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Merge Conflict

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Merge Conflict is a weekly discussion with Frank and James on all things development, technology, & more. After years of being friends, Frank and James finally decided to sit down and start a podcast about their lives as mobile developers using C#, Xamarin, and .NET MAUI. Much more than just another mobile development podcast, Merge Conflict, reaches all areas of development including desktop, server, and of course mobile. They also cover fun things happening in the world of technology and gaming and whatever else happens to be on Frank's and James' minds.

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22 episodes
weekly
Avg 45 min
English

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Episodes 22

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Monday · 42 min
529: Agent, MCP, and Tooling: Taming Cross‑Platform DevFlows
In this update-packed episode James and Frank dive into developer tooling: the VS Code Mobile Canvas that embeds emulators into your editor, MAUI DevFlow’s rewrite enabling plain .NET/native (and desktop AppKit) support, and the growing MCP/agent ecosystem that ties editors, the Copilot app and CLI together. They share practical takeaways—Mobile Canvas works across frameworks, DevFlow supports non‑MAUI apps, agent instruction files matter, and you can automate Microsoft Store publishing—giving c
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August 17 · 40 min
528: Build, Ship, Repeat: AI Tools Changing App Development
In episode 528 James and Frank riff on software updates, AI-powered documentation and rapid app-building—covering a WebAssembly Oh My Posh demo, a LocalMorph/FFmpeg bridge, and MAUI-native builds—showing how AI can speed onboarding, re-theme UIs and generate CI/CD pipelines. They close with a lively debate on distribution—Homebrew vs app stores—sharing practical guidance on when to use package managers versus polished consumer releases, plus a playful detour into Frank’s FIRE calculators.
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August 10 · 50 min
527: AI Agents Meet Mobile: GitHub Copilot Canvas Revolution
AI agents are revolutionizing mobile development! James and Frank explore GitHub's new Mobile Canvas extension that lets AI agents see and interact with iOS and Android apps in real-time, no matter what framework you're using. They discuss how this tool finally closes the feedback loop for native developers and break down the emerging plugin standard reshaping AI-assisted coding.
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August 3 · 43 min
526: GitHub Stacked PRs: Managing Complex Code Changes
In this episode, James and Frank dive deep into GitHub's biggest release in years: Stacked Pull Requests. Learn how this long-awaited feature finally solves the challenge of managing massive, complex code changes by breaking them into smaller, independently reviewable chunks while maintaining dependencies—plus discover how Merge Queues work alongside this innovation to streamline workflows in high-velocity projects.
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July 27 · 38 min
525: Why Christopher Nolan's IMAX Vision is Fading
Frank celebrates his birthday in style at Seattle's IMAX theater—but discovers a disappointing truth: the Pacific Science Center has ditched traditional 70mm film projection for modern digital lasers. Explore why true IMAX experiences are vanishing even as directors like Christopher Nolan continue creating films specifically for this format, and what this means for the future of premium cinema.
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July 20 · 37 min
524: A .NET MAUI AI Revolution
On episode 524 James and Frank dive into the new .NET MAUI developer stack—covering the MAUI CLI/Maui Doctor that auto-provisions SDKs and emulators, the Maui Sherpa GUI for device/Xcode/provisioning management, and DevFlow's MCP server that lets AI agents inspect, interact with and automatically test apps (closing the loop). They also highlight the VS Code MAUI agent/skills, profiling tools, and the shift to core CLR in .NET 11 with performance tradeoffs to watch.
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July 13 · 46 min
523: UI.md - Opinionated design rules for coding agents
Frank releases UI.md, a practical markdown guide distilled from 25 years of software development that captures essential UI/UX principles to help AI (and developers) build better interfaces. The hosts dive deep into why users expect consistency, how small details create polish, and why understanding your users' mental models beats flashy design every time—with real-world examples from their own apps.
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July 6 · 37 min
522: Our Thoughts on Slate: The $25K Modular Pickup Changing EVs
James and Frank dig into Slate’s modular electric pickup — a $24,950, 205‑mile, no-frills truck you can customize later — and unpack how factory vs dealer options, aftermarket mods and build quality will make or break the idea. They also cover real-world charging (level 1/2/3), fleet and daily-use practicality, and why a DIY, upgradeable EV could reshape affordable vehicle ownership.
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June 29 · 48 min
521: Polish Matters: UI, Icons, and AI Design Fails
Episode 521 James and Frank obsess over “polish”: the tiny design and packaging details that make apps feel finished. They start with impeccable.style, product.md and design.md (and why agents.md/readme aren’t enough), then dig into UI fit‑and‑finish — tray/menu UIs, icon choice, grouping settings and why AI agents still struggle with layout and whitespace. The conversation then moves deep into Windows packaging: WinApp SDK versions, trimming woes with WinRT, ready‑to‑run vs. single‑file self‑co
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June 22 · 58 min
520: Inside the New GitHub Copilot App: Sessions, Canvases, Automations
