Episode 44

EP44: DHH at 200 miles per hour (part 2)

In our last episode we talked about how David started working as a contractor for 37signals making $15 an hour. He eventually worked his way up, and became an owner in the company (along with Jason Fried). In this episode we talk about he and Jason work together on a daily basis - and we go behind the scenes on their decision to rebuild Basecamp. We also talk about how he got into driving race cars (a mere 2 years after he got his license). This is part 2 of the interview. Sponsors This show wouldn't be possible without these great sponsors. When you support them, you support the show! Are you creating an application that needs charts or a dashboard? FusionCharts is a JavaScript charting solution trusted by over 450,000 developers around the world. They have tons of interactive and animated charts with advanced features like tooltips, drill-down, chart export and zoom. Their charts also work across PCs, Macs, iPads, iPhones and Android devices. You can download a free-trial at: Go to fusioncharts.com Sprint.ly has been there from the beginning. Perfect for software teams of 3 or more people, Sprint.ly is the easiest way for managers and developers to track the software development process. You and your team can try Sprint.ly for free, go to www.sprint.ly. Use the code productpeopletv2013 to get 10% off! And let me share with you something that one of our listeners is working on: Follow @TopSideConcepts on Twitter.Randy is working on a product that will help companies improve their service by prioritizing input from customers. It's a really neat concept. Check it out: www.topsideconcepts.comNotable quotes "When you're starting to build something new, it doesn't really help to have a bunch of cooks in the kitchen." What are you doing now? "We have a new product idea in mind. I'm doing the same thing I did on BCX; just me and a designer, just spiking things out. If we decide to go ahead and build it, we'll involve more people." Do you just like building new stuff? "No, I'm not just about greenfield development. I get a lot of pleasure about building things to last - I'm still working on Ruby on Rails a decade after I made the first changes. That's still really satisfying to me. To me it's just programming that's fun." "Driving race cars is a dangerous amount of fun." "When I discovered Ruby, I wanted to spread the wealth - to share it with as many programmers as I could." "What is really interesting to me (about programming) is getting in the zone; where you lose track of time, and other concerns. That's a rare state of mind to be in." Show notes Remote: Office not required (David and Jason's new book - out October 29, 2013) DHH Racing on Twitter DHH Racing website DHH Racing YouTube channel Book: Flow DHH on Twitter David's personal blog Ruby on Rails

September 18, 2013 · 25:27

This is part 2 of the interview.

Notable quotes

“When you’re starting to build something new, it doesn’t really help to have a bunch of cooks in the kitchen.”

What are you doing now?

“We have a new product idea in mind. I’m doing the same thing I did on BCX; just me and a designer, just spiking things out. If we decide to go ahead and build it, we’ll involve more people.”

Do you just like building new stuff?

“No, I’m not just about greenfield development. I get a lot of pleasure about building things to last – I’m still working on Ruby on Rails a decade after I made the first changes. That’s still really satisfying to me. To me it’s just programming that’s fun.”

“Driving race cars is a dangerous amount of fun.”

“When I discovered Ruby, I wanted to spread the wealth – to share it with as many programmers as I could.”

“What is really interesting to me (about programming) is getting in the zone; where you lose track of time, and other concerns. That’s a rare state of mind to be in.”