Hacking the Grepson: Recent Episodes
HackingTheGrepson
Matt and Mike, two career developers, discuss their experiences and talk about programming in a (hopefully) not-too-technical way.
A spirited discussion ensues between Matt and Mike the merits and detractors of dimensionality as it pertains to video game graphics.
Matt and Mike are still out for various reasons, to surely return soon for more programming patter. However, there is a conflagration of quirky kinfolk descending upon the San Diego, CA area in order to celebrate all things nerdy and geeky, and perhaps you might be interested?
Mike brings an anecdote from his life that caused him to spiral a bit about the future of art, creation, ownership, and society, leaving him peering over the precipice of some dystopian future. Matt talks him off the proverbial ledge.
A continuation of discussion about the laws of nature, vis a vis software development, are bandied about by Matt and Mike in this episode. Some of them include Linus's Law, the Pareto Principle, and even the Ninety-Nine Rule.
- Famous Laws of Software Development
There are some truisms in the world of software development that have been codified into laws, adages, and principles. Matt and Mike discuss some of them in this episode, including ones named after people like Murphy, Hofstadter, and Conway.
Matt and Mike discuss the issues that arise when you try to be everything to everybody for every time, thanks to an insightful blog post about the ever-increasing size of programming language dependencies.
- The Three Pillars of JavaScript Bloat
Anthropic created a new Claude model called Mythos, and it's apparently super-duper good at detecting software vulnerabilities. It's so good, in fact, that it can't be released publicly without basically giving the Internet as we know it a death warrant. Matt fills us in and Mike responds with a mixture of awe and fascination.
Matt has created a 2D overhead sandbox project in Godot with the help of Claude Code. Mike looks at it and thinks it is pretty neat. Then both Matt and Mike talk about it. Gamedev continues apace!
Last time on the podcast we talked about a game in development called Rorasuketo. This time we talk about it again, but with one small change: the creator is with us! Matt and Mike and Cam chat about game development in RPGMaker, roller derby, and creative constraints, among other things.
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Rorasuketo Soundtrack
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Rorasuketo Dev Blog
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Rorasuketo on Steam
Roller derby, JRPGs, blogging, existential panic...Matt and Mike cover it all by introducing a long-running game project by a fellow developer nearly done with their own game, Rorasuketo.
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Rorasuketo
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Rorasuketo Dev Blog
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Rorasuketo on Steam
In order to expand their gamedev sensibilities a bit more, Matt and Mike talk about their decision to give Godot a try in helping them create a game.
- Godot
It's been a while since we talked about game development and, more specifically, Let's Make a Game!, our project to actually make a video game together. Holidays and Advent of Code happened, which means momentum was lost and interest waned a bit. Matt and Mike talk about games they've been playing, their effects on our game development, and how to get the ball rolling again.
Happy New Year, as it is officially 2026, according to when this was recorded. Matt is out for this episode, so Mike shares some silly HtG songs he's made with source material from the first 100 episodes.
Matt and Mike wrap up the 2025 edition of Advent of Code by going through days 7 through 12.
- https://adventofcode.com/2025
Matt and Mike take a look at Advent of Code 2025, Day 7 live on the episode! We try to make heads or tails of it in half an hour. Will we solve it? Clickbait description demands you listen and find out.
- https://adventofcode.com
It's December, which means it's Advent of Code time! Taking a break from our "Let's Make a Game!" project to instead help elves figure out programming problems is what this episode is all about. Matt and Mike go over the first 6 days of logic conundrums.
- https://adventofcode.com
More words and thoughts and ideas and progress on our combined efforts at figured out both Defold and Love2D to make a game. Matt talks about playing around with his slingshot prototype and Mike talks about rejiggering his entire Astronaut tutorial so he can load a different level.
Mike shares some updates on the game-making progress achieved recently (still no finished game to share with each other yet, but working on it!).
Matt and Mike continue their Let's Make a Game experiment, spending time going over the progress made so far in their Love2D and Defold prototypes. Matt also shows how Claude works on the command line and Mike is entranced.