We dive into the new GitHub Copilot app — from multi‑repo, multi‑session agents and agent‑merging that respects CI/PR flows, to Canvases for visual triage and Automations (cron‑style agent workflows) — and what that means for real‑world dev productivity. Plus James and Frank share hands‑on notes on WinUI native apps, packaging to WinGet, and practical tips for debugging and shipping cross‑platform tools.
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June 15 · 52 min
519: WWDC Deep Dive: Apple’s New AI for Developers
James and Frank break down WWDC’s developer-focused news—from Apple’s AI push (local models, a new private cloud for foundation models, and a command‑line API) to Xcode’s new agent integrations, the device hub/simulator overhaul, and macOS/UI polish. If you build apps, pay attention: small developers now get subsidized cloud models, Intel Macs are being sunset, and you’ll need to test many form factors and new Swift/AI APIs.
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June 8 · 46 min
518: Windows is Back! New Microsoft AI Coding Models
Microsoft Build 2026 brought a major shift: homegrown AI models designed for efficiency and real-world developer workflows. From the cost-effective MAI Code 1 Flash to sandboxed code execution and Windows developer tools, discover how Microsoft is making powerful AI accessible without breaking the bank. James shares his hands-on experience proving that you don't need expensive flagship models for most agentic coding tasks.
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June 1 · 34 min
517: Plan First, Think Less: Save Tokens, Improve Code
Episode 517 starts with a light chat about AI avatars and new text‑to‑speech deepfakes before diving into LLM “thinking” modes—what baked‑in planning actually does, why it multiplies token costs, and when it helps or hurts. James and Frank give concrete dev advice: try low‑thinking settings, use big models for creative planning then smaller ones to execute, leverage harnesses/system prompts, and beware quantized local models often do better without thinking.
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May 25 · 42 min
516: Evolving Agent Session Management
James and Frank unpack AI-driven development shifts—agent SDKs, session management, and the rise of agent-first UIs like Google’s anti-gravity and GitHub Copilot—showing how VS Code’s Agents window, worktrees, sub-sessions and tunnels help manage multi-repo cloud and local workflows. They share practical takeaways—why SDKs are essential, when to stay code-first, how subsessions and remote tunnels protect your machine, and what to watch for in sandboxing and integration gaps.
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May 18 · 44 min
515: Mini-LED, IPS, and the Great Monitor Rabbit Hole
James and Frank share thrift‑store monitor triumphs (and a retro Wii audio nightmare) before diving into a no‑nonsense guide to buying displays: what ports, VESA mounts, and speakers really matter. They demystify HDR, mini‑LED vs OLED, refresh‑rate math (why 40/120Hz divides matter), and modern upscaling—plus the surprising developer headaches of getting HDR to actually work. Practical tips and geeky fun for anyone shopping or building.
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May 11 · 55 min
514: Running Local LLMs in VS Code
In this episode James and Frank dive into running AI coding models locally versus in the cloud—BYOK/Open Router, VS Code’s chat/agent harness, model runners (Olama, vLLM), and the practicality of 27B models on a 3090 using 4‑bit quantization. They share hands-on takeaways—how recent engineering (MT/MTPLX) boosts inference to usable token rates, when auto model selection makes sense, cost and hardware trade‑offs, and why local models can liberate your workflow while still needing smarter, unified
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May 4 · 57 min
513: Agents Over Chat: The Future of Developer Workflows
James and Frank explore the future of developer workflows powered by AI agents, revealing how developers are shifting from coders to testers and product strategists. They dive into new research-planning-implementation cycles, GitHub's usage-based pricing changes, and why developers must think strategically about model choices and token costs. Plus, reflections on Apple's leadership transition and the need for bold hardware innovation.
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April 27 · 37 min
512: Does Matter Really Matter?
After a quick round of Apple dev updates, James and Frank dive into Matter — why Frank went from skeptic to devotee and why it’s poised to fix IoT chaos. They break down how Matter (an app-layer protocol running over Wi‑Fi/IPv6) and Thread (an open mesh transport) simplify secure onboarding with QR/Bluetooth, enable true interoperability across Apple/Google/Amazon, and make DIY devices easy to build and integrate.
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April 20 · 49 min
511: Terminals, Remote Sessions, No More Watches!
In episode 511 James and Frank dig into audio gear (why impedance matters and the pros/cons of hardware DSP and headphone high‑power modes), explore GitHub Copilot CLI's new Remote Sessions for mobile access to your local dev environment, and reveal a clever hack: MIDI‑over‑USB turns modern iPhones into reliable wired controllers for embedded hardware and robotics. Tune in for practical tips, safety notes on power/latency, and real‑world developer workflows.
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April 13 · 47 min
510: AI Agents: Claws, Copilot, GUI vs CLI Debate
James and Frank dig into the messy world of AI agents—Claudes, Copilots, “claws”—and why now is the wrong time to over-box these tools. They debate GUI vs. CLI futures, explain when AI should be invisible and baked into workflows, and warn about AI-produced “slop” and long-term maintenance. Plus, James’ Light Phone/e-ink experiment adds a practical take on simplicity and real-world tradeoffs.
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Showing 1–20 of 22 episodes