My most favourite podcast episodes in 2017
After my most favourite tech books and my most favourite tech talks I want to conclude my yearly review with some of podcast episodes I really enjoyed! I listen to one or two hours of podcasts a day. Most of the podcasts I subscribed to are about growing up in the 80s and loving things like the Nintendo Entertainment System or Indiana Jones. But I also listen to a couple of tech podcasts occasionally. And there I found some true gems. Let’s go!
UX Podcast #163 - Design systems with Jina Anne #
If you’ve read my previous two top lists, you know that design systems are a big thing for me right now. That’s why I gather a ton of information that might shape my future work tremendously. Concerning design systems, Jina Anne is always a good address. She’s even running a conference on design systems. Her interview in the UX Podcast shared lots of insights for the Lightning Design System she did at Salesforce. Especially concerning team building.
Key takeaway: UX thinking has to come from within teams. Be supportive, not dictating.
Listen to it here:
Or visit the UX Podcast webpage of this episode.
Pursuit Podcast #21 - Walking Away From Your Open Source Project: John Resig #
I met Jessica Rose in Tallinn a couple of years ago, and had a tremendous time with her. I was really excited when Jessica announced she’s doing a podcast about the human sides of tech. Her empathy is second to none and you can feel it when listening to each episode. Of the many episodes produced, I want to recommend her interview with jQuery creator John Resig. He has created and led one, if not the most widely used open source project the web has ever seen, and walking away from it was surely no easy task.
Key takeaway: Surround yourself with decent human beings.
Listen to it here:
Or visit the Pursuit podcast webpage of this episode.
Method Podcast #5 - Material Design with Rachel Been #
Again, Design Systems. Now from one person who arguably created one of the most widely used design systems in recent years: Rachel Been from Google. In Google Design’s Method Podcast, she’s talking about how she and her team created a design system that was meant to be used in surprising ways with little or no guidance from a design team. What a challenge!
Key takeaway: Talk, talk, talk. Spend 50% of your time talking to people who have to implement your stuff.
Listen to it here:
Or visit the Method podcast webpage of this episode.
Changelog #231 - HTTP/2 in Node.js core with James Snell #
The Changelog is one the podcasts who features such a variety of content, I constantly find something new and interesting. One exemplary episode is this live chat with James Snell from the Node foundation. He’s talking about putting HTTP/2 into Node.js core, and the challenges that come with it. Lots of insights on how the Node foundation decides on new features, and also lots of insights on how HTTP/2 works.
Key takeaway: Defining new standards is hard ;-)
Listen to it here:
Or visit the Changelog podcast webpage of this episode.
Mikeal Rogers Patreon: WebComponents w/ Alex Russell #
Mikeal Rogers is no stranger to the podcast world. He’s contributing to the Changelog (especially Request for commits and JSParty), and has a couple of episodes on his Patreon as well. In one episode he interviewed Alex Russell on web components. See it as a continuation of the talk Alex gave at PolymerSummit which I have linked in the previous blog article. The great thing about this episode is that you finally get some ideas on how to use web components for your own sites and apps. It’s really motivating and you want to try them out yourselves afterwards.
Key takeaway: Use the platform!
Listen to it here:
Or visit the respective Patreon page.
Honourable mentions #
There are also some podcasts I listen regularly to, and I just can’t pick an episode. One of it is Reactive Pod with my friends Raquel, Henning and Kahlil. I also like to invite you to give my personal podcast ScriptCast a go.
If you know some German, I invite you to listen to Working Draft, Donau Tech Radio and Designer and Developer Schnack. All with contributions from Linz!
With that article I close my top lists from 2017. Have a happy new year, and let’s meet again in 2018!