Matt and Mike check in again on their progress of making a game. More discussion ensues about preferences, recent games played, and about Defold and Love2D, including some recent efforts made by both.
Matt and Mike continue to discuss more details about the game they're going to make. On this episode the decision of which engine/language/IDE they're going to primarily use is made...sort of.
Our new season, focused solely on making a video game of some sort, continues apace. This is a lengthy one, filled with discussions of game mechanics, likes/dislikes, and potential ideas to follow up on. Matt and Mike don't know what they're going to make yet, but they're getting further into what about games they enjoy (or don't).
For Season 2 of Hacking the Grepson, we're going to make a game! What kind of game? Which platform(s)? What genre/theme/setting? Who knows?! Let's try to start attempting to figure it out.
We've done a hundred episodes of this podcast. Wow. Matt and Mike come to terms with this fact, and perhaps give an idea of what's to come with the next hundred episodes.
You can't always do everything by yourself. That's when you need a group of people! Are those people working towards a common goal? Well, then you might have a team. Matt and Mike, as a team, talk about the benefits of such cooperation.
How much can a developer assume about a user of their software? It's not always immediately clear, but as time has gone on the way that tutorials have presented themselves has changed. Mike uses an anecdote about a recent gaming experience with a friend to open up discussion with Matt on the topic.
Systems and mechanisms usually work, but they don't always. When they don't, what to do? Shoot that trouble, chum! Matt and Mike talk about their magic problem seeking-and-destroying abilities in this episode's discussion.
Gaining knowledge of anything is ostensibly good, but it also potentially brings with it a price to pay. Matt and Mike discuss a very intriguing blog post about the ethical and moral burden that knowledge can bring.
- The Curse of Knowing How, or; Fixing Everything
Teams could be said to be working together in one of two different ways: a desert or forest. What do those terms mean, and what does it mean to move from one to the other? Matt and Mike discuss a series of blog posts from Kent Beck and Beth Andres-Beck that attempt to illuminate these nature metaphors.
- Forest vs Desert
Matt and Mike are often working on things outside of preparing to record this podcast. On this episode, we explore the question: "What are you working on lately?"
An exciting new Roguelike deck-building puzzle game has taken the industry (and Mike (and possibly later Matt?)) by storm: Blue Prince. It's a very light take, development-wise, on the subject matter, but games are a huge inspiration and problem space for programming, so we think it's worth the praise and discussion.
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Blue Prince
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Roguelike
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Deck-builder
Software development loves the concept of binary. On/off, 1/0, true/false, and all that. The way users interact with a system vs the way it works in the code/data area is very similar. Matt and Mike discuss the differences between frontend and backend, and how it can apply to more than just web development.
In general, no one writes much assembly code (let alone raw zeros and ones) anymore, and apps that computers run usually fall into two camps: compiled and interpreted. Matt and Mike try to explain the distinction.
Love this related blog post: https://ntietz.com/blog/python-is-an-interpreted-language-with-a-compiler/
In 2025, LLMs, Machine Learning, and AI are being used in all manner of technology. But how can I, asks the average computer user, take advantage of it? Matt and Mike offer some guidance.
Do you process new information from the bottom-up, or from the top-down? The potential answer to this can be complicated. Matt and Mike use the usual software development to answer the question, but also branch off into everything from woodworking to ecological concerns.
Facades, adapters, interfaces...these are all types of abstractions, a powerful tool in programming to hide a more complex system so that users or consumers can better utilize the power contained underneath them. Matt and Mike peel back the layers.
You could work on a software project without version control. It doesn't impede your ability to change things and deploy. But you'd be working without a net. Matt and Mike dive into the wonderful world of not having to keep both file1.js AND file1a.js.
The final days of Advent of Code 2024 have finally concluded. Matt, Mike, and Richard finish up their discussion of Days 20-25.
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Advent of Code
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Richard's Day 21 notes
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Richard's Day 24 notes
Our recounting of the trials and tribulations of Advent of Code 2024 continue apace, this time with returning special guest Richard, here to help Mike and Matt use intelligence, both human and artificial, to tackle Day 15 through 19.
