Archive - The Rest of the System

The Maintenance Ceiling

Shipping code is cheaper, but owning what you shipped is harder than ever.

Sep 24 • Tom

August 2026

The Work Underneath Forward Deployed Engineering (FDE) is Not New

Code is getting cheaper to teach. Twenty years of operating judgment is not.

Aug 27 • Tom

The model is the small box

The AI model is likely the most reliable part of your entire system

Aug 24 • Tom

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