welcomeBytes, err := os.ReadFile("blogIntro.txt")
if err != nil {
	panic(err)
}
fmt.Println(string(welcomeBytes))

In most coding languages, the concept of null is pretty ubiqitous. It’s kind of like the number 0 in number theory - it’s kind of…nothing. It’s often a far more complex topic than most realize.

So when encountering a null, particularly a null pointer exception (or as I like to call it, “the joy of working in Java”), it’s usually indicative that you’ve done something wrong. Then the compiler or runtime will immediately stop what it’s doing and bail completely.

But rather than dwell on what once was or could have (should have?) been, I want to focus this blog on how we can recover from the nil pointers in our lives. Having outlets is cathartic in the world of AI is my own way to maintain my own humanity in an ever-increasing “agentic” world.

Why nilpointer.blog?

Golang doesn’t use null and instead uses nil. The two largely represent the same idea, but there’s more to it than that. Since most of my writing here will likely be Golang centric, it makes sense to register the name as nil.

I also think it’s fun to think about nothing. And then write about nothing. Or something. Whatever you want null (or nil) to mean.

A Little About Me

Previously an SRE for LinkedIn, I’m now more of a Golang nut who has found himself in the bowels of “big tech”, however you choose to define it. I’ve championed the usage of Golang at my company for years, and have worked a TON to get it adopted in a place where, let’s face it, Java wins most (enterprise) battles.

CI/CD actions in an existing infrastructure is where you’ve usually find me, lurking in the shadows, telling you about the latest good word found on https://go.dev/blog/.

I love simple design and despise unnecessary complexity. I maintain that “clever” should NOT be the descriptive word of choice for your CI/CD system (here’s looking at you, Github Actions).

What to Expect

It seems that a lot of my ideas go to /dev/null so I thought this would be a better usage of documenting those ideas, good, bad, and everything in between. Without any of those dumb ads. Like, zero.

I like to tinker but also write content, and I’d like to focus those efforts on short-form technical content that’s clear and simple to read or understand.

So whether you like Golang’s usage of nil or (shutter) prefer Python or Java’s exceptions, you’ll hopefully have a home here. Or at the very least, something fun to read!