Showing My Work #01
Happy (Almost) New Year!
It feels like the holidays just flew by! I spent the past week celebrating Christmas with my family, and just dropped off my youngest son at the airport for his return to college. My oldest son will be staying with us temporarily while he searches for his first full-time job after graduating earlier this month.
My Geml Project: A Focus on Production Readiness
One of my goals with this newsletter is to share my progress on personal projects and learning. This week, I'll focus on my app, Geml.
Geml is designed for people seeking serious relationships but feeling frustrated with traditional dating apps. I started developing it during the pandemic, and while I'm happy with its core features and architecture, it's definitely not ready for prime time.
The Problem: A Lack of Rigorous Testing
The biggest issue? I haven't been thorough enough with testing. For example, I haven't written enough unit tests – those little checks that ensure individual pieces of code work as expected. In fact, I can't even tell you what percentage of my code is actually tested!
Why This Happened: The "Launch Early, Learn Often" Trap
I fell into the trap of prioritizing a quick launch and learning from user feedback. While I received positive feedback on Geml's usability, I've encountered some intermittent bugs and issues with notifications. These kinds of problems should be caught during development, not after the app is in users' hands.
My Plan for January: A Focus on Testing and Clarity
This month, I'll be diving deep into what it truly means for a mobile app (built with Flutter) and a server (using JavaScript) to be "production-ready." My immediate focus will be on improving testing and making my code easier to understand and maintain.
What Caught My Eye: RealLifeLore on YouTube
I'm a big fan of the RealLifeLore YouTube channel. They explain complex topics in a clear, engaging way. I've learned so much about how geography shapes our world economy and culture.
I recently watched How Africa's Geography Traps It In Endless Poverty and it didn't disappoint. If you are interested in Africa and it's economic development challenges, I highly recommend a watch.
