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Software practice, open source & careers: videos Hacker News recommends
Software craft and profession: agile, code review, legacy code, open source maintenance, licensing, programmer careers, interviews, productivity, tech management, programming philosophy, live coding sessions. Below: every video in this topic that at least three HN users linked with real commentary, in at least three different months (94 talks, 14 demos, 10 commentarys), best-scored first, with the comments on each video page.
- Programming language design 193
- Functional programming 225
- C, C++, Rust, Go & systems languages 163
- Python, Ruby & scripting languages 120
- Web development 160
- Software architecture & design 177
- Software performance & optimization 123
- Compilers, interpreters & program analysis 98
- Testing, debugging & developer tools 155
- Software (other) 36
- 11 HN recommenders 11 months 2018–2024D DevTernity Conference · talkHN repeatedly calls it the best talk on testing, and many say it changed how they approach tests, mocks and the meaning of a unit.
- 12 HN recommenders 11 months 2017–2026J Joey Reid · talkHN treats it as a classic, near-mandatory talk on how programming tools and paradigms stagnated and which older ideas deserve revival.
- 10 HN recommenders 10 months 2016–2022P Paul Stringer's Mobile Tech · talkHN recommends it as an engaging overview of programming history and an argument for professional standards, citing the agile manifesto section and the claim that software has advanced little since the 1950s.
- 9 HN recommenders 10 months 2014–2024HN repeatedly names it among the best programming talks, loved for its craftsmanship message that complex tooling can hide simpler solutions.
- 12 HN recommenders 9 months 2013–2025Recurs in threads about RSI, accessibility and voice coding as the go-to demo of a custom spoken command language.
- 9 HN recommenders 9 months 2014–2022HN treats it as a must-watch classic for writing Pythonic code, though somewhat dated for modern Python.
- 11 HN recommenders 9 months 2016–2026Offered in nearly every Agile or Scrum complaint thread as the authoritative take on what agile was meant to be versus what it became.
- 8 HN recommenders 8 months 2014–2023HN's standard reference when typing speed, ergonomics, or alternative input comes up, for its live demo and the open-source steno ecosystem.
- 10 HN recommenders 8 months 2023–2026Recommended repeatedly as a funny, informative talk on the economics behind programming languages and open source.
- 10 HN recommenders 8 months 2014–2025HN returns to it constantly as a witty, still-accurate diagnosis of why software is bloated and messy, and as a go-to recommendation in any thread on modules, package managers or software quality.
- 9 HN recommenders 7 months 2018–2025HN treats it as a classic, must-watch talk for any discussion of company values, and especially for its takedown of Amazon's leadership principles.
- 7 HN recommenders 7 months 2019–2025Regarded as a brilliant live-coding talk that teaches WASM and interpreter writing, with several calling it among the best conference talks they have seen.
- 6 HN recommenders 6 months 2020–2024HN regularly names it among the best programming talks ever, praising the storytelling, the demos and the ending.
- 6 HN recommenders 7 months 2020–2026U UnityCoin · lectureHN commenters call it better than the Clean Code book, a must-watch for engineers that changes how they read and write code.
- 7 HN recommenders 7 months 2013–2020Repeatedly recommended in mental health threads for its honest storytelling that resonates with developers.
- 5 HN recommenders 6 months 2020–2023It is the go-to recommendation whenever someone asks about voice coding or RSI-friendly programming setups.
- 6 HN recommenders 6 months 2016–2026HN recommends it as an entertaining, well-delivered talk full of stories that shows the value of historical context and long comments in code.
- 2 HN recommenders 5 months 2019–2022HN commenters repeatedly share it because it is an eye-opening look at screen-reader use, and because at about 6:30 it addresses how inaccessible Hacker News itself is.
- 8 HN recommenders 6 months 2018–2021HN recommends it as an insightful look at the people side of open source maintenance, especially in Elm and maintainer-burnout threads.
- 6 HN recommenders 6 months 2016–2022A Austin Meyer · commentaryHN commenters pass it around as an eye-opening first-hand account of patent trolling and the Texas courts that favor it.
- 5 HN recommenders 5 months 2011–2024HN regulars recommend it as a career-shaping talk on code review, humility and collaborative development.
- 4 HN recommenders 5 months 2020–2025Whenever notebooks get criticized, HN commenters point to it as the standard rebuttal from a prominent practitioner.
- 9 HN recommenders 6 months 2015–2018B Berkeley Institute for Data Science (BIDS) · lectureHN keeps pointing to it as a thoughtful vision of programming for non-programmers and as background on Eve's motivations.
