Best Unimportant Questions Podcasts (2024)

1
Code standards w/ Matt Stauffer 1:26:35

3h ago1:26:35

1:26:35

What set two developers on a quest to build custom tooling to enforce their code style preferences? Today's episode is a story that starts with two independent projects—Tighten's `tlint` and InterNACHI's `laralint`—but meanders to all the right places, including the future of PHP itself, the intersection of bikeshedding and art, and so much more.…

1
Burnout w/ Ian Landsman 1:16:19

10d ago1:16:19

1:16:19

Today we take a break from over engineering to talk about burnout. Both Chris and Ian have been working on the same products for multiple decades. We sit down to talk about that and what to do about the kind of burnout that comes from working on the same thing for so long. Links: Brent is Leaving Twitter Join the RTSN.DEV mastodon instance…

1
Let's talk APIs w/ Steve McDougall 1:42:06

1M ago1:42:06

1:42:06

Steve McDougall (aka JustSteveKing) is known as the "API guy" on Twitter. In today's episode we start with the question, "what if the best option is just a single page app with a good, RESTful API?" Links: HAL - Hypertext Application Language JSON:API Spec Laravel Sanctum API Versioning Blog Post Steve on Twitter (follow for updates on upcoming cou…

1
Full Stack Javascript w/ Kelvin Omereshone 1:14:48

2M ago1:14:48

1:14:48

The internet has been talking (yelling?) about full-stack javascript a lot lately. In today's episode, we sit down and talk about what it means to be "full stack" and whether there are really any truly full-stack javascript frameworks out there (spoiler: there are, but maybe not Next.js or Remix). Links: Sails.js The Boring Javascript Stack AdonisJ…

1
Building prompts w/ Jess Archer 1:50:15

2M ago1:50:15

1:50:15

Jess Archer took something that was quite good—the Symfony console output features—and built something that was absolutely great: Laravel Prompts. In today's episode, we dig into some of the gnarly details around building prompts and working with ANSI escape sequences in the terminal.By Chris Morrell

1
The Future of the Laravel Frontend w/ Taylor Otwell 1:18:23

3M ago1:18:23

1:18:23

Taylor Otwell has been finding ways to improve Laravel for over a decade, but has only more recently set his sights on the front-end side of things. In today's episode, we sit down and talk about the current state of building UIs in Laravel, and what the future might hold. Links: Laravel Volt Aire Form Builder Laravel “Context” Feature Hooks Packag…

1
Building for the command line w/ Joe Tannenbaum 1:18:05

4M ago1:18:05

1:18:05

Joe Tannenbaum took the internet by storm with his incredible SSH CLI "experiments." In today's episode, Chris and Joe sit down to get into the messy details of parsing ANSI escape sequences and dealing with multibyte strings, but spend as much time talking about programming as art and life as an actor. Links: Joe Tannenbaum on Twitter Joe's "Lab" …

1
What is a Rodeo? 1:04:05

4M ago1:04:05

1:04:05

Join Bekah and Teagan as they learn more about rodeos and think really critically about our relationships with horses! Show notes, resources, and pictures can be found at bemorespecific.org!

1
Do we really need sprints? w/ John Drexler, Bogdan Kharchenko, and Skyler Katz 1:20:21

4M ago1:20:21

1:20:21

What are the best processes for small software development teams with high trust? In today's episode the InterNACHI software development team sits down with John Rudolph Drexler to talk about whether or not we need to estimate tickets or even bother with sprints…By Chris Morrell

1
Cache everything w/ Ian Landsman 1:55:26

5M ago1:55:26

1:55:26

As the saying goes: "There are only two hard things in Computer Science: cache invalidation and naming things." So in today's episode we dig into all the ways Ian is taking on one of the hardest parts of programming in his rewrite of their decades-running helpdesk software, HelpSpot. We talk about caching, a little bit of Laravel history, and about…

1
How Many Types of Spiders Are There? 1:11:39

6M ago1:11:39

1:11:39

Ah, spiders. Either you love or hate them, and today Teagan will be trying her darndest to convince everyone they are deserving of our affection, while Bekah tries to recall every spider she's seen in a movie! Come to learn about spiders, stay for an unhinged Doctor Who rant! Episode notes, References, and Images all can be found on bemorespecificp…

1
Handling complicated view logic w/ Skyler Katz & Bogdan Kharchenko 1:09:07

6M ago1:09:07

1:09:07

Complex view logic can be hard to get right—particularly in server-rendered templates like Blade. We recently had to decide just how much a Laravel Blade component should do, and decided to hash it out on the podcast.By Chris Morrell

