The .env file and the python-dotenv package are popular conventions in Python for managing environment variables. I often forget or pause when trying to remember exactly which package I need to install (python-dotenv) and how to do the import
When Datadog's magic breaks your API calls
Why I like the Chat Completions API
A short, fast rollercoaster
I've run Thought Eddies as a more dynamic, experimental blog since the beginning of this year. I'd heard about Astro and wanted to put a more personal touch on my web presence.
Using Checkpoints with Coding Agents
Working with Cursor was my first experience with the UX pattern of checkpoints when working with a coding agent. If you're not familiar, it works like this. The user types a message into an agent-based IDE tool like Cursor, Windsurf, or Cline and submits it to the agent. The agent reads files,...
Agents can make progress independently, but they also make messes
I use code agents to help me code in various capacities. Everything from fully "vibe coded" tools to scripts to specific, well described tasks.
The performance costs of thinking and provider defaults
While building Tomo and several prototypes using LLMs, I've experimented with several popular language models. It's generally easier to prototype using the OpenAI chat responses API because most providers support this early API spec (mostly). This approach makes it pretty simple to switch between...
Model Context Protocol servers have become a popular way to expose software services for LLMs. Prior to this post, I'd not spent nearly enough time with them to have a strong opinion of their pros and cons, so I set out to change that.
It started because I was using the OpenAI completion API to try several different models while building Tomo.
I was working with Amazon Bedrock to run LLM inference. AWS has its fair share of complexity -- VPCs, subnets, security groups, etc.
I was reading your blog and had a question about this: "I noticed that my coworker was prompting for specific technical implementations, and Claude was struggling, pulling in too much context and taking an unfocused approach, whereas I would have been much more vague and general to start and...