Bob Monsour

North Bay Python

While I've changed gears... I've managed to find my web development tribe - Bob Monsour - 2026

System Reliability and Error Handling: Comparing paradigms from C to Rust Result to build resilient cloud infrastructure.

Ethical Technology and Social Justice: Analyzing the intersection of AI, eugenics, and data labor to advocate for empathetic software design.

Practical Development Skills: Mastering web scraping, designing Python APIs for volatile data, and building civic tech on a budget.

Open Source and Community Building: Learning best practices for project scope management, contributing to large open-source projects, and technical communication.

Explore advanced topics in Python development, system reliability, ethical AI, and community-driven open source projects.

A deep dive into error handling paradigms (C, Exceptions, Rust Result) and the systemic failures that define modern cloud infrastructure. Learn how to build truly robust systems by understanding complex failure modes.

State of Exception(s)

A critical examination of the tech industry's ideological roots, connecting eugenics, data labor, and techno-optimism. Learn to build technology with social justice and empathy.

An Economy of Empathy

A practical framework for applying technology to local activism and civic engagement, focusing on maximizing impact with minimal resources.

Running Resistance Tech on a Shoestring

Learn to build robust Python scrapers and APIs for volatile open web data, focusing on handling silent failures and maintaining data contracts.

Designing Python APIs for Data You Don’t Control

Explore essential technical communication and crisis communication skills needed to navigate rapid technological change and social uncertainty.

Crisis (Technical) Communication: Teaching Survival Skills You Didn’t Know...

A personal journey detailing the growth of an open-source project, emphasizing community building, vulnerability, and technical contribution.

Bumbling into BeeWare: From typo-fix to core developer

A retrospective on web development, covering embedded systems, SSGs, and AI tools, showing the evolution of modern developer workflows.

While I've changed gears... I've managed to find my web development tribe

Applying feminist theory to network engineering, arguing that systemic problems (like latency) require intersectional, non-linear thinking.

What Feminist Theory & Praxis Says About Internet Networking

A case study on maintaining project scope in large open-source projects, crucial for sustainable software architecture.

No Project Scope Survives Contact with Users

North Bay Python 2026

The speaker's career spans multiple technological eras, from 8-bit assembly language to modern JavaScript frameworks.

The talk highlights the evolution of web development, moving from proprietary systems (like early CMSs) to unopinionated static site generators (SSGs) like 11D.

The speaker demonstrates how modern AI tools (like Claude) can be used as powerful collaborators for research, content generation, and building complex, data-driven web applications.

The core philosophy is not becoming a developer, but becoming a resource for helping communities and individuals establish a digital presence.

A retrospective on a career of web development, covering embedded systems, compression patents, and modern static site generation with 11D and AI tools.

The speaker details his early career, starting with 8-bit assembly language programming for embedded devices. He then spent 17 years at a company (Stac) involved in developing embedded systems and data compression technology. This led to patenting a compression format (related to RFC 2395) and later pivoting the company's focus from tape backup to retail software, eventually leading to the development of the widely impactful Stacker compression technology.

After periods of burnout and consulting, the speaker returned to web development, initially building sites for personal and community projects using tools like Movable Type. He emphasizes the importance of open standards and the collaborative nature of the web standards movement, citing interactions with pioneers like Jeffrey Zeldman. He showcases building sites for various clients, including a New York Times food critic and a local homeless services organization, demonstrating adaptability across different technologies (Google Sites, Movable Type, Squarespace).

The speaker's focus shifts to modern, developer-centric tools, particularly the static site generator (SSG) 11D. He details building multiple complex sites—including a personal portfolio, a tennis video site, and a site for a painter—using 11D. He then introduces the '11D Bundle,' a comprehensive resource site built to aggregate and share knowledge about the SSG community. Finally, he demonstrates the integration of AI (Claude) as a collaborator, building advanced, data-intensive sites like a comprehensive voter ID guide and a political news tracker, showcasing how AI can manage complex data structures and research tasks.

Web Development Journey: From Embedded Systems to Static Site Generators

While I've changed gears... I've managed to find my web development tribe - 2026

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Bob Monsour

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