When you're building a new app, you might not always need a separate caching system. For example, if your app is small and doesn't get a lot of traffic, its probably fine to just rely on the database. Also, if your data changes constantly, caching can actually cause more problems than it solves. Think about what kind of data you have and how often it updates. If accuracy is super important, like for financial transactions, then caching might not be the best idea either. Sometimes, simpler is better, and an extra layer just adds complexity you don't really need.

We always talk about how important caching is for system design, especially for speed and growth. Most of the time, folks jump to a dedicated caching system like Redis or Memcached. But sometimes, you gotta wonder, does all the extra work to set up and keep up with that layer actually pay off? Say an app doesn't get much traffic and people don't look at the data often, or maybe the data changes so much that caching it just doesn't help. I'd love to hear when you've decided to skip a separate cache and why. Are there times when a basic in-memory cache, right there in the app, is enough or even better?