1
Modular Laravel Apps w/ Mateus Guimarães 1:31:59

6M ago1:31:59

1:31:59

When applications grow—in scope, sheer lines of code, or the number of team members—how you organize things starts to matter a whole lot more. In today's episode, we talk with Mateus Guimarães about modularization: breaking your application into smaller modules. We explore some of the topics in his new Laracasts course, and talk about the decisions…

1
Building Forms (and Catalyst) w/ Adam Wathan 1:10:04

6M ago1:10:04

1:10:04

It's been said that web development is 99% forms and tables. Today we talk with Adam Wathan about all the decisions that go into creating a great form builder API. Adam and the rest of the team at Tailwind recently launched the developer preview of Catalyst—a React UI library with a robust form system. We take a deep-dive into the API decisions beh…

1
Static site generators & personal websites w/ Aaron Francis 1:03:06

7M ago1:03:06

1:03:06

We all use our personal websites as an excuse for trying something new or over engineering what's usually a simple, low traffic site. In today's episode, Chris and Aaron talk about how to build a great personal website with "just Laravel" and imagine ways that static site generation, markdown editing, open graph, caching, SEO, and more could be imp…

1
031 || 10 Fun Responses to the “Are You Seeing Anyone?” Question During the Holiday Season as a Single Christian Woman 5:16

8M ago5:16

5:16

Here in the U.S. Thanksgiving is days away. Then the holiday events abound for the next five weeks. If you are single like me, you’re probably dreading the “Are you seeing anyone?” question from family or friends you haven’t seen in a while because the answer is no. That’s not how I’m going to answer that question this year, though. With a little h…

1
What Makes Soda So Special? 59:32

9M ago59:32

59:32

Fizzy water, pop, lolly water, soda, coke, pepsi...when did this bubbly beverage come into our lives and our hearts? Show notes and more at bemorespecific.org! Pardon the volume differential between Bekah and Teagan, this is our first time with this new recording setup!

1
Perfecting lifecycle hooks w/ Caleb Porzio 1:16:08

8M ago1:16:08

1:16:08

In today's episode, Chris and Caleb sit down and try to imagine what the perfect "hook" implementation might look like. Laravel, Livewire, and the upcoming Verbs package, all have to allow for hooking into logic at specific points, and each package has to handle this in its own unique way. What if there was a canonical way to hook into the lifecycl…

1
030 || Finding Significance as a Single Christian Woman 11:32

9M ago11:32

11:32

In this episode, I share my story of how I found significance as a single Christian woman. If you want to feel significant now as a single Christian woman, I invite you to join me on this journey to pursue God and our dreams. I’ve wasted way too much time waiting to start living because I haven’t found my man yet. I’ve spent way too much mental ene…

1
029 // Want to Grow Your BOLDNESS as a Christian Woman? 27:24

9M ago27:24

27:24

In today’s episode, you will hear an encouraging story of bold faith in action as I interview my friend Erika Diaz-Castro, host of the Her Renewed Strength podcast and leader of the 2023 Renewed Conference. She literally thanks God for her cancer diagnosis and talks about how her study of the bible changed as a result of cancer. Powerful stuff. We …

1
028 // The Search for TRUTH Keeps Uncovering Evidence (Why Believe the Bible series, part 5) 14:39

9M ago14:39

14:39

As a Christian, it’s important to have a strong faith foundation. The more you know about God, the more you learn about you. And people. And the world around you. How can we believe that, though? Should we blindly believe the Bible is true because it claims to be the inspired word of God? Does God expect us to just take His word for it, or does He …

1
027 // Medical Facts that Help Prove the Bible is True (Why Believe the Bible series, part 4) 13:34

9M ago13:34

13:34

Welcome to the fourth episode in the Why Believe the Bible series taught by my awesome dad Harry Schaefer. The underlying premise of this Why Believe the Bible series is that we can verify the truth of the Bible by looking to outside sources such as the historical record to see if what’s in the historical record aligns with scripture. And we find t…

1
026 // 3 Reasons to Believe the Bible (Why Believe the Bible Series, Part 3) 12:05

9M ago12:05

12:05

Have you ever believed something but didn’t have any practical evidence to prove your belief was true? Well, until the last century or so, Christians had to endure criticism for believing the Bible even though the historical or archeological record could not find any proof that the Hitites or two significant leaders mentioned in the Bible existed. …

1
025 // 2 Fulfilled Prophecies Provide Proof of Biblical Truth (Why Believe the Bible series, part 2) 17:17

9M ago17:17

17:17

Welcome to the second episode the Why Believe the Bible series hosted by my dad, Harry Schaefer. In episode 24, we learned that one way to confirm the truth of any book, including the Bible, is to compare it to outside sources. We take what’s written, compare it to known facts, and see if it matches. If it lines up, it’s true. The Bible lines up wi…

