Timoh Macharia

Ever wondered how developers know where a bug is hiding 👀? We had a community call a few weeks ago and a product designer asked me a question. He said, “I hear devs say they have a bug to fix and I always wonder how they know it’s a bug and how they know where the problem is and actually solve it. How do you people handle this?” And it hit me how we say certain things and just expect everyone who hears it to actually understand. My response to him was that we (devs) write our code in components and modules. Take, for instance, a wardrobe, and you put your jeans, T-shirts, shirts, pants, and native wear in one place. Neatly folded yes, but all on top of each other. i.e., a folded pair of jeans sits on top of a plain trouser, and then the Ankara or senator is just on top of that. As much as every clothing item is folded, it makes searching for something really difficult. Imagine now, you put the jeans in one drawer, the T-shirts in another, the Ankara goes to another section, the shirts are hung neatly. When there is an issue, it’s easier to solve it because you know what section has what you need and how to narrow your search. That’s what modules and helper functions do for us. A module is a unit of code that groups related functionality together — routes, controllers, schemas, middlewares, services, etc. This can include functions (a block of code that performs a task) or classes (a group of many functions). Using the wardrobe analogy, imagine a compartment where all your jeans are – jackets, trousers, shirts, bags. That compartment is your jean module, and so when you need to use that module in another module, all you have to do is call it (import) and you can use it. What helper functions do is help you separate all the concerns needed for your API, especially when you have a number of database queries in that API. Instead of having redundant multiple queries, you can just separate the concerns into these functions and when needed, you can effectively make changes and corrections without tampering with other queries. Debugging in dev lingo is really just looking for an anomaly. You’re expecting a certain response but when that action is triggered, you get something else. Either a clear error message or even a success message that doesn’t give the expected response. Say when this button is clicked, it should do this. If it doesn’t do what it’s expected to do, that’s a bug. There are many debugging methods, no doubt. But one of the best ways is to first separate the concerns. So, the next time you hear a dev mention a bug, know there's a method behind the drama 🤣😁.

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How I learned programming and a better path for you: My path: HTML → WordPress → Node/Express → React/MERN → NextJS → AI coding What you should aim to build? User applications: something users can interact with. Two good candidates: 1. Web applications: membership sites, SaaS, or browser tools. 2. Mobile apps: billions use mobile devices. Web application programming difficulty levels: Easy: Just raw PHP, or Ruby (with Rails framework)  Moderate: Python (with Django or Flask), or PHP (with Laravel)  Hard: JavaScript (with Express or NextJS) I went to the JavaScript path without knowing it's one of the most difficult tools to work with. Mobile application: 1. Android apps: build with Android Studio, Kotlin (language) and Jetpack compose (UI). 2. iOS iphone/ipad apps: if you have a mac and iphone, build with XCode, Swift (language), and Swift UI. Backend services: Most services such as database, user sessions, password management, OTP, email and SMS sending, image hosting, notifications are handled by third party services you can sign up. You don't have to create these services from scratch. You just have to learn how to connect to these services from your application code, and you are done. Tips to level up quickly: Don't memorize the syntax. Look at the high level overview, what is happening, and why. You can just copy-paste sample code, or an AI code assistant can write the syntax for you. Create your software in small iterations. Make a basic working version, commit, then add the next feature. Learn Git and GitHub here. Publish your project to the public. Share with your friends, family, and strangers online. You will learn so much with real-world feedback. Learn cybersecurity: prevent malicious signups, spam, code injection. Know about security best practices for your chosen language/framework. Learn software testing such as unit testing, automated testing, end-to-end testing. It will help you save lots of manual testing frustrations. You will be a confident dev. Use Gen AI tools like ChatGPT or Claude to learn new concepts. Tell it to explain things step-by-step. Ask AI to teach you in "simple words", like you are a 5-year-old. Use AI to build things faster, but make sure you are learning along the way. Don't blindly trust generative code. Share what you learn and build by writing articles on Medium, Linkedin, and Twitter. I got a lot of new work just by sharing my thinking and building process. Take a moment to celebrate. You've come far - kudos! Only a small percent of people can do this. Well done! @TamalChowdhury, see you again!

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Kicking off a brand new series where I sit down with leaders in tech and business! First up is Luise Indimuli Indimuli, Country Director at farmbetter who shares powerful insights on building agritech solutions that truly center the farmer .

