These software engineering and programming videos come from HackerTube, Andrej Karpathy’s index of YouTube links discussed in Hacker News comments. This independent hub organizes the software catalog by the decisions developers face, then offers six enduring talks and lectures as a compact starting point.
Choose a path by the problem you are solving
Use language-design and functional-programming topics to rethink abstraction, architecture videos to examine complexity, and focused categories for APIs, web development, testing or performance. The topic filters are more useful than treating software engineering as one undifferentiated playlist.
Build mental models before collecting tools
The featured route starts with programs and design, then moves through simplicity, API boundaries, the JavaScript event loop and performance measurement. These ideas travel across languages and frameworks, which makes them useful even when the examples come from an older stack.
Use recommendations as a trail, not a verdict
A recurring Hacker News recommendation tells you that a video remained useful in technical conversations; it does not prove that its advice fits every codebase. Read the video summary, note its original context and follow the narrower category links when you need an implementation-specific answer.
The ordered path moves from abstraction and problem framing through refactoring, API boundaries, runtime behavior, performance and testing.
Follow the programming classics watch path ↗Six videos to start with
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↗lecture · intro
Lecture 1A | MIT 6.001 Structure and Interpretation, 1986
A classic opening that frames computer science as the study of process and abstraction.
11 positive HN recommenders across 9 recommendation months
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↗talk · general
Hammock Driven Development - Rich Hickey
A practical case for deliberate thinking before implementation begins.
12 positive HN recommenders across 11 recommendation months
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↗talk · intermediate
"Simple Made Easy" - Rich Hickey (2011)
A clear distinction between simple and merely familiar software choices.
14 positive HN recommenders across 14 recommendation months
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↗talk · intermediate
How To Design A Good API and Why it Matters
Concrete API design principles for boundaries that other programmers must use.
12 positive HN recommenders across 12 recommendation months
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↗talk · intermediate
What the heck is the event loop anyway? | Philip Roberts | JSConf EU
A visual explanation of the call stack, callbacks and the JavaScript event loop.
16 positive HN recommenders across 14 recommendation months
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↗talk · intermediate
"Performance Matters" by Emery Berger
A grounded look at why benchmarking is difficult and how causal profiling helps.
12 positive HN recommenders across 10 recommendation months
Narrow the topic
These narrower categories open the video directory with the matching filter already applied.