News Aggregator

How To Configure A ‘Kerberized’ Kafka Deployment For ClickHouse

Aggregated on: Tue Sep 05 2023 18:31:40 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)

Kerberos is a secure authentication protocol for networked systems. It was developed at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and was first released in the 1980s. The protocol provides secure authentication of users and services, allowing them to communicate over an insecure network such as the Internet. Kerberos uses secret-key cryptography to secure communications and relies on a trusted third-party authentication server known as the Key Distribution Center (KDC). One implementation of Kerberos is Microsoft’s Active Directory, a.k.a. AD, which provides centralized authentication and authorization. Active Directory uses Kerberos to provide single sign-on capabilities for Windows-based computers, allowing users to access network resources with a single set of credentials. In addition to managing user and computer accounts, Active Directory also includes features such as group policy, trust relationships, and the ability to integrate with other directory services such as LDAP and NIS. Also, AD allows users to integrate the authentication of external services like Kafka or ClickHouse.

7 Essential Software Quality Metrics for Project Success

Aggregated on: Tue Sep 05 2023 18:31:40 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)

Let's talk about something crucial in software projects—software quality metrics. These metrics can help us ensure our projects are successful and meet the needs of the people using them. In this article, our primary purpose is to provide you with a comprehensive guide to the essential software quality metrics that can significantly contribute to the success of your project. We want you to walk away with a solid understanding of these metrics so you can make well-informed decisions and ensure the best outcomes for your projects.

Getting Started With the IBM App Connect Public API

Aggregated on: Tue Sep 05 2023 18:31:40 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)

If you are looking to create App Connect resources programmatically or provide your own monitoring and administration capabilities, this article offers an introduction to using the public API, with a worked example using Bash for those looking to get started. With the App Connect public API, you can programmatically perform the following tasks:

What Is Langchain And Large Language Models?

Aggregated on: Tue Sep 05 2023 17:46:40 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)

If you're a developer or simply someone passionate about technology, you've likely encountered AI tools such as ChatGPT. These utilities are powered by advanced large language models (LLMs). Interested in taking it up a notch by crafting your own LLM-based applications? If so, LangChain is the platform for you. Let's keep everything aside and understand about LLMs first. Then, we can go over LangChain with a simple tutorial. Sounds interesting enough? Let's get going.

The 10 Laws of Testing

Aggregated on: Tue Sep 05 2023 17:31:40 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)

Words we as developers should live by: “Quality comes not from inspection, but from the improvement of the production process.” — W. Edwards Deming Axiom: “Tests are code.” Too many organizations treat anything that isn’t coded as disposable. It is obvious that testing is indispensable, yet time and time again we find teams who treat test automation and related material as second-class citizens. The tests are documents of user behaviour, inextricably linked to the requirements produced by the Product organization and connected at the virtual hip to the code used to create the feature. If it provides value, it should be versioned, maintained, cared for, and respected as though it were a core feature of the product itself. This should include test case specifications, design and technical documentation, and bug reports.

Creating a Custom Starter With Spring Boot 3

Aggregated on: Tue Sep 05 2023 17:31:40 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)

Starters are an integral part of the Spring Boot application. In addition to dependency versioning, they provide the ability to describe the configuration for a particular functionality. They gained their popularity due to the development of microservice architecture. When we have dozens or hundreds of services within one application, some of the functionality is not duplicated. For example, we need to connect the cache, database, logging etc. In order not to duplicate the same configuration every time, we simply add the starter as a dependency to our microservice, and Spring recognizes all our configurations. We will try to create our own simple starter on Spring Boot 3. There have been some changes in it compared to the second version. Our starter will have the simplest functionality, namely to output a message to the console when our application starts. We create a project through spring initializer, which we will call according to the custom-spring-boot-starter convention

Component Library With Lerna Monorepo, Vite, and Storybook

Aggregated on: Tue Sep 05 2023 17:01:40 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)

Building components and reusing them across different packages led me to conclude that it is necessary to organize the correct approach for the content of these projects in a single structure. Building tools should be the same, including testing environment, lint rules, and efficient resource allocation for component libraries. I was looking for tools that could bring me efficient and effective ways to build robust, powerful combinations. As a result, a formidable trio emerged. In this article, we will create several packages with all those tools.

