Alvin Alexander
@alvinalexander.bsky.social
Author of the Scala Cookbook and Functional Programming, Simplified (and more).
Alaska was an amazing place to work, because during the summer you’re awake 20 hours a day, and during the winter it’s dark all the time, so you’re like, “I guess I’ll just stay in, make some coffee and fresh-baked cookies, and write a book.” :)
June 22, 2025 at 6:30 PM
Alaska was an amazing place to work, because during the summer you’re awake 20 hours a day, and during the winter it’s dark all the time, so you’re like, “I guess I’ll just stay in, make some coffee and fresh-baked cookies, and write a book.” :)
“It’s 420 miles south to Fairbanks, on a dirt road, I got a full tank of gas, it’s 4am, and I’m wearing sunglasses.” :)
June 14, 2025 at 9:37 PM
“It’s 420 miles south to Fairbanks, on a dirt road, I got a full tank of gas, it’s 4am, and I’m wearing sunglasses.” :)
I don’t watch many movies, but my nieces made me watch Bridesmaids, and that eventually led to seeing this favorite quote about finding meaning in work.
May 24, 2025 at 4:06 PM
I don’t watch many movies, but my nieces made me watch Bridesmaids, and that eventually led to seeing this favorite quote about finding meaning in work.
My free Scala and Functional Programming video courses are now complete. We have 8 courses, totaling 266 videos, and since August, 2024, we have over 1,450 course registrations. 🥳
👉 www.learnscala.dev
#scala #functionalprogramming
👉 www.learnscala.dev
#scala #functionalprogramming
May 20, 2025 at 3:06 PM
My free Scala and Functional Programming video courses are now complete. We have 8 courses, totaling 266 videos, and since August, 2024, we have over 1,450 course registrations. 🥳
👉 www.learnscala.dev
#scala #functionalprogramming
👉 www.learnscala.dev
#scala #functionalprogramming
One night in June or July — back when I lived in Palmer, Alaska — I went to Anchorage. This photo is from the drive back to Palmer ... at 3am.
You don’t really need your headlights on to see at this time, but you can put your lights on to help other drivers see you a little better.
#alaska
You don’t really need your headlights on to see at this time, but you can put your lights on to help other drivers see you a little better.
#alaska
May 16, 2025 at 2:40 PM
One night in June or July — back when I lived in Palmer, Alaska — I went to Anchorage. This photo is from the drive back to Palmer ... at 3am.
You don’t really need your headlights on to see at this time, but you can put your lights on to help other drivers see you a little better.
#alaska
You don’t really need your headlights on to see at this time, but you can put your lights on to help other drivers see you a little better.
#alaska
May 15, 2025 at 1:35 PM
Woo-hoo, my final FREE video training course is now available:
“An Introduction to ZIO Kafka.” 🚀
This course features 14 short videos to help you get up and running with the ZIO Kafka library.
👉 www.learnscala.dev
#scala #functionalprogramming
“An Introduction to ZIO Kafka.” 🚀
This course features 14 short videos to help you get up and running with the ZIO Kafka library.
👉 www.learnscala.dev
#scala #functionalprogramming
April 28, 2025 at 3:24 PM
Woo-hoo, my final FREE video training course is now available:
“An Introduction to ZIO Kafka.” 🚀
This course features 14 short videos to help you get up and running with the ZIO Kafka library.
👉 www.learnscala.dev
#scala #functionalprogramming
“An Introduction to ZIO Kafka.” 🚀
This course features 14 short videos to help you get up and running with the ZIO Kafka library.
👉 www.learnscala.dev
#scala #functionalprogramming
I wrote a 1,400-word blog post titled “What The Heck Does flatMap Mean?”, but then I remembered that I don’t write anymore. :)
So instead of posting that, the extension method in this image might tell you what I had in mind, and it’s a lot shorter.
#scala #functionalprogramming
So instead of posting that, the extension method in this image might tell you what I had in mind, and it’s a lot shorter.
#scala #functionalprogramming
April 14, 2025 at 8:20 PM
I wrote a 1,400-word blog post titled “What The Heck Does flatMap Mean?”, but then I remembered that I don’t write anymore. :)
So instead of posting that, the extension method in this image might tell you what I had in mind, and it’s a lot shorter.
