SECTION 05TRANSMISSIONS
TRANS
Working notes from inside the builds. How we model a problem before touching a schema, where we draw boundaries, what we measure once it's running, and which parts of a job are actually worth automating.
- ENTRIES
- 100
- SUBJECTS
- 32
- SPAN
LATEST
FIELD NOTE
Problem-shaped software, seen up close in freight logistics
What problem-shaped software actually looked like from inside a regional freight brokerage.
READ TRANSMISSIONRECENTLAST SIX ENTRIES
- POST-MORTEMHow modelling the domain before the schema broke an energy metering system
- MIGRATION DIARYConfigurability as deferred decision-making, added late
- RULE OF THUMBA rule of thumb for choosing boring technology on purpose
- ANTI-PATTERNTreating internal tools as scratch work isn't the shortcut it looks like
- PRIMERAuthorisation as domain logic, explained before you need it
- TEARDOWNTeardown: deletes, history and time travel
ARCHIVECOMPLETE INDEX
AUGUST 2026
- FIELD NOTEProblem-shaped software, seen up close in freight logistics
- POST-MORTEMHow modelling the domain before the schema broke an energy metering system
- MIGRATION DIARYConfigurability as deferred decision-making, added late
- RULE OF THUMBA rule of thumb for choosing boring technology on purpose
- ANTI-PATTERNTreating internal tools as scratch work isn't the shortcut it looks like
- PRIMERAuthorisation as domain logic, explained before you need it
- TEARDOWNTeardown: deletes, history and time travel
- PATTERNA pattern for reading the spreadsheet as the specification
- DECISION RECORDFinding boundaries before splitting services: the decision and what it cost
- COST MODELThe arithmetic of idempotency as a contract
JULY 2026
- FIELD NOTEWhat field service taught us about an append-only log as the source of truth
- POST-MORTEMThe incident that taught us expand-and-contract migrations
- MIGRATION DIARYMigration diary: choosing a tenant isolation model
- RULE OF THUMBEvolving an API without versioning it: the heuristic we use
- ANTI-PATTERNHow student records teams end up putting a queue in front of the problem
- PRIMERA primer on data contracts between teams
- TEARDOWNReading a public sector casework system through agreeing the target before buying the dashboard
- PATTERNCardinality as your observability budget: the shape that holds up
- DECISION RECORDDecision record: runbooks written for 3am
- COST MODELWhat on-call pain as an architecture metric actually costs
JUNE 2026
- FIELD NOTENotes from a post-production house: designing the degraded mode first
- POST-MORTEMPost-mortem: restores, not backups
- MIGRATION DIARYRetrofitting incident reviews that change the system onto a field service platform
- RULE OF THUMBWhen to start worrying about feature flags with an expiry date
- ANTI-PATTERNStop doing this: automating the clicks
- PRIMERDesigning the approval step, from first principles
- TEARDOWNDeterminism as a debugging tool, as actually built
- PATTERNRetries, jitter and the herd
- DECISION RECORDWhy we chose scheduled jobs as distributed systems for public sector casework
- COST MODELQuality gates at the point of ingestion: a cost model for clinical operations
MAY 2026
- FIELD NOTEWhere a model belongs in an operational workflow, seen up close in discrete manufacturing
- POST-MORTEMHow the arithmetic of automation broke a laboratory sample tracking system
- COST MODELProblem-shaped software: a cost model for credit operations
- FIELD NOTEModelling the domain before the schema, seen up close in public sector casework
- POST-MORTEMHow configurability as deferred decision-making broke a clinical operations system
- MIGRATION DIARYChoosing boring technology on purpose, added late
- RULE OF THUMBA rule of thumb for internal tools as real products
- ANTI-PATTERNBolting permissions on at the edge isn't the shortcut it looks like
- PRIMERDeletes, history and time travel, explained before you need it
- TEARDOWNTeardown: reading the spreadsheet as the specification
APRIL 2026
- PATTERNA pattern for finding boundaries before splitting services
- DECISION RECORDIdempotency as a contract: the decision and what it cost
- COST MODELThe arithmetic of an append-only log as the source of truth
