The Mob Mentality Show

• No Branches?! Ron Cohen Breaks Down Trunk Based Development and Feature Flags (For Real)

  What if your team didn’t need branches at all? 💥 In this episode of The Mob Mentality Show, we sit down with Ron Cohen, CTO and co-founder of Bucket, to unpack the real story behind Trunk Based Development (TBD) and the practical use of Feature Flags. Ron stirred the pot online by challenging common assumptions around TBD — and now he’s here to clear the air. We talk about: What Trunk Based Development really means (Hint: It’s not just “no branches”) Why TBD isn’t just a Git strategy, but a safety mindset often backed by solid practices like Pair Programming, Mob Programming, and TDD (Test-Driven Development) Gitflow vs. TBD — which one sets your team up to move faster and safer? The myth that TBD = chaos, and why short-lived branches might still play a role How mobbing and pairing can make TBD not just possible, but powerful We also dive deep into Feature Flags (a.k.a. Feature Toggles): Why Ron became obsessed with them — and how they changed how his teams ship code How to use toggles for faster releases, safer experiments, and smoother collaboration between devs, Product Owners (POs), and marketing The difference between feature flags that require a deployment and those that don’t The value of “dogfooding” your features in production before a full rollout Why not all toggles are created equal — from simple UI switches to ops-level controls How to avoid the mess of long-lived toggles and clean up after experiments (Austin, we're looking at you 😅) Plus: How flags can power A/B testing and internal beta programs Fowler’s definition of Feature Flags — and how it is in action Using toggles to build internal and external trust Ron’s framework for different kinds of flags in different contexts Whether you're deep into CI/CD (Continuous Integration/Continuous Delivery), trying to tame your branching strategy, or just want to ship smarter — this episode’s packed with insights you can use immediately. 🎧 Subscribe and listen on your favorite platform: 👉 https://www.mobmentalityshow.com/ Video and Show Notes: https://youtu.be/4PZN1yO8l2c  

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• How Software Prof Ben Kovitz Turned His Class into a Live Coding Mob

  What happens when a college software design course ditches traditional lectures and embraces Mob Programming? In this episode of the Mob Mentality Show, we sit down with Ben Kovitz, a former software developer turned professor at Cal Poly Humboldt, to explore his innovative approach to teaching software design through mobbing. Topics Covered: ✅ From Industry to Academia: Why Ben left software development to become a professor and how he discovered mob programming. ✅ Redefining Software Education: Instead of 30 traditional lectures on software design, Ben’s students learn by doing—designing software while coding. ✅ The Power of Mobbing in the Classroom: How students collaborate in the mob of 8, rapidly sharing knowledge and tackling challenges together. ✅ Fast Learning vs. Lectures: Why mobbing enables faster knowledge transfer compared to passive lectures. ✅ Strong-Style Navigation: How rotations and fast timers helped to stimulate a highly effective learning environment. ✅ The Role of the Navigator: How students help each other navigate, learn C++ and the QT framework, and document key lessons from each mob session. ✅ Real-World Software Challenges: Simulating legacy code maintenance, evolutionary design, and design patterns like MVC (Model-View-Controller). ✅ Overcoming Student Struggles: What happens when students don’t know how to navigate? How asking for help and learning together fosters growth. ✅ Teaching Through Experience: Letting students experiment with flawed solutions before introducing better design principles. ✅ Assessment & Engagement: How Ben measures student participation, engagement, and learning outcomes in a mobbing environment. Why This Matters: Traditional software design education can leave students unprepared for the realities of refactoring real code and collaborative development. By integrating Mob Programming, refactoring techniques, and hands-on problem-solving, Ben Kovitz is equipping the next generation of developers with practical, real-world skills and deeper design insights. 📢 Subscribe to the Mob Mentality Show to stay updated on the latest insights in Mob Programming, Extreme Programming (XP), Agile, and collaborative software development! 🎧 Listen on your favorite podcast platform: https://www.mobmentalityshow.com 🔔 Don’t forget to LIKE, COMMENT, and SUBSCRIBE for more episodes on software development, coding education, and team collaboration! Video and Show Notes: https://youtu.be/Rajvp2nrg1A  

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• Garrick West on 'Building' Great Developers with XP & Agile plus the Best Debugging

  🔥 How do you actually build great software developers? How do you debug like a pro? And what happens when XP (Extreme Programming) makes a comeback after the Scrum backlash? Join us as Garrick West—a seasoned XP practitioner, Agile coach, and software craftsmanship advocate—dives into: ✅ Building Agile Software Developers: From XP mentorship to industry-academia collaboration ✅ The Best Debugging Strategies: Unpacking The Debugging Book and applying its rules in a mob ✅ Reviving XP & Software Crafting: Why XP is more crucial than ever in Agile teams 🚀 Garrick's Story: From Early Coding to XP Champion Garrick started coding at 10 years old (at day camps in the 80s! 😅), earned a Computer Science degree, and had his development worldview shaped by reading the first edition of Extreme Programming Explained. He has worked at XP-centric organizations, trained teams in TDD (Test-Driven Development), Ensemble Programming, and CI/CD (Continuous Integration/Continuous Deployment), and even revamped a college curriculum from Waterfall to XP/Scrum. 🎯 "Building" Agile Software Developers The power of an XP coach early in a developer’s journey Public speaking as a dev skill? (Toastmasters, teaching at community college) What happened when Garrick helped convert a college curriculum from Waterfall to XP/Scrum? Industry experts + academia: How can professional devs and educators collaborate better? The apprentice model: What it means and why learning stages (like the Dreyfus Model) matter AI & developer education: Does AI replace early learning stages, or is it just a slick salesman? Scaling Gilded Rose Kata to different skill levels Test Coverage as a red herring—what should we focus on instead? 🐞 Debugging: The Missing Developer Superpower Ever heard of The Debugging Book? Most developers haven’t—but it’s a game-changer. We explore: Debugging as problem-solving, not just "stepping through" in an IDE The 9 Debugging Rules: From reading the manual to never throwing away a good test tool How to gamify debugging in a mob & introduce a "debugging auditor" role The anti-pattern of multiple experiments at once—and how to avoid it Why debugging is like navigating a labyrinth with a million wrong paths 🔄 Reviving XP & Software Crafting After the Scrum Backlash XP fills Scrum’s missing middle: Building the right thing (Scrum) AND building it right (XP) How Scrum without XP leads to a “Ball of Mud” in just 18 months Why XP + Lean is the ultimate combination Breaking free from sprints & pressure cookers—just focus on continuous iterations Can XP stand without Scrum? Or does Scrum need XP? 💡 Don’t miss this high-energy, insight-packed conversation with Garrick West! 📢 Comment below: What’s YOUR experience with XP, Agile, or debugging challenges?   Video and Show Notes: https://youtu.be/vxLDm-13Ny4 

