Hello World!

Hi everyone, welcome! My name is Frank Ferreira, I’m a software developer from Belem, Para (Brazil), and this is my corner of the internet. Here I’ll write about my career, things I’m learning, and thoughts on technology.

But before talking about the blog, let me tell you a bit about my story.

Where I come from

It all started in 2004, when my parents, with a lot of sacrifice, gave me a Pentium computer for Christmas. In the excitement, I set a password and forgot it the next day.

From 2004 to 2013, my relationship with computers was basically games. I spent years playing online games during the golden era of Flash, then moved on to Half-Life, GTA Vice City and other classics of the time. The computer was pure fun.

My first real contact with code was in 2013, with a Hacking DVD course a friend gave me. At the end of the course, there was a tutorial to build a browser in Delphi. I had no idea what I was writing, but I knew what I wanted to build. That feeling never changed.

A year later, in 2014, I enrolled at the Federal Institute of Para in Ananindeua to study computing. I was one of the first computer science graduates in the city’s history.

In 2015, I started my degree in Information Systems at the Federal Rural University of Amazonia (UFRA). I arrived already familiar with pseudocode and C from my technical studies.

Teaching to learn

In 2016, a teacher who believed in my potential proposed something different: teaching programming to underprivileged children using Scratch. It was one of the most transformative experiences I’ve ever had.

That same year, I presented my first academic paper at the VIII Scientific Initiation Seminar in Castanhal — a quiz game with computer science content.

In 2018, I traveled to Natal (RN) to present a paper at the Brazilian Computer Society Congress. The idea came from a friend in environmental engineering, and me and two other crazy friends embraced the cause. The result was IrriSusten, an automated irrigation system built with Arduino.

From first job to Elixir

My first job in the field came in 2019, on-site. Those were years of intense challenges in personal and technical development. I was able to connect with people from different fields and leave my mark.

I graduated in Information Systems in 2020. Another degree, this time with distant relatives showing up to celebrate!

In 2022, I started working remotely as a backend developer in Elixir. I learned the equivalent of 10 years in 1 year. I met amazing friends who provided great guidance and accelerated my growth.

Why this blog exists

This project had been on my mind for years, but it became a last-minute goal for 2023. And here we are.

The blog is built with the stack I enjoy working with the most:

• Elixir — the language that changed how I think about software
• Phoenix — the web framework that makes Elixir shine
• LiveView — almost every page on this site is LiveView, with no custom JavaScript
• Nimble Publisher — posts are Markdown files compiled at build time
• Tailwind CSS — for fast and consistent styling

What’s coming next

I plan to write about:

• Elixir and Phoenix in practice — patterns, LiveView, OTP
• Personal projects — what I’m building and why
• Tech career — what I’ve learned working with software
• Tools and productivity — things I use day to day

If you made it this far, thanks for visiting. I hope this space is as useful to you as it is to me.

And before wrapping up: none of this would have happened without my family, my friends, and my girlfriend, who put up with the late-night coding sessions, the weekends spent studying, and the “just 5 more minutes” that turned into hours. Thank you for always being by my side.

Happy coding!

— Frank Ferreira