The Engineering Notebook — page 11 of 32
Notes on building with AI, agents & the modern stack.
Deep dives on AI/ML, RAG systems, agent engineering, and senior-engineer architecture decisions — a new post every week.
AI and Machine Learning The Complete Guide to AI Hardware in 2026
A complete 2026 guide to AI hardware — covering GPUs, Apple Silicon, edge devices, CPUs, and the semiconductor supply chain — so you can choose the right setup for running local LLMs and AI workloads without wasting money.
![Amazon Fire TV Sideloading Restrictions [2026 Guide]](https://img.kunalganglani.com/images/vzekdneq/production/c4524fdff64a201177c18945b17a583e199d73e9-1200x675.webp?auto=format&fit=max&q=75&w=600)
Technology Amazon Fire TV Sideloading Restrictions [2026 Guide]
Amazon quietly switched its budget Fire TV devices to Vega OS, killing APK sideloading entirely. Here's which devices still support it, how to do it safely, and what comes next.
Technology LM Studio vs Ollama 2026: 3 Shifts That Change Everything
LM Studio and Ollama have converged so much in 2026 that every old comparison is wrong — here's what actually matters now for choosing your local LLM tool.
AI and Machine Learning Fine-Tuning vs RAG vs Prompt Engineering: Decision Framework [2026]
Stop guessing which LLM technique to use. A 2026-updated decision matrix with real cost figures, concrete examples, and a clear flowchart for when fine-tuning beats RAG, when RAG beats both, and when prompt engineering alone is the right answer.
AI and Machine Learning Local LLM Cost vs Cloud API: 2026 Break-Even Math [Calculator]
A workload-specific break-even framework with real per-token math — hardware amortization vs. API spend — for coding, RAG, and batch workloads in 2026.
Developer Tools 10 Self-Hosted AI Tools That Replace SaaS [2026 Tested]
I tested self-hosted AI alternatives across 10 SaaS categories — analytics, transcription, search, vector DB, OCR, translation, CRM, LLM inference, API clients, and bookmarks. Here's what actually saves money and what's not worth the setup.
Developer Tools PostgreSQL vs MySQL 2026: Updated Data Changes the Answer
PostgreSQL 18 and MySQL 9.7.1 shipped in 2026 with AI-native features, but DB-Engines data shows only one database is still gaining momentum — here's what matters for your next project.
Developer Tools AI Coding Assistant Team Adoption: What Breaks After Everyone Gets a License [2026]
22,000 developers, 8.1M pull requests, and one uncomfortable truth: AI coding tools make your team feel faster while making delivery measurably slower. Here's the post-adoption playbook.
AI and Machine Learning AI Agent Latency Budgets: Performance Guide [2026]
Single-model TTFT benchmarks lie to agent builders. Here's the 6-tier latency budget framework for production AI agents in 2026, with real math for multi-hop tool calls.
AI and Machine Learning LLM Quantization Levels Compared: Q4_K_M vs Q8_0 vs FP16 [2026]
The practitioner's guide to choosing between Q4_K_M, Q5_K_S, Q8_0, and FP16 quantization for local LLMs — with real perplexity numbers, throughput benchmarks, and per-use-case recommendations.
Developer Tools AI Code Review Tools 2026 Compared: What Catches Bugs vs What Fakes Confidence
CodeRabbit, GitHub Copilot, Cursor Review, and custom LLM pipelines benchmarked on real PR types — security bugs caught vs missed, false positives, and where humans still win.
AI and Machine Learning Local AI Voice Assistant Stack 2026: Whisper + Piper + Ollama Wired Together
Build a fully offline voice assistant in 2026 using Whisper STT, Piper TTS, Ollama, and Home Assistant — no cloud, no subscription, no data leaving your network.