How I Choose a New Technology Without Getting Seduced by the Hype

(Confessions of a pragmatic techie in a world full of buzzwords)

Every year a new “revolutionary technology” appears, promising to change everything: 10x performance, infinite scalability, zero maintenance, flying unicorns, and maybe even a macchiato on the side.
If you’ve been in tech for a while, you know how it goes: the hype cycle ignites, LinkedIn timelines explode, the sales team lights up… and you, who live between Linux, metrics, and late-night incidents, develop instant hives.

That’s the beauty of being an old-school nerd: hype doesn’t impress you anymore.
But sometimes you still have to pretend to be impressed, just to keep the peace at work.

Yes, I know: you’ve been there too.

My “Anti-Hype Checklist”

Over the years I’ve built a simple method to avoid wasting months on technologies that are more marketing than substance.
Nothing academic—just pure technical survival.

Is there a real problem to solve?

If a technology doesn’t solve a concrete problem, it doesn’t exist for me.
I don’t care if “big tech uses it”: I want to know what they use it for.

Does it have a mature ecosystem?

Decent documentation, an active community, stable releases.
I can’t rely on a tool that breaks everything with every minor release.

What’s the real cost of adoption?

I’m not talking about license fees.
I mean the real cost:

• learning curve
• missing skills in the team
• availability of maintainers
• integration time

If onboarding requires a PhD, I’m out.

Does it integrate with what I already have?

The perfect technology that integrates with nothing… isn’t perfect.

If it dies tomorrow, how much does it hurt?

This is the most important question.
I’ve seen more technologies disappear than survive: I want to know if I can get out without losing a limb.

Is the ROI real or just brochure talk?

“10x performance” isn’t enough for me.
I want:

• fewer incidents
• lower costs
• more reliability
• less complexity

If it doesn’t improve at least one of these, it’s useless.

“Hype Compliance”: The Diplomatic Art of Fake Enthusiasm

The fun part of my job?
When someone comes back from an event saying:

“I saw this technology—we need to use it too!”

In those moments, I use a proven technique:

1. Show controlled enthusiasm.
   “Wow, yeah, interesting!” (without emotionally committing).

2