How do you find non-obvious tech frameworks/libraries?
It's pretty easy to find the frameworks or libraries for common problems with a quick web search. But what if your problem is more specific than "web framework for python"? What if you don't even know exactly what you're searching for? How do you then discover what tools/frameworks/libraries/etc. might be helpful for you?
Stackshare and other IndieHackers posts are two ways you might happen to discover some great tech, but what about finding something a little more intentionally?
Encounter the problem before looking for a solution. Don't look for solutions which solve problems that you don't know about.
Upon encountering the problem, try to understand it well. Ask others and you are bound to be pointed towards something that will fit the bill.
Thanks for the response! Yes I totally agree that you should never try to solve problems that don't exist. I'd be curious to hear more about the "ask others" part of your answer, since that seems to be the crucial part in finding the right solution.
Just go where people who are likely to know the answer to your question, hang out.
This goes as a marketing lesson as well.
Marketing is mostly about making your message reach where your customers hang out :)
I subscribe to a ton of newsletters and RSS feeds, so I have a constant flow of articles passing by. After a while you notice the tools and frameworks that get mentioned again and again. Check those out.
Also read lots of engineering team writeup posts, especially the ones that talk about architecture. You’ll start to notice that many architectures use the same off the shelf pieces when they build their backend systems.
I publish a weekly newsletter with the best stuff I find, you might find it interesting. The latest edition was yesterday.
Thanks Mark! Exposing yourself to lots of tech content definitely helps, but I was starting to wonder if there was a better way to come across more niche solutions.
Your newsletter seems like a good collection of interesting things! Just subscribed. :)
Featured projects on github.com sometimes has interesting stuff, and dev.to and dzone.com both have a lot of relevant content, and it’s easy to subscribe to relevant topics.
Thanks for subscribing to the newsletter! Glad to have you aboard :)
As others have already mentioned just keeping up to date with Newsletters and RSS feeds can help you discover interesting little tools that might come in handy later.
I personally can recommend the Newsletters CooperPress puts out, they got newsletters for everyone.
If you just want to discover some stuff quickly Awesome Lists are a good place to start. Just search for 'Awesome <your-framework-or-language>', chances are you are going to find one. For example, Awesome Ruby, Awesome NodeJs, or Awesome React.
Thanks Hans! Awesome lists are great.
I focus on Python. A great part of my discoverability process involves serendipity, i.e. intentionally exploring and stumbling upon libraries or frameworks I may use at some point. So I follow Planet Python and subscribe to Pycoder's Weekly, which regularly showcase new and interesting libraries and tools.
As for direct searches, most of the time I search PyPI first instead of googling.
That's a great point! When you are constrained to a specific language/tech, it's much easier to know the best places to look for solutions. Thanks for your response!
You're welcome. Searching language-specific resources helps cut on the noise.