Stop Claude Code's /chrome from opening the wrong browser

Stop Claude Code's /chrome from opening the wrong browser

Claude Code’s /chrome keeps opening Brave even though Edge is your default, Edge is running, and the extension is only installed in Edge. Turns out there’s a hard-coded browser priority list in the binary that ranks Brave above Edge - and no config override exists. Here’s the fix that actually works.

11 April 2026 · 6 min · 1238 words · Paul McIlreavy
The Chainsaw and the Axe

The Chainsaw and the Axe

Most development teams right now have two types of developer: the ones polishing the axe and the ones ripping through forests with a chainsaw. The person paying for the tree to come down doesn’t care which tool you use.

27 March 2026 · 11 min · 2137 words · Paul McIlreavy
Architecture Decision Records That People Actually Write and Read

Architecture Decision Records That People Actually Write and Read

Most teams either skip documenting architecture decisions entirely or create heavyweight documents everyone ignores. ADRs fix this - but only when they’re lightweight enough to write during the decision, structured enough to answer ‘why did we do that?’ six months later, and stored where people actually look. Here’s a practical approach with a template that sticks.

23 December 2025 · 10 min · 1929 words · Paul McIlreavy
Software Development: Engineering or Science?

Software Development: Engineering or Science?

Software development has more in common with scientific research than engineering. Using the Cynefin framework, this post looks at why building a bridge is a complicated problem, why building software is a complex one, and why that difference explains Waterfall’s failures and Agile’s fit.

28 January 2025 · 9 min · 1874 words · Paul McIlreavy
Allen Holub presenting at YOW! Brisbane 2024

Allen Holub @ YOW! Brisbane 2024

A brief summary of Allen Holub’s “Getting Buy-In: Overcoming Larman’s Law” at the YOW! Brisbane conference December 2024.

23 January 2025 · 5 min · 979 words · Paul McIlreavy