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  • Blog
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Joël R. Langlois

Seamless cross-platform apps, prioritising performance and UX.

  • About
  • Work
  • Blog
  • FAQ
  • Contact

Frequently (and Sometimes Not-So-Frequently) Asked Questions

Q: What’s your favourite programming language?

A: C++, obviously - because why settle for simpler when you can wrestle with memory management and template metaprogramming for fun?

Q: Do you write code for fun or just for work?

A: Fun? Absolutely. If by fun you mean endlessly debugging something that worked yesterday but mysteriously broke today.

Q: What’s your go-to development platform?

A: Wherever the project demands it - Windows, macOS, or Linux, that delightful paradox of open-source freedom and endless “why won’t you just work?!” headaches.

Q: Ever considered a simpler career, like baking or interpretive dance?

A: Tempting. But I’m an awful dancer and am pretty sure computers won’t taste the cookies, so I’m sticking with code.

Q: How do you keep up with new tech?

A: By pretending to understand half of it and googling the other half at 2 a.m. Also, by contributing to open-source projects and generally poking around where I probably shouldn’t be.

Q: What’s your superpower?

A: Turning caffeine and stubbornness into working software - sometimes even on the first try.

Q: What kind of projects do you enjoy most?

A: Anything that involves media - audio, video, and occasionally convincing APIs to behave themselves. Bonus points if it runs on more than one platform without exploding.

Q: What’s your biggest weakness?

A: Honestly? I have a tendency to dive too deep into perfecting a solution - which means I sometimes spend more time wrestling with an edge case than the rest of the team spends on the whole feature. On the bright side, that means fewer bugs. (At least, that’s the story I’m sticking to.)

Q: How do you handle tight deadlines?

A: With a mix of laser focus, coffee, and the occasional existential crisis. Also, knowing when to ship “good enough” versus “perfect” is a skill I’ve painfully mastered over the years.

Q: Describe a challenging technical problem you’ve solved.

A: I built a custom audio effect management ecosystem and processing chain that’s basically a Swiss Army knife for chaining together DSP effects (of your own design or third party) - all while juggling thread safety, design flexibility, and the occasional nightmare of managing effect state without turning my code into spaghetti. It was a fun ride convincing the compiler to behave and ensuring that adding or removing effects didn’t cause the audio callback and UI thread to explode. I think it’s readable enough that I didn’t have to leave cryptic comments in Klingon.