Continuous Integration: A Merge Story 🔊

The author recounts a failed 6-month rewrite of a monolithic Customer Module in an enterprise car dealership software. The system had no tests, tight iframe coupling, and a team that committed large changes infrequently. The rewrite became vaporware when it couldn't be merged with the main trunk due to accumulated conflicts and incompatibility with a mobile version. The key lesson: continuous integration with frequent small merges prevents irreversible code conflicts. The author also regrets not using pair programming, thinking before coding, and understanding team dynamics.