DEV Community: Bnaya Zilberfarb

The poor story of a reusable component

Bnaya Zilberfarb — Sun, 09 Jul 2023 10:31:20 +0000

So you got a new ticket building a new project, at first, it seemed pretty easy, you could simply use the same table in all three views and be happy that the designer finally did something right.

const Table = (data) => {
  return (
    <div>
      <Title>Data:</Title>
      <div className='awesomeTable'>
        {data.map((row) => <Row data={row} id={row.id} />)}
      </div>
    </div>
  );
}

Then, the product wanted an additional subtitle in case of the dogs table. So, you added a condition specifically for the dogs' data.

const Table = (data) => {
  return (
    <div>
      <Title>Data:</Title>
      {data[0].siblings && <Subtitle>Dogs are cool</Subtitle>}
      <div className='awesomeTable'>
        {data.map((row) => <Row data={row} id={row.id} />)}
      </div>
    </div>
  );
}

Some time passed, and a request came to change the rows in the cakes view. Now you can decide to keep the implicit solution and rely on the data attributes.

const Table = (data) => {
  return (
    <div>
      <Title>Data:</Title>
      {!!data[0].siblings && <Subtitle>Dogs are cool</Subtitle>}
      <div className='awesomeTable'>
        {data.map((row) => <Row data={row} id={row.id} withLinks={!!row.topping} />)}
      </div>
    </div>
  );
}

But then you received a review on your PR stating that the component looks like a mess, so you had no choice but to put some order.

const Table = (data, type: 'dogs' | 'cakes' | 'cars') => {
  return (
    <div>
      <Title>Data:</Title>
      {type === types.DOGS && <Subtitle>Dogs are cool</Subtitle>}
      <div className='awesomeTable'>
        {data.map((row) => <Row data={row} id={row.id} withLinks={type === types.CAKES} />)}
      </div>
    </div>
  );
}

And over time, this became a real clutter.

const Table = (data, type: 'dogs' | 'cakes' | 'cars') => {
  return (
    <div>
      <Title>{type !== types.CARS ? Capitalize(type) : <a href={CARS_STORE_URL}>{Capitalize(type)}</a>}</Title>
      {type !== types.CAKES && <Subtitle>{type} are cool</Subtitle>}
      <div className='awesomeTable'>
        {data.map((row) => <Row data={row} id={row.id} withLinks={type === types.CAKES} fullName={type === types.DOGS} />)}
      </div>
    </div>
  );
}

Now, this has become a real shit show, and I have seen so many cases like this over the years. When I try to discuss this with a dev maintainer, I usually get the same response: "I think it's better to have all the logic in the same place."

In my opinion, this is really a bad practice and is wrong for two reasons:

Those conditions are not part of the table logic, but rather the dogs view logic. It's their scope, just like rendering the table itself is in its scope.
The example above is a difficult-to-read and maintain component but the worse part is testing it. It’s an excuse to write code in one big chunk in the name of reusability.

Instead, there are many techniques of component composition. It's out of scope to cover them all, but I will demonstrate my preference in such a use case:

const Dogs = () => {
  // ...
  return (
    <div className='awesomeDogs'>
      <Table>
        <Table.Title><a href={CARS_STORE_URL}>Dogs</a></Table.Title>
        <Table.Content>
          {dogs.map((row) => <Table.Row data={row} id={row.id} fullName />)}
        </Table.Content>
      </Table>
    </div>
  );
}

const Cars = () => {
  // ...
  return (
    <div className='awesomeCars'>
      <Table>
        <Table.Title>Cars</Table.Title>
        <Table.Content>
          {cars.map((row) => <Table.Row data={row} id={row.id} withLinks />)}
        </Table.Content>
      </Table>
    </div>
  );
}

TL;DR- components should not be aware of context, they should always be dumb and use composition for the different use cases.

The Importance of Humility in Interviewing

Bnaya Zilberfarb — Mon, 06 Mar 2023 07:33:11 +0000

Interviewing is a crucial process in any hiring process, and it is essential that the interviewer possesses certain characteristics that will lead to success. After interviewing numerous developers over the past years, I have come to the conclusion that humility is the most important characteristic an interviewer can possess.

The interview process can create a power dynamic where the interviewer is in a position of authority, while the interviewee is put in a vulnerable position. This dynamic can cause the interviewer to become overly confident and less open to ideas, while causing the interviewee to feel insecure and unable to fully demonstrate their potential.

To counteract this dynamic, it is crucial for the interviewer to remain humble throughout the process. This humility will allow the interviewer to be open to the interviewee’s ideas and thought processes, enabling them to assess the candidate’s potential as accurately as possible.

One effective way to cultivate humility is for the interviewer to assume that the interviewee is senior to them. By adopting this mindset, the interviewer places themselves in a position of learning and humility, which will allow them to truly listen to the interviewee’s responses.

Assuming that the interviewee is senior to the interviewer also has the added benefit of disarming any feelings of insecurity the interviewee may have. By demonstrating respect and a willingness to learn from the interviewee, the interviewer creates an environment where the interviewee can feel comfortable and confident in showcasing their skills and expertise.

In conclusion, humility is a crucial characteristic for any interviewer to possess. By remaining humble throughout the interview process, the interviewer can create an environment that is conducive to showcasing the interviewee’s full potential. By assuming the interviewee is senior to them, the interviewer can create a power dynamic that encourages open communication and mutual respect, leading to a successful hiring process.

Workplace without hate

Bnaya Zilberfarb — Mon, 02 Sep 2019 07:13:58 +0000

TL;DR the reason why there is no hate between any of the workers in my current workplace is we avoid gossip.

I guess the best known part of the bible (the old testament) is its' stories, but the most important part of the bible and in Judaism is Halacha (Jewish law). And one of the most important rules of the Halacha (in my opinion) is the rule forbidding slander and gossip.

what it means in a nutshell, is that a person should not say, imply, signal, or even listen to a bad thing told about another person (even if the bad thing is true, yes it's crazy, I know). Now that I describe what slander is it's pretty obvious why, if everyone is avoiding slander, there is no hate. By not letting any slander or gossip enter the workplace, by not repeating even the details of an incident between 2 co-workes, you're keeping it from evolving and spreading.

How can we achieve it? Honestly, I'm not an expert and my experience is short, but I will be happy to share my own experience from my current workplace. I started working in my current workplace almost 3 years ago.
I made this rule for myself, that any time I would hear slander I say "this is a slander, I'm not accepting what you just said". Even though hearing it might be annoying or even make me somewhat an annoying person in the office, I knew it required gentleness and also an understanding of my co-workers, for me to know when I can say it and to whom and after a while people got familiar with it and even further embraced it.

Today, after almost 3 years I certainly feel the effect this behavior had on our workplace and the unexpected happened when my CEO told me he started spreading this rule of no gossip and slander to his daughters and their friends in school.

After hearing about this article by chance, my previous CTO wanted to share his point of view on the matter:

My name is Snir David and I have been Bnaya’s manager at the said company for several years. One of the most vivid memories I have from my time as Bnaya’s manger is his rule of no gossip.

What started as a funny rule for us, mostly enforced by Bnaya alone, quickly became an office habit. First as a joke, when someone spread gossip or slander around when Bnaya wasn’t present, we repeated Bnaya’s phrase.

From there, the road to have much less gossip and slander than is usual in an office environment was short. This, in my opinion, was one of the cultural building blocks of the company that paid high dividends down the road. Thank you, Bnaya.