AI in Edge Computing: Implementing Algorithms to Enhance Real-Time

Aggregated on: Tue Sep 05 2023 17:01:40 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)

Edge computing is a transformative approach that places computation near data sources such as IoT devices, sensors, and network switches. This localized processing paradigm has gained traction in various fields, and its integration with Artificial Intelligence (AI) is revolutionizing real-time decision-making. Below, we explore how AI and edge computing are converging to enable faster and more efficient processing, specifically in the context of Internet of Things (IoT) devices. The Emergence of AI in Edge Computing The traditional model of processing data in centralized cloud servers has been challenged by the explosion of data generated by IoT devices. Transferring enormous volumes of data to a centralized location for processing increases latency and raises concerns about bandwidth usage and security. AI in edge computing emerged as a solution to these challenges, bringing intelligent decision-making directly to the source of data generation.

How To Learn Software Development Without a Degree

Aggregated on: Tue Sep 05 2023 16:31:40 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)

Software development has become one of the most sought-after skills. The demand for skilled software developers continues to grow, and many aspiring individuals are eager to learn this skill even if they don't have a formal degree in computer science or a related field. If you are passionate about software development and wondering how to get started without a degree, this article is here to guide you. We will explore various strategies and resources that can help you embark on a successful journey into the world of software development. Understand the Basics Before diving into the complexities of software development, it is essential to understand the fundamentals. Familiarize yourself with programming languages like Python, Java, JavaScript, or Ruby. Online tutorials and interactive coding platforms can be incredibly beneficial in this regard. You can learn about data structures, algorithms, and basic coding principles to build a solid foundation.

The Role of JavaScript in Front-End and Back-End Development

Aggregated on: Tue Sep 05 2023 13:46:40 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)

JavaScript: the versatile programming language that's at the heart of modern web development. When it comes to both front-end and back-end development, JavaScript plays a pivotal role in shaping the digital landscape. In this article, we'll delve into the significance of JavaScript in these two spheres while also drawing comparisons to another powerhouse, PHP. Let's embark on a journey through the world of web development and explore how JavaScript has redefined the way we create and experience digital content. Introduction to JavaScript and its Evolution JavaScript, often abbreviated as JS, was introduced in the mid-1990s as a scripting language for web pages. Over the years, it has undergone significant evolution, emerging as a robust and multifunctional language that not only enhances user interfaces but also powers server-side applications.

Defect vs. Bug – The Key Differences

Aggregated on: Tue Sep 05 2023 13:46:40 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)

There would be no software engineer, QA engineer, or IT professional in the industry who has not heard the terms "bug" and "defect." However, how many of them know the difference between a bug and a defect? You might say that both terms mean almost the same thing. But that would be incorrect. In this article, we are going to have a look at what defects and bugs are, how defects and bugs differ from each other, and how they affect the software development process. What Is a Bug? A bug is a coding error a developer makes during the coding phase of the software application. A bug can be a syntax error or a logical error in the code that will give you incorrect results or break the application. A bug is a term usually used during the software development life cycle. For example, when a software tester detects an issue in the application, he/she will report it to the developer as a bug.

Develop XR With Oracle, Ep. 6: AI Summarizer + Generator

Aggregated on: Tue Sep 05 2023 12:46:40 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)

In this sixth article of the series, we describe and provide the full source for a mixed reality app that takes any visual and audio input from a user's surroundings, processes it with various AI, and returns output of summaries, results of generative AI, etc. This is the sixth piece in a series on developing XR applications and experiences using Oracle and focuses on visual and audio input from a user's surroundings, processing it with various AI, and returning output of summaries, results of generative AI, etc. Find the links to the first five articles below:

Navigation the Testing Challenges of Global Migration to ISO 20022

Aggregated on: Tue Sep 05 2023 04:01:40 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)

In today's fast-paced financial landscape, where seamless data exchange is crucial for operational efficiency, the adoption of ISO 20022 has emerged as a global standard for financial messaging. While the advantages of ISO 20022 are widely recognized, the migration process presents numerous challenges for organizations, particularly when it comes to testing. In this article, we will explore how the migration to ISO 20022 globally affects testing and the strategies organizations can employ to overcome these hurdles.

