Posts by Allen Cheung
Faking Software Design
I’ve been having a back-and-forth with a friend on getting a software developer job in Japan. Cultural differences aside – and there are quite a few – we reached an impasse in debating how to approach a software engineering design question…
The Relic of Postage Stamps in an Digital Era
My toddler was playing around in my office over the weekend, and ripped a book off of my bookshelf. It turned out to be an old postage stamp collection album. When I started the book some 25 years ago, stamps…
Knowledge Rot
I just came across a fascinating observation on the nature of knowledge over time, how it rots and fades despite the rigorous recording, publishing, and indexing of information. This is a familiar story on a personal level. Pieces of half-completed…
Review: The Millionaire Next Door
The Millionaire Next Door is not a particularly subtle book. Published first in 1996, it draws a thesis based on hundreds of interviews of America’s millionaires, and beats it over the heads of its readers. Repeatedly. The central, mind-blowing…
The Comfort of an Simple, Enjoyable Routine
Every year, I go out and buy a copy of the latest NBA 2K video game. Every year, I start and finish a season of basketball with a team, usually going through the full 82-game season schedule, playing pretty much…
Review: The Alliance
I enjoyed The Alliance. It’s Reid Hoffman’s second book on work and career management, with insights and many actionable points of advice to deal with our current job environment of shorter job stints and ambiguous roles. The book…