- 5 HN recommenders 5 months 2022–2024S Steve Yegge · demoHN people recommend it as an excellent, convincing overview of Emacs for newcomers and skeptics, shown by someone who clearly loves it.
- 6 HN recommenders 5 months 2016–2025HN commenters point to it as a sharp, example-driven critique of OOP and Clean Code style, often alongside Brian Will's other anti-OO videos.
- 5 HN recommenders 6 months 2012–2026HN cites it in discussions of language evangelism, community dynamics and zealotry, as an accessible account of how a good language can die for non-technical reasons.
- 6 HN recommenders 6 months 2017–2023HN cites it as the example of a better alternative to whiteboard and fizzbuzz-style interviews.
- 4 HN recommenders 5 months 2019–2026Cited in threads about teaching kids and beginners to code as research-based evidence that explicit instruction beats pure discovery.
- 3 HN recommenders 5 months 2013–2022HN programmers admire it as a clean, clever demonstration of emulator design and as the standout of a favorite programming YouTuber.
- 4 HN recommenders 4 months 2020–2024HN recommends it whenever a failure is blamed on human error, as a clear case study in looking for the systemic second story.
- 4 HN recommenders 4 months 2019–2025Recommended as the argument for code colocation and delaying abstraction.
- 4 HN recommenders 4 months 2019–2024Strongly recommended as a gripping case study whose lessons carry over to engineering management and safety.
- 4 HN recommenders 4 months 2018–2020HN recommends it for historical perspective on software ideas and for dispelling myths such as the origins of waterfall.
- 5 HN recommenders 4 months 2020–2025HN recommends it for the toybox intro and for Landley's candid account of software licensing and why he created the 0BSD license.
- 3 HN recommenders 4 months 2013–2025HN recommends it for changing minds about whether programmers can be called engineers, and for its take on how waterfall was misread.
- 3 HN recommenders 4 months 2009–2023W Ward Cunningham · explainerHN links it as the authoritative correction to common misuse of the term technical debt, straight from its originator.
- 2 HN recommenders 4 months 2020–2025S spudlyo · demoHN commenters recommend it as a practical illustration of what Org mode and literate programming can do for documentation.
- 4 HN recommenders 4 months 2019–2024HN people point to it as a rare chance to watch skilled developers write real code live, pair programming and explaining as they go.
- 3 HN recommenders 4 months 2014–2021HN points to it in discussions of programming as a creative craft and of how to write clear software.
- 3 HN recommenders 4 months 2014–2024HN recommends it in literate programming threads as a rare look at applying the idea to a huge, complex codebase, though some find it meandering.
- 3 HN recommenders 3 months 2019–2020HN commenters strongly recommend it as a thoughtful talk on tech worker ethics that has not aged.
- 3 HN recommenders 3 months 2019–2022T The Perl and Raku Conference - Greenville, SC 2026 · talkHN treats it as a phenomenal demonstration that voice-driven development is viable and as an eye-opener on accessibility-unfriendly coding habits.
- 3 HN recommenders 4 months 2019–2022It is the go-to reference in debates about whether open source maintainers are owed compensation, and commenters say it is worth watching even for non-Rails developers.
- 2 HN recommenders 3 months 2017–2020L Life at Google · demoCited as a realistic, well-run example of a technical interview, both for candidates preparing and interviewers calibrating.
- 2 HN recommenders 4 months 2020–2023K Konfy · talkCommenters point to it as a clear take on why functional languages stall outside niches, and its lessons are seen as applying to any technology trying to go mainstream.
- 2 HN recommenders 3 months 2018–2024HN recommends it as a sober critique of agile, though one commenter found it mixed.
- 4 HN recommenders 4 months 2016–2025E Etsy Eng (Etsy Engineering) · talkLinked often in hiring-process threads for the anecdote about Google's committee refusing to hire itself, as evidence interviews are noisy.
- 2 HN recommenders 3 months 2017–2025Recommended in C versus C++ and embedded threads as the expert view on adoption and persuasion.
- 3 HN recommenders 3 months 2019–2023HN recommends it as a Python talk with lessons that apply to any programming, especially chunking to manage complexity.
- 3 HN recommenders 3 months 2021–2024N Naomi Wu · commentaryHeld up as a rare success story of GPL enforcement against a Chinese hardware company, and admired for the effort.
- 4 HN recommenders 3 months 2020–2023HN people recommend it as the best way to understand what async machinery actually does under the covers.