Topology Spread Constraints for Increased Cluster Availability and Efficiency

Aggregated on: Tue Sep 05 2023 03:31:40 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)

Running a large-scale application serving customers across multiple regions can be challenging. You can use different methods to control the Kubernetes scheduler, but if you long for high availability and efficiency across different failure domains, it’s time to explore topology spread constraints. Optimizing performance and availability can be tricky even when your systems don’t comprise numerous data centers across different countries or continents. Node Selector, Node Affinity, Pod Affinity, and Anti-affinity can help you tame the Kubernetes scheduler, but they may be insufficient for setups with multiple failure domains like regions, zones, and nodes.

This Is How You Automate Creation of Recurring Tickets in Jira

Aggregated on: Tue Sep 05 2023 03:16:40 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)

Jira is a pretty powerful tool when it comes to automating recurring processes. You can easily automate Jira ticket creation, for example. The whole process probably wouldn’t take longer than ten minutes to set up, especially when you know what you are doing and you follow Jira best practices. Let’s say you need to make a monthly report on the performance of your blog. You’ll need to check total traffic, conversions, time on page, etc. Jira allows you to set up certain automation rules that will automatically create a ticket on the date you’ve set up.

Exploring the Basics of EMQX MQTT Broker Clustering: An Introduction

Aggregated on: Mon Sep 04 2023 18:31:40 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)

Welcome to the first post in our new series exploring the world of MQTT broker clustering. If you're involved in the IoT (Internet of Things) space or have embarked on any journey involving real-time data transfer, you've probably come across MQTT (Message Queuing Telemetry Transport). MQTT is a lightweight, publish-subscribe network protocol that transports messages between devices, often known as the backbone for IoT.

Taking the Fear Out of Migrations

Aggregated on: Mon Sep 04 2023 17:01:40 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)

Over the last 18 months at incident.io, we’ve done a lot of migrations. Often, a new feature requires a change to our existing data model. For us to be successful, it’s important that we can seamlessly transition from the old world to the new as quickly as we can. There are few things in software where I’d advocate a ‘one true way,’ but the closest I come is probably migrations. There’s a playbook that we follow to give us the best odds of a smooth switchover: Make the new data models. Write to both the old and the new model. Start reading from the new model. Drop the old data model. A Worked Example Last year, we introduced customizable incident statuses. Before that, our statuses were hard coded as strings (investigating, fixing, monitoring, closed). There was a database column status which, for each incident, contained one of those four strings. We wanted to move to a world where customers could choose their own statuses, both renaming them and choosing how many they wanted. So how did we do this? 1. Make the New Data Models We’ve got to agree on the target data model: what the new world will look like. We need a new table to represent the statuses configured against each organization: incident_statuses, and a column on our incidents table to store which status it’s currently in: incident_status_id.

Part 4: Validating CDC Messages With Schemaverse

Aggregated on: Mon Sep 04 2023 16:16:40 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)

This is part four of a series of blog posts on building a modern event-driven system using Memphis.dev. In the previous two blog posts (part 2 and part 3), we described how to implement a change data capture (CDC) pipeline for MongoDB using Debezium Server and Memphis.dev.

The Ultimate Guide to API vs. SDK: What’s the Difference and How To Use Them?

Aggregated on: Mon Sep 04 2023 15:31:40 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)

First, let’s figure out the terms we are using and why API vs SDK are even paired together. What Is an API? API (an acronym for Application Programming Interface) is an interface that enables intercommunication between two applications. It includes a standardized set of rules that define how this interaction can undergo, i.e., what kind of information to exchange, what actions to carry out, etc.

