Robert Johnson

Getting Started in Clojure Meta-Guide

Fri, 05 Jul 2024 23:43:00 +0100

There are plenty of good guides for Clojure out there but they vary in learning styles and topics covered. Here I’m going to take you through the various guides you could use to make sure you’re not missing any gaps.

Bulletproof App Settings with Malli & Aero

Fri, 21 Jun 2024 17:45:00 +0100

Aero is a great library for pulling external application settings into your application, but even if you don’t go overboard with what you put in your config files, it has weaknesses. But pairing it together with Malli we have a recipe for bulletproof application settings; let’s take a look at how they can work together…

Clojure Macro Cheat Sheet

Fri, 16 Feb 2024 17:00:00 +0000

For when you want to remember the key parts of writing Clojure macros, here’s a handy cheat sheet.

A Practical Guide to test.check

Fri, 05 Jan 2024 18:10:00 +0000

Here’s a pragmatic guide to generative testing in Clojure using test.check, oriented around spec.

Better exception output for test.check

Fri, 29 Sep 2023 18:27:00 +0100

Here’s a hack for getting better output when test.check tests run via clojure.test throw exceptions, thanks to Dominic Monroe.

Rethinking Config with Aero & Integrant

Fri, 22 Sep 2023 17:43:00 +0100

Aero & Integrant are two fantastic Clojure libraries used to configure applications. However, I think that there are issues with the way they often get used; today I’m going to look at how they’re actually used best together by keeping them apart.

How to Create Responsive Code Blocks

Wed, 23 Aug 2023 17:51:00 +0100

A guide on how to adapt code samples for mobile, and why it’s worth the effort.

A Developer's Guide to Blogging

Tue, 15 Aug 2023 23:33:00 +0100

So you’re a developer looking to start a blog? In this guide I’m going to take you through running your own blog site, from domain names & site creation to SEO & syndication.

Emacs Lisp Cheat Sheet for Clojure Developers

Fri, 21 Jul 2023 18:30:00 +0100

If you’re a Clojure dev and you’re looking to learn Elisp, you have a great head start since you know a lisp dialect already. Here’s a concise guide which focuses on the main differences between the two languages.

Everyday Editor Extensions in Emacs

Thu, 01 Jun 2023 08:43:04 +0100

I had always assumed that it would be too hard and boring to get to grips with Elisp. But I don’t know why I held off for so long - you can get a lot of bang for your back with just a little Elisp, and what’s more it’s pretty fun too! In this post I want to do a few things:

Encourage any Emacs users that haven’t used Elisp yet to give it a try
Highlight some key useful Elisp functions
Provide some examples & inspiration for creating your own extensions (whether you’re an Elisp newbie or not)

Thin (ish) Clojure jars for better docker containers

Mon, 22 May 2023 18:00:00 +0100

Recently I’ve been creating “thin” jars for my Java applications, in order to avoid the waste caused by putting uberjars in containers. I thought I’d try the same for Clojure AOT-compiled uberjars.

The bad news: we can’t get all the way there; the good news: we can get pretty close - at the very least, a concrete improvement over containerized uberjars.

How to create thin jars for better Docker caching

Fri, 12 May 2023 15:23:00 +0000

There’s plenty of advice around on how to create small Docker containers, but what is often missed is the value of making your main application layer as small as possible. In this article I’m going to show you how to how to do this for a Java application, and why it matters.