1
Why Do We Buy Bottled Water? 1:07:54

10M ago1:07:54

1:07:54

Ah, the water bottle. A staple of news anchors desks, comic-con panels, sports camps, the floor of your car, etc! When did water bottles get so popular? Why plastic? How many water bottles are out there??? Answers to all these questions and more in this months episode of Be More Specific! Show notes, sources and more can be found at bemorespecific.…

1
024 // Is the Bible True? (Why Believe the Bible Series with Harry Schaefer, part 1) 22:46

10M ago22:46

22:46

Greetings, my friend! If you’ve ever wondered why you can declare with confidence that the Bible is true, you’ll want to tune in to today’s episode. Today marks the start of a five-part Why Believe the Bible series I recorded with a special guest for my other podcast. I’m sharing it because knowing why you can believe the Bible and being able to de…

1
023 // The Ephesians Challenge 2:10

10M ago2:10

2:10

Through reading and studying Ephesians, I’m learning so much about who I am in Christ and how to live boldly for Him as a result. God is transforming me through this book, and it’s this book that influenced the speech I’ll be delivering the RENEWED 2023 conference. I want you to be transformed as well. In order for God to do a mighty work in you, y…

1
022 // Escape Mediocrity and Embrace Productivity as a Female Christian Author 6:32

10M ago6:32

6:32

Ready to reclaim the life of purpose God intends for you? In this episode, we’ll explore what it means to be productive, what it means to be mediocre and why you as a female Christian author should embrace productivity and escape mediocrity. Your friend, Bonnie Jean Next Steps: Rise from Stuck Starter Kit Rate, Review, & Follow on Apple Podcasts “I…

1
021 // A Call to Book Writing & Marketing Action with Guest Lynda Sunshine West 18:18

10M ago18:18

18:18

Ever made a commitment you didn't stick to? Not a good feeling, huh? Today I share about a commitment I made that I shouldn't have and what I learned from it. Then I interview #1 International Bestselling author Lynda Sunshine West. She shares her own writing and publishing journey as well as some great book marketing tips to help you market your b…

1
Verbs vacation (part 1?) w/ Daniel Coulbourne 1:24:00

10M ago1:24:00

1:24:00

And now for something completely different… In this episode, Chris and Daniel sit down to talk about a new event sourcing package they're working on called Verbs.By Chris Morrell

1
What is Hair? 1:18:21

12M ago1:18:21

1:18:21

What is hair? What's it made of? Why do we have so much of it? Why don't chimps have as much? Why is some hair curly? All this and more are answered this month on Be More Specific! For full notes, photos, and extras, visit bemorespecific.org

1
What Is Shampoo? 1:04:57

1y ago1:04:57

1:04:57

We lather our scalps with it, but what IS shampoo? When did it come to be, and why is Teagan insistent she needs a special one? What makes this "poo" so special? Sources and more on www.bemorespecific.org

1
Customizing outgoing email 1:23:23

1y ago1:23:23

1:23:23

Most teams have encountered this basic scenario: Your application sends out a periodic report to a specific person in the company. Then, at some later point, either another team member wants to start receiving a copy of the report, or you need to remove the original recipient and add a new one. With a standard Laravel app, you're probably going to …

1
020 // 3 Life Rules to Keep You Focused and Productive 7:36

1y ago7:36

7:36

Rules. Ugh. Who wants to talk about rules? Rules are just made to be broken anyway, right? Bad rules are made to be broken. Good rules provide structure and allow you to thrive. So if you could define three rules to follow, what would they be? What rules would keep you focused on God and your dreams? Today I’ll share my three core life rules and th…

1
019 // How to Distinguish Between a Goal, a Project, and a Task as a Christian Author 7:53

1y ago7:53

7:53

You have a dream of writing a book. But when does that dream become a goal? Is that goal a project? Are tasks attached to a dream, a goal or a project? When your book writing dream remains a dream because you struggle to take action and follow through, you have a productivity problem. To fix the problem and turn you into a lean, mean, writing machi…

1
How Were Cats Domesticated? 1:06:22

1y ago1:06:22

1:06:22

How did humans domesticate cats...or did we? What's so great about these furry friends, and how long have they been man's best "animal that lives in my house I guess"? Find sources, photos, and more on bemorespecific.org

1
018 // The Rise Year in Review and a Definite Direction for the Coming Podcast Year 9:03

1y ago9:03

9:03

Yesterday marked the one year anniversary of the debut of this podcast. Wow. One year. What a whirlwind year it has been! I’ve been whirling behind the scenes anyway as my consistency with creating episodes for this podcast has been seriously lacking. My attention has been focused on creating content for my other podcast, Published Before College. …

1
When Did Blacksmithing Begin? 1:13:33

1y ago1:13:33

1:13:33

When did humans start heating up and manipulating metal? Turns out it was a long time ago, and we're still doing it now! Join us as we learn all about blacksmithing and the art of metal work! Go to bemorespecific.org for notes, photos, and more fun!