Single-Tenant vs. Multi-Tenant Architecture: Breaking Down the Key Differences

Aggregated on: Mon Sep 04 2023 14:31:40 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)

SaaS applications and services are at the core of today’s businesses, and a quick glance at the market indicates that this trend isn’t going to stop anytime soon. Gartner forecasts that SaaS spending will reach $197 billion in 2023, up 17.9% from last year, with another 17.7% growth expected in 2024 to $232 billion. Furthermore, the average number of SaaS applications used by organizations worldwide reached 130 in 2022, up from 80 in 2020 and just 16 in 2017. As the number of SaaS products and vendors continues to grow, one of the most important decisions they need to make is how to seamlessly and successfully deliver their software to their customer base.

Introduction to the Graph Data Structure

Aggregated on: Mon Sep 04 2023 13:31:40 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)

Graph data structure is a fundamental concept in computer science and mathematics that models relationships between objects. A graph consists of vertices or nodes connected by edges, which represent the relationships between the vertices. Graphs are used in various applications, such as network design, social network analysis, and recommendation systems. In this article, we will explore the graph data structure, its features, and its usage in programming. Features of Graph Data Structure The graph data structure has some essential features that make it an excellent choice for modeling relationships between objects. Some of the key features of the graph data structure are:

What’s a Merge Queue and Why Use It?

Aggregated on: Sun Sep 03 2023 12:01:39 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)

That’s a good question, isn’t it? Indeed, if it was only a little-known term a few months ago, merge queues are more and more talked about. Between announcements from leaders like GitHub and real technical solutions, merge queues are increasingly adopted by software development teams. You will therefore dive into this topic to understand what a merge queue is, in what situations they are useful but also how they work in practice.

Introduction to the Map Data Structure

Aggregated on: Sat Sep 02 2023 17:31:39 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)

Maps are a fundamental data structure used in computer science to store and organize data in an efficient way. Maps store a collection of key-value pairs, which allows you to retrieve a value based on its associated key. This makes them particularly useful when you have large datasets and need to quickly access specific pieces of information. The implementation of maps varies depending on the programming language and are frequently used in Python, Java, and JavaScript. A map is implemented as a dictionary in Python, whereas it is implemented as a hashmap in Java. Despite these variations, the fundamental ideas behind maps are the same.

12 Agile Principles for Successful Agile Development Practices

Aggregated on: Sat Sep 02 2023 17:16:39 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)

Injecting Agile software development principles into your SDLC helps unlock greater adaptability, agility, performance, and value for all stakeholders — customers, organizations, and investors. As per a report, 72% of people are very satisfied or somewhat satisfied with adopting Agile development practices. But the remaining are not that happy with the outcomes. 42% quote inadequate leadership participation as the barrier to successful agile delivery. Conflict with the existing organizational culture, resistance to change, heterogeneous SDLC practices, and insufficient training and experience are some other challenges staring into the eyes of those who aspire to go agile.

When Is the Right Time to Scale Your Digital Product?

Aggregated on: Sat Sep 02 2023 16:46:38 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)

Your digital product is thriving, and you're witnessing the fruits of your effort. But now, you face a critical decision: When is the right time to scale? Scaling can be both exhilarating and nerve-wracking, as it can unlock untapped potential and unprecedented growth. However, leaping too soon or hesitating too long can result in missed opportunities and a halt in progress. This article will guide you through the maze of uncertainty with practical insights and expert advice. You will learn to spot the telltale signs that scream "Go big!" and how to overcome the obstacles that may stand in your way. Prepare to take your digital product to soaring new heights — the perfect time to scale is now!