- https://adventofcode.com
More Advent of Code 2024, coming your way. Matt and Mike dig into Day 8 through Day 14, as the puzzles get harder and more complex.
It's finally Advent of Code time again! Matt and Mike kick things off by going through the first 7 days of 2024's puzzles.
- https://adventofcode.com
Advent of Code is not the only periodic programming puzzle game in town. Matt and Mike discuss Everybody Codes, a similar development challenge that is inspired by it.
Note: we spoil the first 2 of 20 quests with our approaches and answers.
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Everybody Codes
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Advent of Code
Ever wanted to automate industry on an alien world? Factorio has got you covered. Matt and Mike finally dig into this fascinating factory simulator that features familiar programming challenges.
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Factorio
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The Planet Crafter
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PlateUp!
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Don't Starve
Matt explains the computer science behind Big O notation. Mike mainly listens.
- Big O notation
- Previous related episode: P v NP
Matt and Mike talk about Mike's latest web game: Deckdle. Try your hand (oof, sorry) at a new solitaire setup each day, as you attempt to move all the cards in the tableau to your base before your stock runs out!
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Deckdle, a daily solitaire card game
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Solitaire (Wikipedia)
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Golf variant (Wikipedia)
Rubber duckies may make bath time lots of fun, but they can also make debugging easier. Matt and Mike discuss this curiosity of the development world.
Blogging is a way to share your thoughts about something in a long-form way, and doing so about development or programming can be helpful to others, as well as yourself. Matt and Mike chat about it.
You write code, you run it through linting, you run it through tests, it gets built somewhere and gives you a report. But did you have another human being look at it, regardless? Code reviews can have benefits and drawbacks, and Matt and Mike discuss them.
While we probably spend just as much, if not more, time on file formats, the crux of this episode is data formats. What are they? Why so many? Matt and Mike discuss.
Sure, you wrote some code. But have you considered...rewriting it? Actually, just refactor it a little, for the sake of Future You. Matt and Mike talk about a man who once tried some IRL "refactoring" and the realizations that came from it.
- How refactoring almost ruined my marriage
The Twelve-Factor App is a methodology for building web apps, especially those referred to as SaaS (Software as a Service). Matt and Mike continue diving into this intriguing concept and go over factors 6 to 12.
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12factor.net
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Github source for 12factor.net
The Twelve-Factor App is a methodology for building web apps, especially those referred to as SaaS (Software as a Service). Matt and Mike introduce this intriguing concept and go over factors 1 to 5.
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12factor.net
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Github source for 12factor.net
All the software we use these days is much better at getting, retaining, and deciphering user data than it was in the past. How that's done and whether it's a net positive is a good discussion topic, and Matt and Mike are here to do some analysis.
Sometimes a job that is done well solo can be done even better with a compatriot. Matt and Mike discuss the pros and cons of reciprocal development.
Programs you interact with, especially on the Internet, usually have some kind of Application Programming Interface. Matt and Mike query this episode's API and let you know the results.
There are both pros and cons to developing alone or with others. Matt and Mike discuss what those are, unsurprisingly, as that is the point of our podcast.
They may not be as relaxing to experience as the lowercase version, but SPAs, or Single Page Applications, are just as, if not more, important to our modern world wide web. Matt and Mike book an appointment and tell you how it goes.
One or more of the hosts of Hacking the Grepson is changing their job! Matt and Mike discuss the ups and downs of moving from one work establishment to another.
Everyone's got their daily routine. Ours just happens to involve a lot of web games. Matt and Mike go over their gotta-dos each day.
Matt and Mike discuss how our concept of what a "computer" is has always been a box -- it's just that nowadays those boxes are much smaller and digital.
Matt and Mike discuss the ongoing debate over certain tech terms that don't always sound right to modern day ears.
Much like the many written/spoken human languages that exist, there are quite a lot of programming languages, too. As a result of Advent of Code 2023, Mike and Matt discuss how diving into the backlogs and trying to create a project that talks Python, Ruby, and more, all at once, can be both challenging and fun.
Our final discussion on the Advent of Code 2023, covering days 17 through 25, is upon your ears. Will Santa's elves successfully fix snow production and save Christmas? Erm, sorta?
