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> Some breaks are just too difficult to predict.

Absolutely. I think a great filter for developers is determining how well they understand this. Over-simplification of problems and certainty about one’s ability to build reliable services at scale is a massive red flag to me.

I have to say some of the hardest challenges I’ve encountered were in e-commerce, too.

It’s a lot harder and more interesting than I think many people realize. I learned so much working on those projects.

In one case, the system relied on SQLite and god damn did things go sideways as the company grew its customer base. That was the fastest database migration project I’ve ever been on, haha.

I often think it could have worked today. SQLite has made huge leaps in the areas we were struggling. I’m not sure it would have been a forever solution (the company is massive now), but it would have bought us some much-needed time. It’s funny how that stuff changes. A lot of my takeaways about SQLite 10 years ago don’t apply quite the same anymore. I use it for things now that I never would have back then.



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