Exploring the World of Artificial Intelligence: A Beginner’s Guide

Aggregated on: Fri Sep 01 2023 22:16:38 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)

“I believe that at the end of the century the use of words and general educated opinion will have altered so much that one will be able to speak of machines thinking without expecting to be contradicted” — Alan Turing, 1947 (Father of Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence)

Architecting TDD for Services

Aggregated on: Fri Sep 01 2023 22:16:38 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)

Beyond Unit Testing Test-driven development (TDD) is a well-regarded technique for an improved development process, whether developing new code or fixing bugs. First, write a test that fails, then get it to work minimally, then get it to work well; rinse and repeat. The process keeps the focus on value-added work and leverages the test process as a challenge to improving the design being tested rather than only verifying its behavior. This, in turn, also improves the quality of your tests, which become a more valued part of the overall process rather than a grudgingly necessary afterthought. The common discourse on TDD revolves around testing relatively small, in-process units, often just a single class. That works great, but what about the larger 'deliverable' units? When writing a microservice, it's the services that are of primary concern, while the various smaller implementation constructs are simply enablers for that goal. Testing of services is often thought of as outside the scope of a developer working within a single codebase. Such tests are often managed separately, perhaps by a separate team, using different tools and languages. This often makes such tests opaque and of lower quality and adds inefficiencies by requiring a commit/deploy as well as coordination with a separate team.

Generative AI: Innovating Ethically and Creatively for Seamless Data Transfer

Aggregated on: Fri Sep 01 2023 21:46:38 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)

Generative AI refers to a category of artificial intelligence techniques that involve generating new data, such as images, text, audio, and more, based on patterns learned from existing data. Generative models like Generative Adversarial Networks (GANs) and Variational Auto-Encoders (VAEs) have demonstrated remarkable capabilities in generating realistic and diverse data for various purposes, including data collection. Leverage Generative AI for Data Collection Data Augmentation Generative models can create new samples that closely resemble your existing data. By incorporating these generated samples into your training data, you can improve your model's performance and resilience, particularly in tasks such as image classification and object detection.

Janus vs. MediaSoup: The Ultimate Guide To Choosing Your WebRTC Server

Aggregated on: Fri Sep 01 2023 21:46:38 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)

When building real-time multimedia applications, the choice of server technology is pivotal. Two big players in this space are Janus and MediaSoup, both enabling WebRTC capabilities but doing so in distinctly different ways. This comprehensive guide aims to provide a deep dive into the architecture, code examples, and key differentiators of each, helping you make an informed choice for your next project. The Role of a WebRTC Server Before diving into the specifics, let’s clarify what a WebRTC server does. Acting as the middleman in real-time web applications, a WebRTC server manages a plethora of tasks like signaling, NAT traversal, and media encoding/decoding. The choice of server can significantly affect the performance, scalability, and flexibility of your application.

LLM-Powered OLAP: The Ten Cent Experience With Apache Doris

Aggregated on: Fri Sep 01 2023 21:31:38 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)

Six months ago, I wrote about why we replaced ClickHouse with Apache Doris as an OLAP engine for our data management system. Back then, we were struggling with the auto-generation of SQL statements. As days pass, we have made progress big enough to be referenced for you (I think), so here I am again. We have adopted Large Language Models (LLM) to empower our Doris-based OLAP services.

Data Tiering in SAP HANA Cloud-Native Storage Extension

Aggregated on: Fri Sep 01 2023 21:16:38 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)

In HANA Cloud, data can be stored in three categories. HOT, WARM, and COLD. HOT data is the data that resides in memory and is expensive. WARM data is the data that resides in the disk COLD data is the data that resides in a Data Lake. In this article, we will explain how we can move data to a disk and what the steps are that need to be performed to be able to move data into the DISK.

Emitting Protocol Buffers Using CockroachDB CDC Queries

Aggregated on: Fri Sep 01 2023 20:16:38 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)

Previous Articles on CockroachDB CDC Using CockroachDB CDC with Apache Pulsar Using CockroachDB CDC with Azure Event Hubs Using CockroachDB CDC with Confluent Cloud Kafka and Schema Registry SaaS Galore: Integrating CockroachDB With Confluent Kafka, Fivetran, and Snowflake CockroachDB CDC Using Minio as Cloud Storage Sink - Part 3 CockroachDB CDC using Hadoop Ozone S3 Gateway as cloud storage sink Motivation Protocol Buffers are language-neutral, platform-neutral extensible mechanisms for serializing structured data. It's a common choice for platforms needing to pass messages between systems. CockroachDB is a distributed SQL database built on a transactional and strongly-consistent key-value store. It scales horizontally; survives disk, machine, rack, and even datacenter failures with minimal latency disruption and no manual intervention; supports strongly consistent ACID transactions; and provides a familiar SQL API for structuring, manipulating, and querying data. There is no official support for Protocol Buffers in CockroachDB Changefeeds, even though we use Protocol Buffers extensively in the code. A recent customer conversation led to this experiment where I'm going to use several recent features to demonstrate the ability to serialize CockroachDB rows to proto and emit via CDC Queries. This is the first time we're looking at CDC Queries. This is a new flexible way to express CockroachDB streams.

