# Elliot's Blog

> 💼 Engineering, Transport, Infrastructure 👷 Building pianta.io  🌏 Lets stand for, and stand up for, each other.

https://elliotali.com/

_Last updated:_ 2026-05-03

## Core Pages
- [Now](https://elliotali.com/now): I am still living in Melbourne although still unsure about whether this sticks I guess tha
- [About](https://elliotali.com/about): Indie maker engineering director foodie traveler I believe we should stand for and sta


## Blog Posts
- [Delicious Turkish-inspired Chicken Stew](https://elliotali.com/delicious-turkish-inspired-chicken-stew): I am cooking up mostly lean protein and veg with the odd carb for all the reasons and took
- [Installing Dolt on Synology](https://elliotali.com/installing-dolt-on-synology): Im going to try some versioned database stuff out for a project I am developing and needed
- [Iles Flottantes](https://elliotali.com/iles-flottantes): Or "Unfulfilled Promises"
- [Gratitude, Forgiveness, and Growth: Lessons from a Reddit stranger](https://elliotali.com/gratitude-forgiveness-and-growth): I found a great, inspirational response to someone struggling on Reddit, offering practical and compassionate advice on overcoming self-doubt and procrastination.
- [Using DOCX with Laravel, using Express as a backend](https://elliotali.com/docx-with-laravel-using-express-as-a-backend): I need to generate robust, clean Word documents for an app I'm building. It's something PHP libraries are bad at, and there's a great JS library for. It was only logical to use it - so what did I do?
- [State of Laravel: A Personal Digest](https://elliotali.com/state-of-laravel-2024): Looking at the conclusions of the State of Laravel survey, I started pondering about my own experiences over time. Here are my thoughts, reflections and lessons learnt.
- [Inbox to Insight: Emailing myself for personal growth](https://elliotali.com/inbox-to-insight-emailing-myself-for-personal-growth): Emailing myself ideas, reflections, and growth points has become a key tool for personal and professional development. It's convenient, easy to organize, and ensures I don't forget valuable insights. By making this a regular practice, I can capture fleeting thoughts and turn them into actionable steps for continuous growth. Try it out and see how it can transform your own development process!
- [Small Steps, Big Returns: The Power of Incremental Upgrades for Smart Infrastructure Spending](https://elliotali.com/capital-projects-vs-incremental-benefits): When capital dries up, due to changes in policy, ebbing of markets or redirected funding (ahem, Covid), major projects dry up with them. But the needs don't vanish - so here's some thoughts on how to adapt, and make every penny count.
- [If anything needs disruption, it's email and collaboration tools](https://elliotali.com/email-and-collab-tools-need-disruption): Why is Microsoft 365 so painful I switched lgmltds accounts to Microsoft 365 for the balan
- [A great way to spend a Sunday afternoon](https://elliotali.com/a-great-way-to-spend-a-sunday-afternoon): 
- [Australian Population Density](https://elliotali.com/australian-population-density): Some idle thoughts
- [Making best use of a Synology NAS](https://elliotali.com/making-best-use-of-a-synology-nas): I bought the NAS originally as a replacement for cloud backup The backstory Ill cover in a
- [An easy introduction to Passkeys](https://elliotali.com/an-easy-introduction-to-passkeys): Apple and Google have now implemented Passkeys on their websites, and they and Microsoft have enabled them on their platforms following industry support for Passkeys. But what does it all mean? This article will give you a straightforward introduction to everything you need to know.
- [Why passwords are so bad, and what you should do about it](https://elliotali.com/why-passwords-are-so-bad-and-what-you-should-do-about-it): Passwords are important they identify us We use passwords to try to ascertain identity So
- [Today I cofounded Pointers - a site to help fast track your career](https://elliotali.com/today-i-cofounded-pointers---a-site-to-help-fast-track-your-career): I am very excited today I launched Professional Pointers with my cofounder Brayden Profes
- [A project I'll complete with my hands](https://elliotali.com/a-project-ill-complete-with-my-hands): This week's agon: "Identify one project youd like to complete with your hands, whether chore or craft."
- [My new extension: Automatic Tasks for Panic's Nova](https://elliotali.com/my-new-extension-automatic-tasks-for-panics-nova): I built a little extension for Panics Nova editor which finds all the scripts youve define
- [Australia Mk2](https://elliotali.com/australia-mk2): The plan was to move to New Zealand for a couple of years being mobilised by the project I
- [Kaizen (non-resolutions for 2021)](https://elliotali.com/kaizen-non-resolutions-for-2021): Do you have non-resolutions for 2021? Here's mine.
- [I researched robot vacuums so you don't have to](https://elliotali.com/i-researched-robot-vacuums-so-you-dont-have-to): I searched through so many options, dumb ones, cheap ones, AI ones... and settled on the Deebot Ecovacs T8+. Why? Because it represents a good robot with all the features at a central price-point. It also has an optional self-emptying mechanism, and it was on sale.
- [My thoughts on working abroad as a migrant](https://elliotali.com/my-thoughts-on-working-abroad-as-a-migrant): Born a Briton, I have lived and worked in France and Australia as a migrant worker. I thought Id share the stories with you, in terms of the practicalities and the experiences. So how did I get through the net? In both cases I leveraged a degree in Engineering, recognised by the Washington Accord, and relevant skilled experience, gained in respected businesses and fields. Other than those, France and Australia had different requirements. Whilst its a short list, I appreciate that this is a privileged position to start from.
- [Don't make espresso cream soda](https://elliotali.com/dont-make-espresso-cream-soda): Heres what you need to know about my new creation espresso creamsoda Dont make it dont dri