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Hi,

Before I launched Svelte by Example, I called for early access testers in this newsletter. I don't ask for feedback often, I had to push myself to do this.

Sometimes I'm scared of receiving feedback that I'll agree with, but would push back the release when I want to get it out. Sometimes I'm scared of receiving feedback that could invalidate the entire idea. Sometimes I know there are problems but hope they'll magically go away if I ignore them, feedback might resurface them. Sometimes I'm overconfident and don't think it's worth getting another opinion.

No good excuse to be found. These are fears, and it's worth getting over them. Because if any of them are rooted in truth, they'll com back and haunt me rather sooner than later.

A few people responded to my request (thank you!), and it quickly became clear the ask was worth it. The first version of Svelte by Example became way better because of it. The examples became more consistent, the design improved, a bunch of typos were edited out. I didn't process all feedback. Sometimes it doesn't match what you have in mind, and that's fine.

I've learned my lesson: time to get over myself and ask for feedback whenever I can.

On the blog

Not much posting this month, but I also updated my now page and added a blogroll.

⚗️ Remove falsy values from a Laravel collection or array in PHP — The native array_filter() in PHP and collect()->filter() in Laravel also work without providing a filter callback.

On the web

Interesting links across the web.

⚙️ Why you should use spatie/laravel-data to store "settings" in your Laravel app — Stefan Zweifel explains how he stores user preferences in a Laravel application using spatie/laravel-data.

🎖️ Ask for ranked wishlists — John Drexler shares an easy to implement prioritization scheme when working with a client.

🥐 Adding stale while revalidate functionality to Laravel's cache — A stale while revalidate cache macro by Rias Van der Veken.

✍️ Cut the intro — "Don’t start talking about how humanity has depended on trees since the blah blah blah. Just jump right in!"

🌟 Technology didn’t have to glow — We should be the ones demanding attention from technology, not vice-versa.

🌌 Cosmic Latte — The average color of the universe.

On the couch

Random bits.

🎞️ I rewatched The French Dispatch for the first time since seeing it in the theatre. I've come to the conclusion it's my favorite Wes Anderson movie (of the ones I've seen) so far. I love how… At home, I'm watching Lessons in Chemistry, reason to keep my Apple TV sub running a bit longer.

☕ I wouldn't have believed this a year ago but I've become a cappuccino enjoyer. I used to drink black coffee exclusively, but as I've reduced my coffee intake I prefer a softer flavor.

📻 A great YouTube channel with vinyl only hip hop mixes, like this 90s jazzy hip hop set.

On the horizon

Not much with the holiday season coming up. The best time for fresh starts, so we'll see what comes next.

Until the next issue,
Seb