The Power of AI: Why Web Developers Still Reign Supreme

Aggregated on: Fri Sep 01 2023 20:16:38 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)

Artificial Intelligence (AI) has emerged as a powerful tool in various fields, and web development is no exception. With its ability to analyze data, automate processes, and enhance user experiences, AI has revolutionized the way websites are created and maintained. In this article, we will explore the benefits of incorporating AI in web development, the popular AI technologies used by web developers, and how AI enhances the user experience on websites.

An Approach To Construct Curated Processed Dataset for Data Analytics

Aggregated on: Fri Sep 01 2023 19:46:38 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)

Organizations in today’s world have increased focus on data as a tool to perform various kinds of profound analysis to extract vital outcomes, which will help organizations make the right decision to define future strategies. For the success of an organization in today’s world, having the right data processing strategy on all the organization’s data to harness and extract different kinds of perspectives and information is becoming paramount to the success of the organization.

Quix Streams: Stream Processing With Kafka and Python

Aggregated on: Fri Sep 01 2023 19:31:38 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)

Over 100,000 organizations use Apache Kafka for data streaming. However, there is a problem: The broad ecosystem lacks a mature client framework and managed cloud service for Python data engineers. Quix Streams is a new technology on the market trying to close this gap. This blog post discusses this Python library, its place in the Kafka ecosystem, and when to use it instead of Apache Flink or other Python- or SQL-based substitutes. Why Python and Apache Kafka Together? Python is a high-level, general-purpose programming language. It has many use cases for scripting and development. But there is one fundamental purpose for its success: Data engineers and data scientists use Python. Period.

How To Measure Developer Productivity

Aggregated on: Fri Sep 01 2023 19:16:38 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)

Three primary methods for measuring team productivity are the SPACE framework, DORA metrics, and Goals/Signals/Metrics (GSM). The SPACE Framework for Team Productivity In a recent research paper by Nicole Forsgren and her colleagues, “The SPACE of Developer Productivity" (2021.), the authors defined a framework as a systematic approach to measuring, understanding, and optimizing engineering productivity. It encourages leaders to take a comprehensive approach to productivity, communicating measurements with one another and connecting them to team objectives. The five aspects are used to categorize engineering productivity, called the Space Framework.

Programming With AI

Aggregated on: Fri Sep 01 2023 18:31:38 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)

I recently discussed how we use Co-Pilot and ChatGPT for programming with some of my senior colleagues. We discussed our experiences, how and when it helps, and what to expect from it in the future. In this article, I will shortly write about what I imagine the future of programming with AI will be. This is not about what AI will do in programming in the future. I have no idea about that, and based on my mood, I either look forward amazed or in fear. This article is more about how we, programmers, will do our work in the future.

How To Build an AI/ML Feature Store With ScyllaDB NoSQL

Aggregated on: Fri Sep 01 2023 18:16:38 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)

Machine learning (ML) feature stores have been attracting attention and usage for business-critical applications ever since Uber introduced the concept with Michelangelo in 2017. In this blog post, we will delve into the fundamentals of ML feature stores and explore why and how ScyllaDB can be a critical part of your feature store architecture. In order to understand what feature stores are, it’s important first to understand what features are.

