Hotchpotch 36

BSD

• PEFS (Private Encrypted File System) is a kernel level stacked cryptographic file system for FreeBSD.
• Why we don't run freebsd-update inside freebsd.org.

Elixir

• Connecting to Multiple Databases with Ecto.
• Rise From the Ashes — Incremental APIs With Phoenix.
• Distillery vs. Exrm vs. Relx
• Using Postgres range data type in Ecto.

Elm

• Let’s be mainstream! User focused design in Elm.
• Sending optional data in Elm with Maybe, Result and Task.
• Write unit and fuzz tests for your Elm code, in Elm.

Gamedev

• The 13 Basic Principles of Gameplay Design.
• Difficulty Levels And Why You Should Never Use Them.
• Godot engine reaches 2.1 stable.
• Video: The game asset workflow: Concept 2 - Thumbnailing.
• The influence of music on the perception of difficulty.
• In this blog we’re going to look at cooperative games, and identify components that make them “true co-op games” where both players perform active and meaningful roles.
• After decades in game development, and after deciding to write a book about the role and rules of narrative design within the greater game design process, I recently found myself thinking intensively about the MDA framework. In doing so I realized there is currently no way to implement narrative design structures into MDA, and for that reason alone (there are others) I believe it’s time to update the MDA framework. Not because it’s useless, but because it is not the optimal tool it could be.
• SFML 2.4.0 released!.
• Godot Engine visual scripting first look.

Rust

• Zero-cost futures in Rust.
• There are changes afoot in the Rust world. For the past few months we’ve been working on new way of reporting errors that’s easier to read and understand. This is part of an on-going compaign to improve Rust’s usability across the board.

Other

• The Single Biggest Mistake Programmers Make Every Day
• How the father of the world wide web plans to reclaim it from Facebook and Google.
• Chrome dev explain accessibility: Keyboard focus is crucially important for both motor impaired users, and visually impaired users relying on a screen reader. One common UI mistake is to leave elements in the DOM that are offscreen but still contain focusable children. A responsive side nav is a classic example.
• Video: Railway oriented programming; Error handling in functional languages.
• Usability of Security: A Case Study.
• 7 Rules for Creating Gorgeous UI (Part 1)
• 7 Rules for Creating Gorgeous UI (Part 2)

  1. Light comes from the sky
  2. Black and white first
  3. Double your whitespace
  4. Learn the methods of overlaying text on images
  5. Make text pop— and un-pop
  6. Only use good fonts
  7. Steal like an artist