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Artwork for Maintainable

Maintainable

Robby Russell
Technical Debt
Software Maintenance
Software Development
Legacy Code
Maintainability
Ruby On Rails
Legacy Systems
Ruby
Documentation
Open Source
Automated Testing
Software Architecture
Microservices
Fusionauth
Open Source Software
Software Maintainability
Rubygems
Code Quality
Refactoring
Identity Management

Do you feel like you're hitting a wall with your existing software projects? Are you curious to hear how other people are navigating this? You're not alone. On the Maintainable Software Podcast, Robby speaks with seasoned practitioners who have overcome the technical and cultural problems often associated with software development. Our guests will share stories in each episode and outline tangible... more

PublishesTwice monthlyEpisodes236Founded8 years ago
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Artwork for Maintainable

Latest Episodes

Software is expensive to build, expensive to change, and expensive to keep alive. Yet organizations routinely make plans as though adding another feature or hitting an arbitrary deadline won't affect anything else. Mark Stringer joins Robby to explor... more

A large test suite should make developers feel safer changing software. Gabriela Moreira, CEO of Quint, has recently experienced something quite different: a new codebase grew from roughly 200 tests to 800 with the help of AI, yet she found herself t... more

YouTube

What makes software maintainable might have less to do with how clean the code looks and more to do with how well it serves the people responsible for it. Matija Šošić, co-founder and CEO of Wasp, joins Robby to talk about boring and predictable code... more

YouTube

What does maintainability look like when the software you’re responsible for is a programming language? José Valim creator of Elixir and founder of Dashbit, joins Robby to talk about software that can “fit in your head,” the importance of clear bound... more

YouTube

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Recent Guests

Mark Stringer
Software delivery manager and consultant with more than three decades in the software industry
Episode: Mark Stringer: Software Costs More Than We Want to Admit
Gabriela Moreira
CEO of Quint
Quint
Episode: Gabriela Moreira: When 800 Tests Aren’t Enough
Matija Šošić
Co-founder and CEO of Wasp
Wasp
Episode: Matija Šošić: Abstractions Aren’t Going Anywhere
José Valim
Creator of Elixir; founder of Dashbit; involved in Tidewave
Elixir, Dashbit, Tidewave
Episode: José Valim: Designing a Language You Can Maintain for Decades
John Athayde
Owner of Meticulous, a product design consultancy
Meticulous
Episode: John Athayde: Maintaining the User Side of Software
Kristin Isaac
Co-founder and CEO of Strudel
Strudel
Episode: Kristin Isaac: The Customer Doesn’t Care About Your Technical Debt
David Hayes
VP of product at FusionAuth
FusionAuth
Episode: David Hayes: Boring Software, Clear Incentives, and Better Checklists
Diana Pfeil
Engineer and consultant focused on machine learning and AI systems
Sunbeam Consulting
Episode: Diana Pfeil: Building Confidence in Probabilistic Systems
Chris Coyier
Co-founder of CodePen
CodePen
Episode: Chris Coyier: The Long Game of Maintaining CodePen

Host

Robby Russell
Host of Maintainable

Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars from 115 ratings
  • What every software engineer needs to know

    200 episodes consistently asking the questions about software maintainability that no-one seems to ever ask, perhaps because their “it depends” answers don’t fit nicely into a conference talk or a blog post, or because they were left unanswered in work discussions a few too many times. Apbleonardare the questions which dominate the working days of those that need to maintain and evolve systems other people wrote, make progress in the face of technical debt and legacy code, and bring with them b... more

    Apple Podcasts
    5
    apbleonard
    United Kingdom3 months ago
  • So far great!

    Love this show. Each episode has something they've experienced which maps to my own experience in long-running codebases.

    Apple Podcasts
    5
    Exe Gete
    United States3 years ago
  • Entertaining and relevant.

    Appreciate it

    Apple Podcasts
    5
    McZul
    Germany3 years ago
  • A great listen!

    The host's ability to draw out detailed and meaningful conversations with each guest is awesome. This podcast is a must-listen for anyone keen on improving their knowledge in software.