- 3 HN recommenders 3 months 2017–2023A Arrested DevOps · podcast episodeHN recommends Cantrill's integrity rant when discussing corporate ethics and companies that act on principles.
- 3 HN recommenders 3 months 2015–2022T tef ebooks · talkHN lists it among its favorite programming talks and fantastic technical speeches.
- 3 HN recommenders 3 months 2016–2017L LearnCode.academy · explainerRecommended to beginners asking how to start in web development as a compact survey of the toolscape of its time.
- 3 HN recommenders 3 months 2021–2024P PyCon AU · talkHN recommends it as the best concise introduction to a practical framework for structuring documentation, the basis of what became Diataxis.
- 3 HN recommenders 3 months 2016–2023HN points to it as an authoritative overview of the kernel's email-and-git workflow and its development rate.
- 3 HN recommenders 3 months 2016–2023M Meta VR · demoCited for watching Carmack code fluently and for the fast iteration cycle of Racket-based VR scripting.
- 3 HN recommenders 3 months 2019–2025C CraftHub Events · talkHN commenters recommend it as a good talk on ethics in software engineering, and Cantrill himself cites it as capturing his views.
- 4 HN recommenders 3 months 2019–2023C Coding Tech · demoHN recommends it, especially to developers losing their sight, as a concrete demonstration of coding with text-to-speech.
- 3 HN recommenders 3 months 2017HN commenters recommend it when asked how to learn better or keep improving.
- 3 HN recommenders 3 months 2016–2019Recommended as an entertaining story of a joke side project growing out of hand, brought up in threads on emoji and side projects.
- 3 HN recommenders 3 months 2020–2022L Lichess · talkHN commenters point to it as a good talk on how one person built a major free, open-source chess server with few resources, and on the cheating problem.
- 2 HN recommenders 2 months 2019–2025A Allen Holub · talkRecommended in estimation and sprint debates as a well-reasoned account of where waste is and isn't in agile.
- 3 HN recommenders 3 months 2020–2026Z Zendesk · talkHN recommends it in debates about software engineering rigor, agile, and formal methods.
- 2 HN recommenders 3 months 2021–2022HN commenters recommend it as a demonstration of SerenityOS's hackability and fast iteration across all layers of the system.
- 4 HN recommenders 3 months 2018–2024HN links it as a charming defense of bodging and of AutoHotkey, and as the go-to example when custom keyboards or hotkey hacks come up.
- 3 HN recommenders 3 months 2017–2021HN recommends it as a well-done history of Skunk Works, popping up in SR-71 threads.
- 2 HN recommenders 3 months 2018–2023Cited in debates over Elm's direction and open source health, with some praising its points about metrics and others finding its tone toward unhappy users hard to watch.
- 2 HN recommenders 2 months 2018–2022Recommended as informal, long-form live coding to watch, though some commenters criticize his style.
- 1 HN recommenders 2 months 2015–2020HN cites it as a firsthand account of how dysfunctional large IT projects can be, with about 50 contractors and no one in charge.
- 2 HN recommenders 2 months 2021–2022G Greg Wilson · talkHN people recommend it as an evidence-based counterweight to opinion in software engineering debates.
- 2 HN recommenders 2 months 2017–2024P Program on Entrepreneurship · talkHN cites it as a formative talk on what OOP really is, and on why teams write code that slows them down.
- 2 HN recommenders 2 months 2016–2022HN recommends it as a concrete, worked example of the case against heavy OOP rather than abstract argument.
- 2 HN recommenders 2 months 2022–2024HN loves the Browser hacking series for its clear debugging method of reducing bugs to minimal reproductions, which people say influenced their own testing.
- 2 HN recommenders 2 months 2022–2023Recommended as a funny parody that resembles agile as practiced at large companies.
- 2 HN recommenders 2 months 2024–2026Recommended in solo-developer threads for its insights on shipping small projects with simple stacks and AI tools.
- 2 HN recommenders 2 months 2015–2018Recommended in debates over whether software is real engineering, as a well-argued case that building is cheap relative to simulating.
- 2 HN recommenders 2 months 2012–2025HN commenters cite it as Crockford's first-hand account of JSON's origins and of the no-evil license anecdote.
- 2 HN recommenders 2 months 2014–2023T Tom Raftery · talkCited as the go-to evidence that rudeness drives contributors away and that toxic people must be removed from projects.
- 2 HN recommenders 2 months 2013–2023R ryantravistate · talkLinked in licensing threads as a short, funny story about the 'no evil' clause and IBM's request for an exception.