Matt, Mike, and a special guest discuss day 11-16 of the Advent of Code 2023. Join us as we expand the cosmos, roll rocks on platforms, and drive an unreliable crucible.
- Advent of Code 2023
It may be 2024, so Advent of Code 2023 is done, but our minds are still catching up, trying to solve its puzzles. On this episode, Matt and Mike discuss days 4 through 10, and even a meta idea to figure out the difficulty curve for future problems.
While the awesome programming challenge known as the Advent of Code has officially ended for 2023, the discussion can now begin. Matt and Mike discuss the first three days and their successes and difficulties with them.
The current month is December, and you know what that means. It means the Advent of Code is afoot again! Matt and Mike yet again share their thoughts on this annual programming challenge after a few days of solving.
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Advent of Code 2023
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Advent of TypeScript
It's time for another installment of ImprovDev, the first since the, uh, only other one thus far! Matt explains the importance of trust when working with a team, and Mike listens and nods sagely while occasionally interjecting other, related words.
It's important to make software as accessible as possible, because diversity of experience is valuable. The web is a gigantic system of communication in our society, and on this episode Matt and Mike discuss some ways you can make it more accessible and inclusive.
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ARIA
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WCAG Standard
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Inclusive Microsoft Design
Matt and Mike share more insight into the sometimes complex world of technical interviews. We also thoroughly discuss a timely new potential interview question.
Matt and Mike attempt to break down the roguelike deckbuilder known as Slay the Spire into its component game development parts.
For our 50th episode, Matt and Mike finally discuss the movie, and its iconic quip "Hack the Gibson", that inspired this whole podcast business. Yes, we jack into cyberspace and get psychedelic by giving our thoughts on the mid-90s sci-fi film, Hackers.
As a bit of an experiment on this episode, Matt and Mike decide to look at an Advent of Code problem from the archives, one never seen before, and then solve it together. Spoiler alert for AOC 2019, Day 1!
- Advent of Code
Matt and Mike dive into a rather heavy problem that has been confounding computer scientists for decades: P vs NP. Find out whether it's peanut-related or not, and what the ramifications of it being either about peanuts or not about peanuts actually are.
Another episode in the MusicDev series is ready for your ears, and this time it's all about the Web Audio API. Want to build interactive web apps that use audio? Then this episode is a high-level overview of how to do that.
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Web Audio API (MDN)
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Mike's impressive Excalidraw diagram
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Nebyoodle
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SoundLister
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Keebord
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AudioHash (still a wip, actually)
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GemWarrior
Matt and Mike explore the phenomenon known as "The Builder's Trap", wherein builders end up building stuff even when it's not the best solution to a problem.
- https://www.patkua.com/blog/the-builders-trap
Matt and Mike discuss a blog post talking about some potentially suboptimal character traits of programmers that one should avoid.
- 10 Coding Habits That Make You a Bad Programmer: https://levelup.gitconnected.com/10-coding-habits-that-make-you-a-bad-programmer-96be9b1c2289
Matt and Mike dive into the phenomenon that leads to the kinds of questions like "How do you get the last 3 characters of a file?", "What is Dykstra's algorithm?", and "Where is the bleach?".
Matt and Mike continue their moderate dive into programming fundamentals by moving on from basic/primitive variable types to complex types, such as Arrays and Structs.
Matt and Mike finally get to some fundamentals about programming: variables. In Part 1, we discuss so-called "primitive" types, such as Boolean and String.
It's best not to get too hung up on terminology, especially as it relates to people's skills and job titles. That being said, Matt and Mike decide to ignore this advice and bikeshed the intention of three tech terms for a time.
All things come to fruition through process. In programming, as in music, that process can be called iteration. In another installment of the MusicDev series, Matt and Mike go over (and over (and over)) this phenomenon.
Matt and Mike discuss a new daily obsession, Progle, which tasks one with identifying programming languages from both their attributes and their actual code.
https://progle.net
Artificial Intelligence is having a real hey-day late-lay in the form of ChatGPT, and it seems like advances are happening at a rapid pace. Fear of our potential robotic overlords resulting from said advances have spurred a recent petition to pause said efforts. Matt and Mike discuss.