    Apple Podcasts
    5
    Jimmy Kl.
    Philippines3 years ago
  • Great Perspetives on Keeping Software Alive

    Absolutely my favorite podcast. Robby does a great job covering the breadth of the industry and getting different insights and perspectives about what it takes to ensure a codebase can survive the test of time, employee turnover, industry changes, and so much more.

    It’s refreshing to get insights that balance technical idealism with the reality that building software is messy work done by imperfect humans who also have goals outside of writing that next line of code.

    Apple Podcasts
    5
    Garrett Dimon
    United States4 years ago

Listeners Say

Key themes from listener reviews, highlighting what works and what could be improved about the show.

Guests and host deliver actionable guidance without overpromising, according to reviews.
The show is appreciated for its deep dives into long-lived codebases and organizational factors.
Listeners praise practical, real-world maintainability insights and diverse guest perspectives.

Chart Rankings

How this podcast ranks in the Apple Podcasts, Spotify and YouTube charts.

Apple Podcasts
#165
Australia/Technology
Apple Podcasts
#23
Saudi Arabia/Technology
Apple Podcasts
#108
Colombia/Technology
Apple Podcasts
#243
Indonesia/Technology

Talking Points

Recent interactions between the hosts and their guests.

Mark Stringer: Software Costs More Than We Want to Admit
Q: Do you have any advice for anyone listening right now that's felt like, hey, I've pointed out that there's a pirate ship on the horizon. We should probably do something about this. But I heard like, back, focus on what we're doing right now. We'll look at that later. We still got time or whatever. Someone else will figure this out. And so they've stopped pointing out the pirate ship. But what do you think they should be doing as an individual?
Stringer advises showing the effect of the problem rather than only describing it, finding different ways to communicate, and continuing to make the consequences visible even if leaders do not acknowledge the issue verbally.
Mark Stringer: Software Costs More Than We Want to Admit
Q: What do you believe are a few common characteristics of, dare I say, well-maintained software?
Stringer says well-maintained software reflects what users actually want and do, and has a comprehensible model of the world that it serves.
Matija Šošić: Abstractions Aren’t Going Anywhere
Q: How do you view the economics and business model around a framework like Wasp?
The framework is the distribution; monetization would come from services on top of the framework, similar to how other platforms monetize after achieving critical mass and a solid ecosystem.
Matija Šošić: Abstractions Aren’t Going Anywhere
Q: Why build a DSL and then move toward TypeScript integration?
The DSL provided language-agnostic modeling and separation of specification from implementation; moving to TypeScript preserved familiar syntax while enabling broader adoption and easier open-source collaboration without sacrificing the abstracted architecture.
Matija Šošić: Abstractions Aren’t Going Anywhere
Q: First off, what is Wasp?
Wasp is a truly full stack JavaScript framework that packages React, Node.js, and Prisma together with features like authentication and jobs, offering a batteries-included experience while remaining deployable anywhere.

Audience Metrics

Listeners, social reach, demographics and more for this podcast.

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Frequently Asked Questions About Maintainable

What is Maintainable about and what kind of topics does it cover?

A practitioner-focused show exploring long-lived software systems, codebases, and the organizational dynamics that sustain them. Episodes center on maintainability, real-world trade-offs, and practical strategies—from handling technical debt and incremental migrations to building resilient teams and effective governance. Guests are usually engineers, leaders, and practitioners who share firsthand experiences with sustaining software over years, making the content highly actionable for teams facing legacy challenges, migrations, or modernization efforts. A notable edge is the emphasis on human factors—leadership, culture, onboarding, and communication—as critical levers for longevity in software projects.

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How many episodes of Maintainable are there?

Maintainable launched 8 years ago and published 236 episodes to date. You can find more information about this podcast including rankings, audience demographics and engagement in our podcast database.

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What guests have appeared on Maintainable?

Recent guests on Maintainable include:

1. Mark Stringer
2. Gabriela Moreira
3. Matija Šošić
4. José Valim
5. John Athayde
6. Kristin Isaac
7. David Hayes
8. Diana Pfeil

To view more recent guests and their details, simply upgrade your Rephonic account. You'll also get access to a typical guest profile to help you decide if the show is worth pitching.

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