Meet the Writer: HackerNoon's Contributor Aleksandr Guzenko, Software Engineer

So let’s start! Tell us a bit about yourself. For example, name, profession, and personal interests.

Hi everybody! My name is Aleksandr Guzenko, and I am a Senior Software Engineer with 7+ years of experience. I also have experience in backend development using Node and Python.

I enjoy writing code very much. It's like a joke about the programmer who was tired at work because he wrote so much code, but then he relaxes at home by writing code for his own pet project :)

Interesting! What was your latest Hackernoon Top story about?

My latest Hackernoon Top story is about Proxy in JS. Proxy is a pretty old functionality but it uses rarely. I heard something about it but not so much. And I decided to investigate this functionality more.

Did you know that the highest degree of understanding comes when you yourself can explain a topic to another? That was the main reason for me to fully understand that theme, and after that, tell you about it in simple words.

Do you usually write on similar topics? If not, what do you usually write about?

No. It is interesting for me to write in different areas. But in future articles, I will focus on some special areas like application architecture. That is because this is the most interesting area for me right now, and in my current job, I have the possibility to effect big frontend application architecture.

So I pretty much have insights to share with you.

Great! What is your usual writing routine like (if you have one?)

Every article starts with an idea. I’m sure that a good idea - is 50% of the article's success. When I get it, I start to plan the article structure. It’s very important because even if you have great but unstructured information, it’s hard to read and understand.

When I have an article idea and structure, I need free time (without any distractions like work and family). Sometimes I manage to find such time only on weekends. Often, article writing time is something I can split by the next formula: 1 cool article = 30% researching + 40% writing + 20% editing + 10% cool title.

And yes, the title is very important for the article. Just imagine which article would you prefer to read: “JS Proxy“ or “Understanding the Power of Proxy in JavaScript“?) Sometimes it’s hard to create a good title the first time.

Being a writer in tech can be a challenge. It’s not often our main role, but an addition to another one. What is the biggest challenge you have when it comes to writing?

The biggest challenge I have is to find several hours without any distractions. Writing tech articles needs concentration and enough time.

Sometimes I can find 1-2 hours during weekdays before work. For example, my work starts at 10 AM, and I start to do an article at 8 AM and finish it at 9:30 AM. My brain works better in the morning than in the evening, so the most productive time is in the morning.

And I prefer tackling the most challenging tasks during my most productive time in the morning. In most cases - writing articles requires significant mental effort.

What is the next thing you hope to achieve in your career?

Right now, I work on a big fintech frontend application, and my main aim for the near future is to finish splitting this one big monolith into micro frontends.

And in parallel, I do big refactoring of this application which can lead to decreased release cycle, codebase complexity reduction, and increased application performance.

Wow, that’s admirable. Now, something more casual: What is your guilty pleasure of choice?

I love delicious food, especially burgers. This is my weakness :)

Do you have a non-tech-related hobby? If yes, what is it?

Yes, I do have a non-tech-related hobby and it's something I'm very passionate about - spending time with my dog Archie. Archie is a corgi, and he's been my loyal companion for years. We love going on walks together, playing fetch in the park, and just lounging around the house.

I find that spending time with Archie helps me clear my mind and recharge my batteries after a long day of coding. He's always eager to greet me when I come home, and it's hard not to smile when he's around.

In short, Archie is my furry little stress reliever, and I couldn't imagine life without him!

What can the Hacker Noon community expect to read from you next?

I plan to write several really cool articles about big refactoring and splitting monolith into microfrontends. It will give readers many insights and a large share of my experience.

What’s your opinion on HackerNoon as a platform for writers?

HackerNoon is a great platform for writers. There is a good community, article moderation, and I love emails from HackerNoon for their memes and words of encouragement.

Thanks for taking time to join our “Meet the writer” series. It was a pleasure. Do you have any closing words?

Thank you for having me on this "Meet the writer" series. It was a pleasure to share my experience and thoughts with your audience. I would like to encourage everyone who is interested in programming to never stop learning and experimenting.

Technology is constantly evolving, and we as programmers need to stay up-to-date with the latest developments and trends. Keep coding, keep learning, and keep pushing the boundaries of what is possible with technology.