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ChatGPT 4: https://openai.com/product/gpt-4
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Petition to pause: https://futureoflife.org/open-letter/pause-giant-ai-experiments/
Mike and "Matt" and "Matt2" discuss a form of programming in gaming: automation. Two examples, PlateUp! and Minecraft, offer up their own version of this particular skill.
PlateUp!: https://www.plateupgame.com
Minecraft: https://minecraft.net
Matt and Mike discuss the importance (and sometimes harmfulness) of backlogs, and an interesting model of software development, framed as plain old human interaction.
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Backlogs are Useless: https://lucasfcosta.com/2023/02/07/backlogs-are-useless.html
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RailsConf 2020: Tidy Up?: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BFFY9Zor6zw
Codebases are like houses, in that they can take on different shapes, sizes, and levels of organization and maintenance. Matt and Mike explore an article called "Uncovering Your Code's House" and discuss this interesting metaphor.
https://betterprogramming.pub/uncovering-your-codes-house-120d8f31075d
Sure, writing code can be fun, but is it always "right" to write that code? Matt and Mike discuss the boundaries and responsibilities programmers should be aware of when developing.
Matt and Mike explore the messy, but inevitable, topic of technical debt. Developing the "correct" way is often less efficient and less immediately satisfying, but it can avoid a potentially insurmountable mountain of spaghetti code later.
Matt and Mike dive in, once again, to that intersection of patterned audio and computer programming: MusicDev. This time, the discussion revolves, potentially endlessly, around loops, a fundamental concept in programming and also maybe in music.
Advent of Code 2022 is officially over! Matt and Mike gather around the ol' podcast microphones to discuss Day 19-25, and our final thoughts about the whole shebang.
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Advent of Code: https://adventofcode.com
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Tiny Code Challenge: https://tcc.lovebyte.party
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LowRez NX: https://lowresnx.inutilis.com
It's time for another weekly wrap-up of Advent of Code puzzles. On this episode, Matt and Mike discuss Day 12 through Day 18, but also with a side diversion through another daily coding challenge that Mike stumbled upon. Puzzles got harder and completion was no longer guaranteed this time!
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Advent of Code: https://adventofcode.com
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Tiny Code Christmas: https://tcc.lovebyte.party
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Cracking the Coding Interview: https://www.crackingthecodinginterview.com
Another week in December, another episode about the Advent of Code! The programming puzzle generator threw Day 5-11 at us this time, and we dig in.
It's a super-sized episode because there's just that much to discuss!
- Advent of Code: https://adventofcode.com
Hey, everybody! It's time for the Advent of Code again! AoC is, of course, a yuletide set of logic puzzles usually solved using some kind of programming. Matt and I did it for the first time last year, had a lot of fun, and are doing it again this year.
On this episode we go over our thoughts about how it's going after 4 days of not-too-grueling-yet Christmas elf-themed word problems.
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Advent of Code: https://adventofcode.com
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Eric Wastl Behind the Code: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mb8WwKS6ajk
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aoc-cli: https://github.com/scarvalhojr/aoc-cli
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solving AoC using GPT: https://github.com/max-sixty/aoc-gpt
* discussion on reddit about the ethics of such a thing: https://www.reddit.com/r/adventofcode/comments/zc27zb/2022_day_4_placing_1st_with_gpt3
There's a lot of digital stuff across all the computers and devices that exist in the world. Somehow, you, the user, must find specific things in all that stuff, and content tagging is one way to make it easier. Matt and Mike explain how.
Usually, this podcast goes for more evergreen content, but the shakeup at Twitter over the last few weeks is too juicy to ignore with a new CEO and a daily influx of restructuring and drama. Join Matt and Mike as they try to make sense of it all, while also explaining microblogging and software development leadership.
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It Begins: Elon Musk purchase timeline, courtesy of NPR: https://www.npr.org/2022/10/27/1131378869/twitter-elon-musk-timeline
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Breaking news on "Twitter 2.0": https://www.cnbc.com/2022/11/16/elon-musk-demands-twitter-staff-commit-to-long-hours-or-leave.html
When a creative work is, uh, created, the question of who deserves the credit for its, um, creation is not an easy one to answer. Matt and Mike, er, try to do that, though, in this particular episode.
