Engineering notes on web development, DevOps, and pedagogyhttps://daveandrea.com/https://daveandrea.com/blog/clean-frontend-reacthttps://daveandrea.com/blog/clean-frontend-reactA practical look at separating business meaning from UI mechanics in React, using a real invoice app refactor as the exampleFri, 05 Jun 2026 00:00:00 GMThttps://daveandrea.com/blog/how-i-planned-my-full-stack-invoice-apphttps://daveandrea.com/blog/how-i-planned-my-full-stack-invoice-appA reflective look at how a Frontend Mentor UI challenge grew into a full-stack GraphQL/PostgreSQL app, the trade-offs I made, and what I'd change next time.Mon, 27 Oct 2025 00:00:00 GMT

What began as a Frontend Mentor challenge became a deep dive into full-stack architecture. This post unpacks my design decisions, lessons learned, and why overengineering can be a powerful way to learn simplicity.

https://daveandrea.com/blog/how-machines-learnhttps://daveandrea.com/blog/how-machines-learnDemystifying AI training: learn how machine learning works through the simple process of guess, check, adjust - no mysticism required.Mon, 20 Oct 2025 00:00:00 GMT

A grounded explanation of how AI systems learn—and why it's often misunderstood.

https://daveandrea.com/blog/whyisjavasodumbhttps://daveandrea.com/blog/whyisjavasodumbA playful tour through Java’s quirks that explains why the language can feel overcomplicated.Sat, 18 Oct 2025 00:00:00 GMT

Java’s data types, wrapper classes, and concurrency helpers look excessive until you see the trade-offs they unlock.

https://daveandrea.com/blog/whyisjavasodumbpart2https://daveandrea.com/blog/whyisjavasodumbpart2Java’s boilerplate exists for a reason—here’s why the main method and rigid file structure actually help.Sat, 18 Oct 2025 00:00:00 GMT

A playful look at Java’s entry point, file conventions, and curly-brace culture, and why the verbosity pays off in large systems.

https://daveandrea.com/blog/whyjavascriptissohardforbeginnershttps://daveandrea.com/blog/whyjavascriptissohardforbeginnersThree reasons JavaScript overwhelms newcomers and why that struggle is normal.Sat, 18 Oct 2025 00:00:00 GMT

Legacy syntax, paradigm overload, and a forgiving runtime make JavaScript tough on newcomers, but understanding those quirks helps.

https://daveandrea.com/blog/ai-and-tacit-knowledgehttps://daveandrea.com/blog/ai-and-tacit-knowledgeHow ML aligns with tacit, skill-like learning rather than conscious understanding.Mon, 15 Sep 2025 00:00:00 GMT

Reflecting on why machine learning feels more like tacit, embodied expertise than conscious reasoning—and what that means for AI hype.

https://daveandrea.com/blog/welcomehttps://daveandrea.com/blog/welcomeKicking off a new space for engineering notes and web performance tips.Wed, 01 Jan 2025 00:00:00 GMT

Kickstarting this blog with a few thoughts on what will land here and why it exists.

https://daveandrea.com/blog/how-coding-is-like-playing-sportshttps://daveandrea.com/blog/how-coding-is-like-playing-sportsAn analogy comparing learning to code with practicing a sport as a bundle of skills.Sun, 15 Sep 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Why treating programming as a bundle of practiced skills—rather than pure theory—helps developers escape plateaus.

https://daveandrea.com/blog/docker-compose-part-4https://daveandrea.com/blog/docker-compose-part-4Learn production-ready Docker Compose patterns including environment management, custom images, and multi-service architecturesMon, 05 Feb 2024 00:00:00 GMThttps://daveandrea.com/blog/docker-compose-part-3https://daveandrea.com/blog/docker-compose-part-3Create a Node.js application that connects to PostgreSQL and understand how Docker Compose services communicateMon, 29 Jan 2024 00:00:00 GMThttps://daveandrea.com/blog/docker-compose-part-2https://daveandrea.com/blog/docker-compose-part-2Install Docker Desktop and run a complete web application with database using Docker ComposeMon, 22 Jan 2024 00:00:00 GMThttps://daveandrea.com/blog/docker-compose-part-1https://daveandrea.com/blog/docker-compose-part-1Learn how Docker Compose solves the 'it works on my machine' problem by letting you run entire applications with one commandMon, 15 Jan 2024 00:00:00 GMT