What a year for the Web Engineering Düsseldorf Meetup!

As 2019 draws to a close, we want to extend a heartfelt Thanks to all of you! It has been truly humbling to witness the continued trust you put in us. It means everything to the team.

tl;dr: For the things with-buzzers series we created a frontend to run a sports competition at a local functional fitness gym. It stops the athlete's time and ranks them according to the fastest. It was an exceptional feeling to hit the buzzer at the end of the workout. Check it out at things with buzzers: sports competition.

tl;dr: For the things with-buzzers series we have integrated a Jeopardy! Game show frontend to have a good time with friends. Check it out at things with buzzers: Jeopardy!. Start playing today, and have an awesome time!

tl;dr: We built custom game show buzzers, wrote a WebSocket server, and connected them to various applications. Finally, we documented and open-sourced everything. Check out the things with buzzers series hardware, websocket and a frontend like Jeopardy!. Start today, and build your own!

tl;dr: We played Rock–Paper–Scissors with 500 people in ~06:40 minutes to kick off a tech conference. It was a well-received energizer game and provided a lot of fun to all attendees.

During my last vacation, I have read REWORK by Jason Fried and David Heinemeier Hansson (both founder of Basecamp). Here is what I think about this book.

tl;dr: Holy shit. THIS. THIS. And a thousand times THIS. I love the pragmatism and lets move attitude combined with a provoking writing style. It reminds you how to apply culture and kicks you out of the corporate hamster wheel full of processes and clutter. A book you should read every year. Go, buy, and read it!

During my last vacation, I have read Atomic Habits: An Easy and Proven Way to Build Good Habits and Break Bad Ones by James Clear. Here is what I think about this book.

tl;dr: Good book about moving towards your goals with (very) small steps. Various insights into real-life stories, new perspectives, and practical tips on how to destroy bad or establish new habits. Recommended if you like James articles and his style. The book is full of this: Go, buy, and read it.

During my last vacation, i have read INSPIRED: How to Create Tech Products Customers Love by Marty Cagan. Here is what I think about this book.

tl;dr: It is excellent! Highly recommended, especially if you are working in the tech/internet industry, want to develop your product further or to get insights into this complex role. Go, buy, and read it!