Are You an Efficient Developer? Then AI Is After Your Job

Aggregated on: Fri Sep 01 2023 17:31:38 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)

In my previous post, I wrote about finding your competitive advantage as a software developer in a world of encroaching AI. I believe there are a few questions more relevant in the coming decade, so I like to elaborate on the topic in this and my next postings. You can only maintain such a competitive advantage if you focus on tasks that humans by their very nature can do better than machines. There are two necessary properties of software development that illustrate and coincide with the relative strengths and weaknesses of humans versus computers They are efficiency and effectiveness, and will be the focus of today’s post. I give credit to Uwe Friedrichsen for pointing out this distinction in a recent blog.

How To Check Office Files for Macros Using Java

Aggregated on: Fri Sep 01 2023 16:46:38 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)

The Microsoft OpenXML files we use on a day-to-day basis are conveniently designed to be accessed and manipulated programmatically. We can jump into any OpenXML file structure in a variety of capacities (usually via specialized programming libraries or APIs) to easily manipulate objects within a document and/or retrieve important contents from its various sections. The flexibility afforded by Office document formats is, to an even greater extent, facilitated by macros. Using the Visual Basic for Applications (VBA) programming language - a specially designed version of the Visual Basic (VB) language - we can add a myriad of dynamic elements to our Office documents and allow our files to seamlessly connect with other applications in our system.

Revolutionizing Debugging: Exploring the Test Replay in Cypress

Aggregated on: Fri Sep 01 2023 13:46:38 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)

Founder of Cypress Brian Mann recently unveiled Test Replay, an innovative new tool that will revolutionize debugging in Cypress. The main points from the webinar are summarised in this post; if you're keen to learn more, you can access the complete recording on YouTube. Test Replay feature that the Cypress team has been working on to address debugging challenges in Continuous Integration (CI) environments. Test Replay is a powerful capability that allows you to replay and analyze test runs, making it easier to debug issues that may arise during CI testing. This is particularly beneficial because debugging in CI environments can be more challenging due to limited visibility and reproducibility.

Migrating Retrofit To Ktor

Aggregated on: Fri Sep 01 2023 13:31:38 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)

Communication between Android applications and servers is a critical aspect of application development, and choosing the right tool to perform this communication is fundamental. Until now, retrofit has been the standard for excellence.However, in recent years, an interesting alternative has emerged: Ktor Client. This library, developed by JetBrains entirely in Kotlin, offers a more modern and flexible way to make HTTP requests without relying on annotations, with a simpler and easier-to-understand syntax. Its plugins, such as authentication and serialization, exist as external dependencies, so you can install only the ones you need, making it a lightweight library. It is also cross-platform.

Rust and Scylla DB for Big Data

Aggregated on: Fri Sep 01 2023 13:01:38 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)

Do you ever wonder about a solution that you know or you wrote is the best solution, and nothing can beat that in the years to come? Well, it’s not quite how it works in the ever-evolving IT industry, especially when it comes to big data processing. From the days of Apache Spark and the evolution of Cassandra 3 to 4, the landscape has witnessed rapid changes. However, a new player has entered the scene that promises to dominate the arena with its unprecedented performance and benchmark results. Enter ScyllaDB, a rising star that has redefined the standards of big data processing. The Evolution of Big Data Processing To appreciate the significance of ScyllaDB, it’s essential to delve into the origins of big data processing. The journey began with the need to handle vast amounts of data efficiently. Over time, various solutions emerged, each addressing specific challenges. From the pioneering days of Hadoop to the distributed architecture of Apache Cassandra, the industry witnessed a remarkable evolution. Yet, each solution presented its own set of trade-offs, highlighting the continuous quest for the perfect balance between performance, consistency, and scalability. You can check here at the official website for benchmarks and comparisons with Cassandra and Dynamo DB.

Journey of AI to Generative AI and How It Works

Aggregated on: Thu Aug 31 2023 23:16:37 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)

In the last few years, cutting-edge technologies and services have drastically changed their directions, dynamics, and use cases. It is quite evident that the recent wave of global technology adoption by industries is overwhelmed by Artificial Intelligence (AI) and its various flavors. AI is becoming increasingly woven into the fabric of our everyday lives, changing the way we live and work. This article discusses the basics of AI/ML, its usage, the evolution of Generative AI, Prompt Engineering, and LangChain. What Are AI and ML? AI is the capability of simulating human intelligence and thought processes such as learning and problem-solving. It can perform complex tasks that historically could only be done by humans. Through AI, a non-human system uses mathematical and logical approaches to simulate the reasoning that people use for learning new information and making decisions.