#scala #functionalprogramming
So instead of posting that, the extension method in this image might tell you what I had in mind, and it’s a lot shorter.
#scala #functionalprogramming
“I’m tired, boss ... Mostly I’m tired of people being ugly to each other. I’m tired of all the pain I feel and hear in the world every day. There’s too much of it. It’s like pieces of glass in my head all the time. Can you understand?”
April 1, 2025 at 5:58 PM
“I’m tired, boss ... Mostly I’m tired of people being ugly to each other. I’m tired of all the pain I feel and hear in the world every day. There’s too much of it. It’s like pieces of glass in my head all the time. Can you understand?”
I slightly modified an example from the ZIO Streams website for my ZIO Streams course, and it ended up being one of the most fun and interesting examples I’ve ever worked with. Playing with the delay times and buffer sizes was a 😱🤯🤩 experience.
www.learnscala.dev
#scala
www.learnscala.dev
#scala
March 18, 2025 at 3:02 PM
I slightly modified an example from the ZIO Streams website for my ZIO Streams course, and it ended up being one of the most fun and interesting examples I’ve ever worked with. Playing with the delay times and buffer sizes was a 😱🤯🤩 experience.
www.learnscala.dev
#scala
www.learnscala.dev
#scala
My “ZIO Streams” course is now up to 11 videos, including error handling, pipelines, and buffering! 🚀 And as always, it’s FREE:
👉 www.learnscala.dev
#scala #functionalprogramming
👉 www.learnscala.dev
#scala #functionalprogramming
March 17, 2025 at 2:30 PM
My “ZIO Streams” course is now up to 11 videos, including error handling, pipelines, and buffering! 🚀 And as always, it’s FREE:
👉 www.learnscala.dev
#scala #functionalprogramming
👉 www.learnscala.dev
#scala #functionalprogramming
On this day in Colorado four years ago, we enjoyed 18” of snow.
March 15, 2025 at 3:22 PM
On this day in Colorado four years ago, we enjoyed 18” of snow.
If someone who was an enemy of the United States got in political power in the U.S., such as in the Manchurian Candidate, what types of things do you think they would do?
An A.I. answer:
An A.I. answer:
March 8, 2025 at 5:18 PM
If someone who was an enemy of the United States got in political power in the U.S., such as in the Manchurian Candidate, what types of things do you think they would do?
An A.I. answer:
An A.I. answer:
I just added two more free ZIO Streams video lessons, and I’ll be adding more this weekend:
www.learnscala.dev
#scala #functionalprogramming
www.learnscala.dev
#scala #functionalprogramming
March 7, 2025 at 1:30 AM
I just added two more free ZIO Streams video lessons, and I’ll be adding more this weekend:
www.learnscala.dev
#scala #functionalprogramming
www.learnscala.dev
#scala #functionalprogramming
The next free video course is on ZIO Streams, and the first two videos are now available:
www.learnscala.dev
#scala #functionalprogramming
www.learnscala.dev
#scala #functionalprogramming
March 4, 2025 at 1:32 AM
The next free video course is on ZIO Streams, and the first two videos are now available:
www.learnscala.dev
#scala #functionalprogramming
www.learnscala.dev
#scala #functionalprogramming
March 3, 2025 at 2:34 PM
Over 200 FREE videos — no paywalls, no commercials — in six free Scala, Functional Programming, and ZIO training courses. And more coming soon ...
www.learnscala.dev
#scala #functionalprogramming
www.learnscala.dev
#scala #functionalprogramming
February 26, 2025 at 6:53 PM
Over 200 FREE videos — no paywalls, no commercials — in six free Scala, Functional Programming, and ZIO training courses. And more coming soon ...
www.learnscala.dev
#scala #functionalprogramming
www.learnscala.dev
#scala #functionalprogramming
Yesterday I added a small-but-complete “ZIO HTTP, Database-Driven REST API Example” to my free videos.
I broke it into separate packages for configuration, model, repository/database, service, and API code so you can easily grow the example.
👉 www.learnscala.dev
#scala #functionalprogramming
I broke it into separate packages for configuration, model, repository/database, service, and API code so you can easily grow the example.
👉 www.learnscala.dev
#scala #functionalprogramming
February 24, 2025 at 3:00 PM
Yesterday I added a small-but-complete “ZIO HTTP, Database-Driven REST API Example” to my free videos.