- 2 HN recommenders 2 months 2018–2021HN recommends it for the idea of giving data instead of asking for it, and ties it to zero values and exception-free design.
- 2 HN recommenders 2 months 2021–2026Recommended as a clear description of how Kanban works and a practical alternative to sprints.
- 2 HN recommenders 2 months 2016–2020HN points people to it to understand Elm's design philosophy, such as favoring simplicity over type classes, when they question its choices.
- 2 HN recommenders 2 months 2025–2026Pointed to as a non-promotional, realistic long session of an experienced engineer working with AI on non-trivial code.
- 2 HN recommenders 2 months 2018–2023V vexe · commentaryHN shares it as a concise critique of OOP from a respected systems programmer.
- 3 HN recommenders 2 months 2014–2015HN recommends it as an entertaining first-hand engineer account of what went wrong with healthcare.gov and how it was fixed, including that no one owned the whole site.
- 2 HN recommenders 2 months 2019–2020HN recommends it as the best account of what is wrong with npm's governance and why alternative or decentralized registries are hard.
- 2 HN recommenders 2 months 2015–2025T TFiR · interviewCited again and again in GPL licensing debates as the primary source for Linus's objections to GPLv3.
- 2 HN recommenders 2 months 2014–2023HN commenters invoke it whenever a company relicenses, forks, or announces an open source plan, and enjoy Cantrill's energetic, opinionated delivery.
- CppCon 2018:H. Wright “Large-Scale Changes at Google: Lessons Learned From 5 Yrs of Mass Migrations”2 HN recommenders 2 months 2019–2024HN points to it in monorepo and refactoring discussions as a great account of large-scale changes at Google.
- 2 HN recommenders 2 months 2013–2016HN commenters cite it as a funny and candid first-hand account of the guilt and burnout of a prolific open source developer.
- 2 HN recommenders 2 months 2020–2026T Tech Ma · talkHN recommends it as an entertaining talk on how working memory shapes code and how to reduce cognitive load.
- 2 HN recommenders 2 months 2020–2026Shared in outage and accidental-deletion threads as a relatable, well-told horror story.
- 2 HN recommenders 2 months 2010–2015HN holds it up as a vivid example of focused game-jam productivity, and it has been used to demystify programming for students and inspire tools for recording coding sessions.
- 3 HN recommenders 2 months 2011–2014A classic recommendation among JavaScript talks and for reading real library code to learn patterns.
- 2 HN recommenders 2 months 2023HN recommends it as a comprehensive walkthrough of the build-your-own-BitTorrent challenge and as an introduction to CodeCrafters.
- 3 HN recommenders 2 months 2014–2015HN points to it as an entertaining, insightful talk about the nature of programming, with memorable lines about programmers and a refreshing slide style.
- 2 HN recommenders 2 months 2018–2021S Scalapeño · talkCited in Scala and language-marketing discussions for its accurate account of Scala's pain points and its argument that a language's pitch must address a real developer pain.
- 2 HN recommenders 2 months 2020–2026I Immo Landwerth (terrajobst) · courseRecommended as a practical, approachable build-it-step-by-step introduction to writing compilers, light on theory.
- 1 HN recommenders 1 months 2017–2023Strongly recommended as an inspiring hour on how id worked, often linked in programming-practice threads.
Showing the 100 best-scored of 145. Use search to find the rest.
Questions
What is the most recommended software practice, open source & careers video on Hacker News?
🚀 TDD, Where Did It All Go Wrong (Ian Cooper) by DevTernity Conference: HN repeatedly calls it the best talk on testing, and many say it changed how they approach tests, mocks and the meaning of a unit.
How is this software practice, open source & careers list ranked?
By HackerTube's score: the number of distinct months in which an HN comment recommended the video, plus half a point for every month with a strong recommendation. One viral thread counts less than steady recommendations over years.
Where do the videos come from?
From every Hacker News comment between 2007 and 2026 that linked a YouTube video, labeled by an AI model as a recommendation, a citation, a joke or a criticism. The list is published by HackerTube under ODC-By 1.0; this edition adds indexable pages and the comment context.
Video list and Hacker News comment labels from HackerTube (prompted by @karpathy), released under ODC-By 1.0, built on the open-index/hacker-news archive. Hacker News data is provided by Y Combinator; comments remain the work of their authors. Video titles, channel names and thumbnails belong to their creators and are shown via YouTube. HackerTube Watch is an unofficial edition. Data export of 2026-10-31.