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“We’re still a startup… but trust me, you’ll be part of something big.” If you’re a developer in Nigeria, you’ve probably heard that line before. That’s how it starts. They’ll tell you there’s no salary for now, just equity. They’ll say “once we get funding, you’ll cash out big.” And because you love the vision, you agree. You build everything. Day and night, designing, fixing bugs, pushing updates. Then, the day you ask a simple question like “what about my equity certificate?” Boom. You’re suddenly “not performing.” Removed from the group chat. Blocked from Slack. Story closed. The truth is, most of these startups actually make money. They just choose not to pay. They hide behind that “we’re still growing” speech, while running ads, signing partnerships, and taking users’ money. It’s not a startup problem. It’s a character problem. And sadly, many young devs fall for it because there’s “no option” or they just want experience. But no one deserves to be used in the name of vision. If anyone offers you “equity-based work,” ask them: 💡 What’s the percentage? 💡 When does it vest? 💡 Where’s the signed agreement? If those things are not clear, my brother, my sister, run. Equity is not appreciation. It’s ownership. And if they can’t respect your sweat now, they’ll never respect your share later. Let’s stop normalizing silence in this industry. Too many developers have lost time, effort, and hope to people who know exactly what they’re doing. This isn’t hate, it’s awareness. And it’s time we start talking about it openly. #DevelopersRights #NigeriaTech #EquityNotExploitation #StartupCulture #WorkEthics #TechAccountability

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React Native is the mobile technology which benefited the the most with the introduction of AI coding tools 😅 The first thing I tried, Cursor, works great and feels super integrated into the React Native ecosystem. Other tools I tried out as well on React Native codebases, like Junie (JetBrains AI assitant) and GitHub Copilot are also working great. As a native first iOS and Android guy, I was able to write high quality React Native code, without doing too much things manually 🤔 Where does that leave iOS and Android native development when it comes to AI assisted coding? I would say, a little bit behind, at least for now. Cursor for iOS development is too much of a hassle, honestly. You need to setup various different things and plugins like Sweetpad, to get autocompletion and to be able to run from Cursor on simulator. It’s just too much overhead, so I quickly abandoned it after trying out for a few days 👀 As for Android, Junie is great, but it’s still not working on the highest level when it comes to Kotlin Multiplatform and Compose Multiplatform codebases. My assumption is, there’s just not enough training data yet. Although we’re giving our best to contribute to that with our 5 KMP projects and 2 CMP projects 😂 To be fair, there are more tools then I mentioned, like Alex AI for iOS, and many more, but I am actually waiting for something to feel and work good like Cursor with React 🤘

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🎉 7 Years Later: Major Update to M-Pesa STK Ruby Gem 🎉 Back in 2018, I started building a simple Ruby gem to integrate M-Pesa STK Push payments. It was born out of frustration with the complexity of integrating Safaricom's APIs - I wanted something simple, clean, and Ruby-friendly. What started as a weekend project to solve my own problem has grown into something much bigger. Today, I'm excited to announce version 2.0.0 - a complete overhaul that transforms the gem from a simple STK Push tool into a comprehensive M-Pesa API integration library! 🚀 What's New in 2.0.0: ✨ 11 New API Endpoints: • Transaction Status Query • STK Push Query • B2C & B2B Payments • C2B Registration & Simulation • Account Balance Query • Transaction Reversal • M-Pesa Ratiba (Standing Orders) • IoT SIM Management & Messaging • IMSI/SWAP Operations • Pull Transactions, Which are compatible with #Daraja3 📚 Comprehensive Documentation: • Complete API reference with examples • Callback handling guides for all endpoints • Rails & Sinatra implementation examples • Best practices and troubleshooting ✅ Production Ready: • 148 comprehensive tests (all passing!) • Full RuboCop compliance • Ruby 3.3+ compatibility • Enhanced error handling • Complete callback documentation The Journey: From a simple gem with one feature to a comprehensive solution covering the entire M-Pesa API ecosystem. This update represents hundreds of hours of development, testing, and documentation - all to make M-Pesa integration easier for Ruby developers. Why This Matters: M-Pesa is the backbone of digital payments in Kenya and beyond. By making these APIs more accessible to Ruby developers, we're enabling more businesses to integrate digital payments seamlessly. Try it out: Check out the full documentation: https://lnkd.in/dSfCyqeN Huge thanks to Ceciliah Mbugua & Kushal Patel for the collaboration and guidance and to everyone who's used, contributed to, or provided feedback on this gem over the years! 🙏 #Ruby #Mpesa #FinTech #OpenSource #RubyOnRails #Kenya #DigitalPayments #APIIntegration #SoftwareDevelopment #DarajaAPI