1
What about event sourcing? 1:31:06

1y ago1:31:06

1:31:06

In this episode we indulge in the purest form of Over Engineering—a 90 minute discussion of a completely different application paradigm/architecture. Our team has used event sourcing to some degree, and we're considering using it more heavily in the future. But before we do, we're going to step back and ask ourselves if it's worth it… Some useful l…

1
The dreaded status column w/ Daniel Coulbourne + Cheyne Rood 1:26:46

1+ y ago1:26:46

1:26:46

Over Engineered is all about those things that bug you but you never get a chance to "solve." Today's episode is about the dreaded "status" column. This is another topic that most developers will hit over and over. You have a model. You need to track the status. You add a status column, and then later a status timestamp "accepted_at", and then late…

1
Are You Liking Lichens? 1:02:49

1+ y ago1:02:49

1:02:49

Teagan and Bekah learn all about these fantastic symbiotic, pioneer, and super beautiful organisms! Come explore the wonderfully weird world of lichens! Lichen photos, full references, and more on bemorespecific.org! Follow us on instagram @bemorespecificpod and follow the Leavitt Lab Lichen Page @lichensirl for more fun facts and photos! Must Read…

1
Referencing specific database records in your code 1:00:45

1+ y ago1:00:45

1:00:45

Season 1 continues with a discussion of how to deal with special database records that need to be referenced directly in code. We've all been there before: you've got a specific vendor that you need to write a custom command for, or a certain category that needs special handling, so you either hard-code the ID or slug and shudder slightly before mo…

1
Over-engineering migrations even more w/ Tim MacDonald! 1:16:07

1+ y ago1:16:07

1:16:07

In the second episode of the podcast we talk with Tim MacDonald about a few other approaches to how you might manage other operations that happen before/during/after a database migration (or really any deploy step). Tim pitches a lower-level approach that spawns a whole new line of thinking. We also touch on some of the responses to episode one, in…

1
What is the History of Prosthetics? 1:15:04

1+ y ago1:15:04

1:15:04

Today, Bekah explains the history of prosthetics and how they've changed over time! Teagan listens, and is a bit of a class clown... To help with prosthetic access, consider donating to one of these charities: LIMBS International The Prosthetic Foundation Sources, photos, and more can be found on www.bemorespecific.org…

1
The line between migration and…? 1:06:15

1+ y ago1:06:15

1:06:15

In the first episode of the podcast we explore the boundary between database migrations and other operations that need to happen when the database is being migrated. How do you seed or manipulate data after new tables or columns have been added? In migrations? In one-off commands that you have to run manually? Running seeders in production? In tink…

1
017 // A Christian Author Prays through Core Story of the Bible and Why the Bible Matters 6:48

1+ y ago6:48

6:48

Hey, friend! If you're feeling stuck and in need of inspiration, start by going to God and studying the Bible. That's what I do, and that's what I did on February 13, 2023. Here's a snippet of that prayer. Tune in to listen to the full conversation with God. Heavenly Father, I believe Your word is the source of absolute truth. Why I believe the Bib…

1
016 // A Christian Author Prays About Seeking Meaning and Discernment 5:03

1+ y ago5:03

5:03

Hey, friend! If you're feeling stuck and in need of discernment, start by going to God and seeking Him. That's what I do, and that's what I did on February 5, 2023. Here's a snippet of that prayer. Tune in to listen to the full conversation with God. Dear Heavenly Father, I once heard that nothing has meaning except the meaning you give it. The mor…

1
Why Do People Wear Wigs? 1:08:54

1+ y ago1:08:54

1:08:54

Why do humans wear wigs, and when did this particular fashion trend come to be? Come with Teagan and Bekah as they go on a journey through the history of wigs and learn all about these odd hair hats! Images, Sources, and more on bemorespecific.org

1
015 // A Christian Author’s Prayer for Direction 6:33

1+ y ago6:33

6:33

Hey, friend! If you're feeling stuck and in need of direction, start by going to God and seeking Him. That's what I do, and that's what I did on January 29, 2023. Here's a snippet of that prayer. Tune in to listen to the full conversation with God. Dear Father, You know that when I write books, I like to see the big picture and know where the story…

1
014 // Why I Paused the Show in 2022 and am Bringing It Back in 2023 5:20

1+ y ago5:20

5:20

When I started Rise from Stuck in May 2022, I was in a dark place career-wise. I liked the people I worked with, but working as a auto insurance claims adjuster did not play to my strengths. The workload was overwhelming. The phone calls were relentless. And it had sucked all creativity from my soul. I felt stuck in a deep, dark hole and didn’t kno…

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