey all, just a lab notebook entry today. I’ve been working on the Whippet GC library for about three years now, learning a lot on the way. The goal has always been to replace Guile’s use of the Boehm-Demers-Weiser collector with something more modern and maintainable. Last year I finally got to the point that I felt Whippet was feature-complete, and taking into account the old adage about long arses and brief videos, I think that wasn’t too far off. I carved out some time this spring and for the last month have been integrating Whippet into Guile in anger, on the wip-whippet branch.

• Python

  • The New Stack ☛ Python's Security Savior: Chainguard Battles Supply Chain Risk

    In a world where open source software powers nearly everything from enterprise applications to cutting-edge AI models, security vulnerabilities in the software supply chain represent a growing threat.

    The Kirkland, Washington company’s new product aims to provide a secure alternative to public Python package repositories like PyPI, which have been the target of increasingly sophisticated supply chain attacks.

• Shell/Bash/Zsh/Ksh

  • Linux Journal ☛ Beyond Basics: Unlocking the Power of Advanced Bash Scripting

    Bash scripting is often seen as a convenient tool for automating repetitive tasks, managing simple file operations, or orchestrating basic system utilities. But beneath its surface lies a trove of powerful features that allow for complex logic, high-performance workflows, and robust script behavior. In this article, we’ll explore the lesser-known but incredibly powerful techniques that take your Bash scripting from basic automation to professional-grade tooling.

• Java

  • The New Stack ☛ Java at 30: The Genius Behind the Code That Changed Tech

    I’ve had the privilege of interviewing and getting to know the man a little bit over the years, ever since Java’s premise of enabling programmers to write once, run anywhere revolutionized software development.

    James Gosling’s journey from resourceful Canadian teenager to pioneering world-class programmer offers valuable insights into the evolution of computing over the past several decades. His work on Java created a platform that has empowered countless developers. Throughout his career, Gosling has balanced technical excellence with a playful spirit and clear ethical boundaries — a combination that has helped shape the modern computing landscape.

• Rust

  • Rust Weekly Updates ☛ This Week In Rust: This Week in Rust 599

    Hello and welcome to another issue of This Week in Rust!

  • LWN ☛ Rust 1.87.0 released

    To commemorate the tenth anniversary of the 1.0 release of the Rust language, version 1.87.0 was announced live today at the 10 Years of Rust celebration in Utrecht, Netherlands. Notable changes include the addition of anonymous pipes to the standard library and the ability for inline assembly (asm!) to jump to labeled blocks within Rust code.