I broke it into separate packages for configuration, model, repository/database, service, and API code so you can easily grow the example.
👉 www.learnscala.dev
#scala #functionalprogramming
I broke it into separate packages for configuration, model, repository/database, service, and API code so you can easily grow the example.
👉 www.learnscala.dev
#scala #functionalprogramming
Looking for a minimal yet fully functional ZIO HTTP + MySQL REST API example? This might be the smallest one in the known universe. 🚀
Includes ZIO HTTP, MySQL, a REST API handler, packaging to separate the concerns, logging, services, and ZLayers. All in just 16 minutes.
www.learnscala.dev
#scala
Includes ZIO HTTP, MySQL, a REST API handler, packaging to separate the concerns, logging, services, and ZLayers. All in just 16 minutes.
www.learnscala.dev
#scala
February 23, 2025 at 9:58 PM
Looking for a minimal yet fully functional ZIO HTTP + MySQL REST API example? This might be the smallest one in the known universe. 🚀
Includes ZIO HTTP, MySQL, a REST API handler, packaging to separate the concerns, logging, services, and ZLayers. All in just 16 minutes.
www.learnscala.dev
#scala
Includes ZIO HTTP, MySQL, a REST API handler, packaging to separate the concerns, logging, services, and ZLayers. All in just 16 minutes.
www.learnscala.dev
#scala
Every February I think, “I’m glad I’m not in Alaska right now,” and then every March I’m ready to move back. :)
February 22, 2025 at 6:52 PM
Every February I think, “I’m glad I’m not in Alaska right now,” and then every March I’m ready to move back. :)
A terrific advantage of GraphQL — and therefore Caliban — is the ability to make precise queries that let you get the exact information you want in just ONE query (image).
If you’re used to making REST queries, you know what a huge difference this is.
www.learnscala.dev
#scala
If you’re used to making REST queries, you know what a huge difference this is.
www.learnscala.dev
#scala
February 20, 2025 at 5:11 PM
A terrific advantage of GraphQL — and therefore Caliban — is the ability to make precise queries that let you get the exact information you want in just ONE query (image).
If you’re used to making REST queries, you know what a huge difference this is.
www.learnscala.dev
#scala
If you’re used to making REST queries, you know what a huge difference this is.
www.learnscala.dev
#scala
Caliban, anyone? My first Caliban video is now up.
If you haven’t heard of it before, Caliban is a very cool GraphQL server that’s built on top of ZIO and ZIO HTTP.
👉 www.learnscala.dev
#scala #functionalprogramming
If you haven’t heard of it before, Caliban is a very cool GraphQL server that’s built on top of ZIO and ZIO HTTP.
👉 www.learnscala.dev
#scala #functionalprogramming
February 20, 2025 at 2:07 AM
Caliban, anyone? My first Caliban video is now up.
If you haven’t heard of it before, Caliban is a very cool GraphQL server that’s built on top of ZIO and ZIO HTTP.
👉 www.learnscala.dev
#scala #functionalprogramming
If you haven’t heard of it before, Caliban is a very cool GraphQL server that’s built on top of ZIO and ZIO HTTP.
👉 www.learnscala.dev
#scala #functionalprogramming
If you’re interested, here’s a list of all the books and video courses I have that are currently free:
alvinalexander.com/photos/alvin...
#scala
alvinalexander.com/photos/alvin...
#scala
February 17, 2025 at 4:00 PM
If you’re interested, here’s a list of all the books and video courses I have that are currently free:
alvinalexander.com/photos/alvin...
#scala
alvinalexander.com/photos/alvin...
#scala
Next up in my free “ZIO HTTP” video series, we look at a Middleware solution to handling authentication.
As always, these videos are completely free thanks to Ziverge, who is kindly sponsoring them! 🙏
#scala #functionalprogramming
As always, these videos are completely free thanks to Ziverge, who is kindly sponsoring them! 🙏
#scala #functionalprogramming
February 16, 2025 at 10:17 PM
Next up in my free “ZIO HTTP” video series, we look at a Middleware solution to handling authentication.
As always, these videos are completely free thanks to Ziverge, who is kindly sponsoring them! 🙏
#scala #functionalprogramming
As always, these videos are completely free thanks to Ziverge, who is kindly sponsoring them! 🙏
#scala #functionalprogramming