Matt: We should do a podcast episode about Improv, and the concept of "Yes, And".
Mike: No, that sounds bad.
Matt: ...
Mike: I mean, uh...yes! And it should be how it relates to programming!
Matt: Let's do it!
Matt and Mike start a new recurring segment about the similarities between creating music and creating code, starting with their shared usage of libraries.
Intelligence usually refers to the ability for humans to acquire new knowledge and apply it accordingly. Computers can do this, too, so...are they human-like? Maybe! Matt and Mike do the thing about that.
How programmers accomplish the task of finding answers in a database of text may have changed over the past quarter of a century, but it's still a valuable skill. Matt and Mike dig into the ins and outs of using the current method, Google, in today's episode.
There are many things you can do with code, such as make a web browser, photo editor, or even a tax, uh, doer. Lots of people, however, prefer to make games with their code, and Matt and Mike break down this huge and varied use on today's episode.
Displaced Gamers, which goes behind the code of old video games: https://www.youtube.com/c/DisplacedGamers
Sample episode on Zelda 2: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GSSUrnIpcds
Spaghetti is a delicious pasta, but it's also a form of coding practice that we all fall prey to at some point. Matt and Mike talk about what it is, how it comes to be, and how to untangle the mess.
Due to circumstances, there's no Matt this week, folks, but fear not! Mike enlists the help of another kind soul to discuss their respective careers in IT, be they programming or otherwise.
Sure, writing code is fun, but have you tried writing about code in your code? What about writing other words about that code outside of that code entirely? It can all help! Matt and Mike explain.
I need to write a short summary of this particular programming podcast episode, but...I just don't want to. Also, I have no ideas. Sigh. Hopefully, Matt and Mike have some advice for me.
Ever wonder how one even gets started in this programming/developing game? Matt and Mike have some answers for you.
Memes! Well, one meme. One little 3x3 meme, based on the tried-and-true Dungeons and Dragons alignment chart, except for code. Matt and Mike treat it with respect, humor, and occasional, mild derision.
Original tweet referencing chart: https://twitter.com/heyjulesfern/status/1516208050360631299?s=20&t=xIj0Q-Uf2E_uhiTBrlf5Cw
Direct link to chart: https://pbs.twimg.com/media/FQqmk-sUYAAxaKC.jpg
All the applications on your computer started out as source code. Whether that source is open to the public or not is worth a discussion from Matt and Mike on today's episode.
Need to add or change some text for your application? You have a choice: a humble text editor or a proper IDE. How do you choose? Matt and Mike break it down.
Full-blown programs are great, but what of the lowly script? They're often short, dirty, and highly personal to the programmer, but they're also the true workhorses. Matt and Mike go over some of their favorites.
When you interview (or are interviewing) for a job, there's a certain je ne sais quoi about technical types. Matt and Mike explore their experiences and preferences when employment is on the line.
Software is conceived, born, maintained, and retired much like other things. Matt and Mike explain how it works and what kind of SDLCs they've experienced.
Portrayal of programmers (and computer technology, in general) in media has not always been kind, let alone accurate, but it's getting better.
The podcast you thought you knew is not exactly the podcast you thought you knew, but also is basically the podcast you thought you knew. Also, we wrap up our coverage of the (now-completed) Advent of Code 2021.
Every programming language can be written using one or more different paradigms, or models. Matt and Mike discuss several popular ones in today's episode.
Matt and Mike talk about a cool annual coding competition to solve daily challenges as quickly as possible.
There are a lot of ways to write code. Pop quiz time for both Matt and Mike! Let's take a quick reading on a bunch of languages.
10 Intro.new(body: 'Hello World! We are Matt and Mike, two career developers who like solving problems with code.')
20 Podcast.new(title: 'Hello World', description: 'On episode one of Hacking the Gibson, we discuss our respective histories with programming, why we got into it, and why we made it our careers.')