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     Stop selling "Code." Nobody is buying it. 🛑I spent a long time thinking that being a great Software Engineer in Uganda meant having the cleanest React code or the most complex backend architecture.I was wrong. In our market, if you tell a business owner you are an "Engineer," they might ask you to fix the office printer. If you tell them you’ve built a "Microservices API," they’ll look at you blankly.The truth? Clients don’t want code. They want results. They want: ✅ To stop losing money to "manual errors." ✅ To see their stock levels without calling five people. ✅ To get paid via Mobile Money while they sleep.I’ve shifted my focus to Phase 1: The Business of Code. This means:Speaking Business, not Syntax: I don't talk about "database normalization"; I talk about "data integrity and fraud prevention." Building for Reality: It doesn't matter how pretty an app is if it eats 50MB of data just to log in. We have to build for low data and "offline-first" realities.Engineering for ROI: Every line of code should either make the client money or save them time. The "ignorant" gap in our tech scene isn't about a lack of talent—it’s a lack of translation. We need to stop being "coders for hire" and start being Strategic Partners.Who else is tired of the "IT Support" label? Let’s change the narrative. 👇 #UgandaTech #SoftwareEngineering #BusinessValue #AfricanDevs #GrowthMindset #2026Tech

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From MERN Stack to Laravel. Why Learning Laravel Still Matters for Developers At the start of my development journey, I learned the MERN stack. It helped me understand how modern web applications are built and gave me strong full stack fundamentals. After starting work in a company, I learned an important lesson. Real industry work is not only about creating new applications. Many companies depend on existing systems that need maintenance, updates, and improvements. This is why I started learning PHP, SQL, and now Laravel. Laravel showed me that some technologies stay important because they solve real business problems. Many websites and business platforms are built with PHP and are still running successfully today. Laravel makes it easier to manage, improve, and scale these systems with clean structure and better security. Why Laravel is an important skill for developers: It follows a clear structure that makes projects easier to manage It provides built in authentication and security features It is widely used for maintaining and upgrading older systems It has a strong community and long term industry demand It allows faster backend development with clean and readable code MERN stack is excellent for modern and real time applications, but Laravel is very strong when working with structured backend systems and long running business platforms. Learning Laravel helped me understand that a good developer should not limit themselves to one technology. The more tools you learn, the more problems you can solve. I am currently learning Laravel and enjoying the process. If you are a senior developer and would like to share advice, I would really appreciate your guidance. If anyone wants to collaborate or build projects together, feel free to send me a message. I am always open to learning and working with others. #Laravel #MERNStack #PHP #WebDevelopment #BackendDeveloper #LearningJourney

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You can’t add any UI components to your screen without imports. In React Native, every file starts with a block of code that brings in the tools you need to build your UI. When I was first learning, I had no idea what these lines meant or why they were always there. They looked intimidating so I let Cursor add them & hoped everything worked. But once you understand what’s happening, it’s actually really simple: Want to show text? → import Text from 'react-native' Need a layout container? → import View from 'react-native' Adding an image? → import Image from 'react-native' It’s just like grabbing components or styles in Figma, except in code. I made a simple graphic breaking down the core imports I use in every React Native file, (explained in plain English) If you’re a designer starting to build in code, this is a great place to start!

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Over the weekend, I got the opportunity to talk about design thinking for software engineers during the React Developer Community Kenya meet up in Nairobi, Kenya. My talk focused on how software engineers can adopt a design thinking and product-mindset to build software that people actually want to use. But why is it necessary: - Because the future demands we build products that are usable and not - just technically sound - AI has raised the bar, writing code is is just 1% of building a great product - You create better products when your tech focuses on solving user needs Thank you for having me and I look forward to having more of such conversations. Check out the talk here: https://lnkd.in/eG2Gr7UC?

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⚡ React Native + Firebase Tip While building my React Native app, I ran into an error when trying to create a collection in Firestore after signing in with Google Initially, I was using the Web-style Firebase configuration, which caused issues in React Native. ✅ Fix: Switched to the modular Firebase approach for React Native (import { getFirestore, doc, setDoc } from 'firebase/firestore'). Reconfigured Firebase initialization for the modular SDK. Result: Collections are now created seamlessly after login 🚀 💡 Lesson: Always use the modular Firebase SDK in React Native projects instead of the web configuration.

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