FROM THE TRENCHES Issue №310

Practical decisions for AI and software

Technical guides to choose models, verify software and plan delivery.

Latest articles

New comparisons, practical guides and engineering lessons.

A structured specification turns a vague AI coding prompt into reviewed requirements, a plan and testable tasks AI & Agents

GitHub Spec Kit Review: Is It Worth the Process?

GitHub Spec Kit replaces one-shot vibe coding with reviewed specifications, plans and tasks. Here is where that structure pays off, where it adds ceremony and how to run a production pilot.

Governed internal AI agent marketplace with catalog, company context, identity, evaluation and lifecycle controls AI & Agents

Internal AI Agent Marketplace: A 2026 Enterprise Build Guide

Build a governed internal agent catalog employees will use. Architecture, listing contract, identity, context, evaluations, approvals, metrics and a 90-day rollout.

Self-hosted LiteLLM production gateway architecture AI & Agents

How to Self-Host LiteLLM in Production: 2026 Guide

A security-first LiteLLM deployment guide for teams choosing their own AI gateway: architecture, Postgres, Redis, keys, upgrades, cost and go-live checks.

Two software providers transferring a live codebase through a controlled transition Business & Regulation

Software Project Takeover: A 30-Day Provider Change Plan

Changing the team behind a live product is not a repository transfer. Use this 30-day plan to regain control, prove releases and recovery, and select a provider that can inherit before it rebuilds.

AI-generated 3D game asset moving through a production pipeline Delivery & QA

AI 3D Model Generators for Game Development: 2026 Guide

Which AI 3D tools can help a game team, and which outputs still need an artist? Compare hosted and self-hosted options, quality gates, licensing and engine handoff.

A governed company wiki serves verified knowledge to employees and AI agents AI & Agents

AI-Ready Company Wiki: Architecture and Build Guide

A buyer-focused blueprint for company knowledge that humans can edit and AI agents can retrieve with the same permissions, sources and review loop.

AI agent signing workflow with policy gate, human QES approval, trust provider and verification archive Business & Regulation

AI Agent Contract Signing: eIDAS QES Integration Guide

A developer and buyer guide to binding AI-generated contracts to human approval, remote QES, ID Austria or EUDI Wallet flows, validation and audit evidence.

A layered fintech backend moving through typed foundations, authorization, payment integrity and release gates Delivery & QA

Fintech Architecture Remediation Without a Rewrite

An anonymized field case on stabilizing a money-moving Node.js product in the right order, with traceable findings, small pull requests and evidence-based release gates.

Linux terminal beneath isolated AI agent workloads AI & Agents

Is Linux the Best OS for AI Agents? A 2026 Infrastructure Guide

Linux gives AI agents a mature shell, open interfaces and several isolation layers. This guide shows where it wins, where it does not, and how to deploy agents without handing them the host.

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