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• Game Jams & Mobbing: Supercharging Learning, Speed, and Creativity with James Herr

  🚀 How do Game Jams accelerate learning? Can mobbing make game development more effective? In this episode of the Mob Mentality Show, we dive deep into Game Jams, Mobbing, and Game Dev Collaboration with James Herr—a full-stack developer, game dev enthusiast, and published game creator on Steam. 🎮 What You'll Learn in This Episode: 🔹 What Are Game Jams and why they’re a must-try for devs? 🔹 The tech stacks and tools commonly used in Game Jams 🔹 How themes shape a Game Jam’s creativity and constraints 🔹 How James is bringing mobbing into Game Jams 🔹 The difference between solo development, swarming, and full mobbing? 🔹 Pros & Cons of Mobbing Game Jams—Does it boost creativity or slow things down? 🔹 How Discord & Twitch fuel real-time game dev collaboration 🔹 Can Twitch chat act as a “navigator” in game development? Does the live audience guide decisions? 🔹 How Game Jams reveal code smells faster and teach refactoring & design patterns 🔹 Why public game dev can be a game-changer for learning speed 🔹 How Game Jams can simulate real-world software challenges and improve teamwork 🔹 Mob timer tools & Git handover techniques for smoother collaboration 🤝 Why This Episode Matters: Mobbing isn’t just for software teams—it’s transforming game development, learning, and onboarding. James shares his firsthand experience mobbing with kids, running Game Jams with cross-discipline teams, and teaching mobbing roles in game dev. Whether you’re a seasoned developer, indie game creator, or just curious about Game Jams, this episode is packed with actionable insights! 📢 Want to Join the Game Dev Community? James discusses how Discord and Twitch connect developers worldwide, making it easy to collaborate, get feedback, and learn from others. Checkout James' communities here: https://jamcraft.io/  🎧 Subscribe & Listen Now! Don’t miss out! Subscribe to the Mob Mentality Show and get notified when this episode drops: 🔗 https://www.mobmentalityshow.com/ Video and Show Notes: https://youtu.be/AZEH_FmBBKs 

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• TDD, Misconceptions, and Better Testing with Jason Swett

  🚀 Why is there so much confusion around Test-Driven Development (TDD) and Automated Testing? Why do many developers struggle with testing, and what are they getting wrong? In this episode of the Mob Mentality Show, we sit down with Jason Swett—author, speaker, and a go-to expert on Rails testing—to unpack the most common misconceptions, challenges, and best practices in modern software testing. 🔍 Topics We Cover: ✅ Why Jason Swett is passionate about Automated Testing and why he wants to help the development community ✅ Misconceptions about TDD (Test-Driven Development)—not liking TDD itself vs. not liking something called "TDD" ✅ The reality of software testing—why most developers aren't doing it well and how to improve ✅ Testing vs. verification vs. specification—what is a test really? What is code? ✅ Red, Green, Refactor vs. Specify, Encode, Fulfill—what do these different ways of thinking about TDD highlight?  ✅ Why software changeability matters and how to reduce the cost of ownership ✅ What are you actually testing? The difference between testing the product (e.g., squirt gun) vs. testing the system that builds it ✅ The role of automation in development—is code like factory machinery? ✅ How testing connects to broader software and team dynamics—beyond just writing tests ✅ Common pitfalls in testing and how to ensure your tests actually add value ✅ Logical debates vs. ego-driven arguments—how to have productive discussions about TDD 💡 Key Takeaways: 🔹 TDD is often misunderstood—before rejecting it, understand what it really is 🔹 Many developers struggle with writing the right kind of tests—knowing what to test is critical 🔹 Automated tests don’t just verify code; they help manage change and reduce long-term costs 🔹 Good testing and TDD are about more than just code—they’re about communication, clarity, and better software development 📌 Who should watch/listen? If you’re a developer, tester, software engineer, or tech lead who wants to improve your testing skills, understand TDD better, and learn from a Rails testing expert, this episode is for you! 🎧 Subscribe & Listen: Don’t miss an episode! Subscribe to the Mob Mentality Show on your favorite platform: 👉 https://www.mobmentalityshow.com/ 🔥 Join the Conversation! Have thoughts on TDD and Automated Testing? Share them in the comments! Video and Show Notes: https://youtu.be/_kL_tXiNcl4 

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