- FIELD NOTEWhat student records taught us about expand-and-contract migrations
- POST-MORTEMThe incident that taught us choosing a tenant isolation model
- MIGRATION DIARYMigration diary: evolving an API without versioning it
- RULE OF THUMBQueues, backpressure and dead letters: the heuristic we use
- ANTI-PATTERNHow discrete manufacturing teams end up reading the other team's database
- PRIMERA primer on agreeing the target before buying the dashboard
- TEARDOWNReading a media production system through cardinality as your observability budget
MARCH 2026
- PATTERNRunbooks written for 3am: the shape that holds up
- DECISION RECORDDecision record: on-call pain as an architecture metric
- COST MODELWhat designing the degraded mode first actually costs
- FIELD NOTENotes from a regional freight brokerage: restores, not backups
- POST-MORTEMPost-mortem: incident reviews that change the system
- MIGRATION DIARYRetrofitting feature flags with an expiry date onto a student records platform
- RULE OF THUMBWhen to start worrying about automating the decision, not the keystroke
- ANTI-PATTERNStop doing this: adding a human review step
- PRIMERDeterminism as a debugging tool, from first principles
- TEARDOWNRetries, jitter and the herd, as actually built
FEBRUARY 2026
- PATTERNScheduled jobs as distributed systems
- DECISION RECORDWhy we chose quality gates at the point of ingestion for media production
- COST MODELWhere a model belongs in an operational workflow: a cost model for insurance claims
- FIELD NOTEThe arithmetic of automation, seen up close in field service
- DECISION RECORDWhy we chose problem-shaped software for discrete manufacturing
- COST MODELModelling the domain before the schema: a cost model for laboratory sample tracking
- FIELD NOTEConfigurability as deferred decision-making, seen up close in media production
- POST-MORTEMHow choosing boring technology on purpose broke an insurance claims system
- MIGRATION DIARYInternal tools as real products, added late
- RULE OF THUMBA rule of thumb for authorisation as domain logic
JANUARY 2026
- ANTI-PATTERNDeleting the row isn't the shortcut it looks like
- PRIMERReading the spreadsheet as the specification, explained before you need it
- TEARDOWNTeardown: finding boundaries before splitting services
- PATTERNA pattern for idempotency as a contract
- DECISION RECORDAn append-only log as the source of truth: the decision and what it cost
- COST MODELThe arithmetic of expand-and-contract migrations
- FIELD NOTEWhat discrete manufacturing taught us about choosing a tenant isolation model
- POST-MORTEMThe incident that taught us evolving an API without versioning it
- MIGRATION DIARYMigration diary: queues, backpressure and dead letters
- RULE OF THUMBData contracts between teams: the heuristic we use
DECEMBER 2025
- ANTI-PATTERNHow field service teams end up buying the dashboard first
- PRIMERA primer on cardinality as your observability budget
- TEARDOWNReading a freight logistics system through runbooks written for 3am
- PATTERNOn-call pain as an architecture metric: the shape that holds up
- DECISION RECORDDecision record: designing the degraded mode first
- COST MODELWhat restores, not backups actually costs
- FIELD NOTENotes from a regional housing authority: incident reviews that change the system
- POST-MORTEMPost-mortem: feature flags with an expiry date
- MIGRATION DIARYRetrofitting automating the decision, not the keystroke onto a discrete manufacturing platform
- RULE OF THUMBWhen to start worrying about designing the approval step
NOVEMBER 2025
- ANTI-PATTERNStop doing this: letting the pipeline vary
- PRIMERRetries, jitter and the herd, from first principles
- TEARDOWNScheduled jobs as distributed systems, as actually built
- PATTERNQuality gates at the point of ingestion
- DECISION RECORDWhy we chose where a model belongs in an operational workflow for freight logistics
- COST MODELThe arithmetic of automation: a cost model for energy metering
- PATTERNProblem-shaped software
- DECISION RECORDWhy we chose modelling the domain before the schema for field service
- COST MODELConfigurability as deferred decision-making: a cost model for marketplace operations
- FIELD NOTEChoosing boring technology on purpose, seen up close in freight logistics