Show Notes
In this episode, Lane chats with Lewis Menelaws, a Full-Stack developer and entrepreneur. Today he takes us through his coding journey and insights as a developer influencer. From his early days coding Roblox games, tech stacks, and the challenges of freelancing, to his shift into content creation and thoughts on the current programming meta. Learn back-end development - https://boot.dev Listen on your favorite podcast player: https://www.backendbanter.fm Lewis's Twitter: https://twitter.com/LewisMenelaws Lewis's Channel: https://www.youtube.com/c/CodingwithLewis
(02:01) - Intro
(02:18) - We need to talk about developer influencers
(02:53) - When did Lewis first learn to code
(05:17) - Java and PHP
(06:17) - Shift from Python2 to Python3
(07:02) - Why Python
(07:34) - Dynamic Typing Isn't Enjoyable
(09:09) - Dynamic Languages are just a tool
(09:47) - When did Lewis Start a WebDev Agency
(12:30) - Pivotal moment at the agency
(15:50) - Website vs WebApp
(21:53) - Tech stacks
(24:54) - Not so Open Source
(27:09) - Opinion about TypeScript
(29:13) - Understanding topics at a deeper level
(33:23) - 1 layer deeper than where i do most of my work
(35:45) - Be the glue
(38:28) - Dependencies as a cost
(39:57) - What motivated Lewis to start his own agency
(40:52) - Freelancing is playing on hard mode
(43:14) - Transition to content creation
(46:42) - Confidence in your technical abilities
(49:12) - We need to talk about developer Influencers
(56:19) - Catering towards the algorithm
(56:56) - Take on the current programming meta
(58:55) - Future of Coding with Lewis channel
(01:01:55) - Where to find lewis
(00:00) - Chapter 28
More from Backend Banter
Today we welcome YK Sugi—engineer, educator, and the mind behind CSS Dojo—for the final episode of season two.
In this episode, we sit down with Quincy Larson, founder of Free Code Camp, to explore his incredible path from high school dropout to influential tech educator. Quincy shares his unconventional journey — from living in his car and working fast food jobs to building one of the most impactful coding education platforms in the world.
Today we welcome Mitchell Hashimoto, co-founder of HashiCorp and creator of Ghostty, a new terminal emulator built in Zig. In this episode, Mitchell shares the story behind Ghostty, how his curiosity about terminals evolved into a full-fledged project, and why Zig became his language of choice.
Today we welcome Malte Ubl, CTO of Vercel, to discuss the evolution of frontend development and the role of AI in shaping modern engineering workflows. Malte dives into V0, Vercel's innovative tool for generating frontend code using AI, and explains how it empowers developers—especially backend engineers—to build full-stack applications. We also explore the concept of verticalization in engineering roles, the challenges of balancing innovation with infrastructure, and how AI is redefining productivity in tech.
Today we welcome Madison Kana—a self-taught dev who defied the traditional path. From dropping out and navigating a world of homeschooling to launching the Code Book Club, Madison transformed her unconventional journey into a thriving community of coders. In this episode, she shares how bypassing the typical education route fueled her passion, the real challenges of learning on your own, and the power of mentorship in building a dynamic tech career. If you’re ready to break the mold and carve your own path in software development. Learn back-end development - https://www.boot.dev Listen on your favorite podcast player: https://www.backendbanter.fm Madison's X: https://x.com/Madisonkanna Website: https://madisonkanna.com/ Learn out loud: learn0utloud.com Timestamps: 00:00 - Intro 00:30 - Where did it all start? 01:40 - Dropping out 08:42 - How Madison started learning code 22:00 - Team leading 30:30 - Code Book Club 38:50 - Learn out loud 46:20 - AI talk 54:18 - Book recommendations 56:05 - Outro Like & subscribe for the algo if you enjoyed the video!