Writings of a Tech Leader, Husband, and Dad

I’m Jonathan, the CTO of Loyal, with over two decades of experience in software development for startups. This space is where I share my experiences, insights, and opinions—both popular and unconventional.

My ramblings will be on mobile and web applications, startup launches, favorite books, user acquisition, user experience, (maybe parenting) and most importantly, driving revenue.

DHH Killed 359 System Tests — and Rails Followed

37signals deleted every system test from HEY in late 2024 and not a single bug slipped through. This decision has reshaped Rails testing orthodoxy. Rails 8.1 no longer generates system tests by default. Here's what replaced them and how to transition from RSpec to Minitest.

Does AI Actually Boost Developer Productivity?

Stanford studied 100,000 engineers and found AI boosts productivity 15-20%. But your stack, seniority, and prompting strategy determine whether AI makes you 30x faster or just generates bugs.

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