Jonathan Chien https://jonathanchien.com/ Notes on building software, working with people, and the occasional tangent. en Wed, 19 Aug 2026 02:14:11 GMT The migration that took eighteen months https://jonathanchien.com/blog/the-migration-that-took-eighteen-months.html https://jonathanchien.com/blog/the-migration-that-took-eighteen-months.html Thu, 18 Jun 2026 00:00:00 GMT We moved forty services off one shared database. Here is what actually made it survivable, and the two things I would do differently. Boring code is a gift to your future self https://jonathanchien.com/blog/boring-code-is-a-gift.html https://jonathanchien.com/blog/boring-code-is-a-gift.html Thu, 02 Apr 2026 00:00:00 GMT The cleverest code I ever wrote saved four lines and cost a colleague two hours. A short argument for writing the obvious thing. What I learned shutting down a company https://jonathanchien.com/blog/what-i-learned-shutting-down-a-company.html https://jonathanchien.com/blog/what-i-learned-shutting-down-a-company.html Wed, 21 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMT Foundry died in 2021. Five years on, here is what I think actually went wrong — and what I got right without knowing it.