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Welcome to my Software Engineering Journey Welcome, fellow software engineers! Whether you’re an aspiring developer, a seasoned programmer, or somewhere in between, I’m thrilled to have you join me on this blog where I’ll be sharing my experiences and insights from the world of software engineering. Hello, I’m Ruben, and I’ve been working as a software engineer for nearly a decade. Over the years, I’ve immersed myself in the vast realm of programming, specializing in languages such as Golang and TypeScript. From architecting scalable back-end systems to crafting elegant front-end applications, my journey has been filled with diverse projects that have continuously challenged and fueled my growth as an engineer. ...

Practical Guidance for Engineers Using Prometheus + Go’s database/sql Metrics Most application performance issues in database-backed systems aren’t caused by MySQL itself — they come from connection pool pressure, slow acquisition, or misconfigured limits. This post is a practical guide to understanding the key Prometheus db_sql_* metrics, why they matter, and how to visualize them effectively in Grafana. 1. What Are db_sql_* Metrics? When using Go’s database/sql along with Prometheus instrumentation, your service emits a standardized set of metrics that describe your client-side connection pool behavior. These cover: ...

Robots are writing more code every day. AI agents, code generators, automation tools — they all produce code faster than any human can. But faster does not mean correct. When a robot writes code for you, how do you know it works? How do you know it handles edge cases? How do you know it doesn’t break something that was working before? This is where TDD becomes important again. The Red/Green Cycle as a Verification Tool The classic TDD cycle is simple: write a failing test (red), make it pass (green), then refactor. This cycle was always useful, but now it has a new purpose — it gives humans a way to verify what robots produce. ...