Top Trends in AI-Based Application Testing You Need To Know

Aggregated on: Thu Aug 31 2023 22:46:37 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)

Engineering managers understand better than most the relentless pace at which the world of AI is evolving. You're likely tasked with integrating this technology into your offerings and making sure it all functions seamlessly to advance your business. Thankfully, with these AI advancements, new approaches to testing, automation, and quality assurance (QA) are also emerging, opening new doors to AI application testing.

Temporal Paradoxes: Multitasking at Its Finest

Aggregated on: Thu Aug 31 2023 22:46:37 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)

When computing started, it was relatively easy to reason about things as a single series of computations. It didn't take long, though, before we introduced the ability to compute more than one thing at a time. These days, we take for granted computers' ability to multitask. We know that it's because we have multiple cores, CPUs, and servers. Yet somehow, "single-threaded" things like JavaScript and Python are also able to "do more than one thing at a time." How? There are two different concepts at play here, often at the same time, often confused, yet entirely distinct: Parallelism and Concurrency.

Introduction to ESP32 for Beginners Using the Xedge32 Lua IDE

Aggregated on: Thu Aug 31 2023 22:16:37 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)

What Is the ESP32? The ESP32 is an incredible microcontroller developed by Espressif Systems. Based on its predecessor's legacy, the ESP8266, the ESP32 boasts dual-core processing capabilities, integrated Wi-Fi, and Bluetooth functionalities. Its rich features and cost-effectiveness make it a go-to choice for creating Internet of Things (IoT) projects, home automation devices, wearables, and more. What Is Xedge32? Xedge32, built upon the Barracuda App Server C Code Library, offers a comprehensive range of IoT protocols known as the "north bridge." Xedge32 extends the Barracuda App Server's Lua APIs and interfaces seamlessly with the ESP32's GPIOs, termed the "south bridge."

Coding Once, Thriving Everywhere: A Deep Dive Into .NET MAUI’s Cross-Platform Magic

Aggregated on: Thu Aug 31 2023 22:01:37 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)

Developed by Microsoft, the .NET MAUI (multi-platform app UI) is an open-source framework to build native mobile and desktop applications for multiple platforms, including Android, iOS, macOS, Windows, and more, and that too, using a single codebase. Unlike the Xamarin forms, where developers have to maintain a separate codebase for each targeted platform. An Overview of .NET Framework If you are aware of what .NET framework is and how it works, then you can skip this section and jump to “How It Works.”

Time-Travel Debugging Production Code

Aggregated on: Thu Aug 31 2023 21:46:37 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)

Normally, when we use debuggers, we set a breakpoint on a line of code, we run our code, execution pauses on our breakpoint, we look at values of variables, and maybe the call stack, and then we manually step forward through our code's execution. In time-travel debugging, also known as reverse debugging, we can step backward as well as forward. This is powerful because debugging is an exercise in figuring out what happened: traditional debuggers are good at telling you what your program is doing right now, whereas time-travel debuggers let you see what happened. You can wind back to any line of code that is executed and see the full program state at any point in your program’s history. History and Current State It all started with Smalltalk-76, developed in 1976 at Xerox PARC. It had the ability to retrospectively inspect checkpointed places in execution. Around 1980, MIT added a "retrograde motion" command to its DDT debugger, which gave a limited ability to move backward through execution. In a 1995 paper, MIT researchers released ZStep 95, the first true reverse debugger, which recorded all operations as they were performed and supported stepping backward, reverting the system to the previous state. However, it was a research tool and not widely adopted outside academia.

Deploy Kubernetes Resources in a Controlled and Orderly Manner

Aggregated on: Thu Aug 31 2023 20:31:37 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)

When deploying Kubernetes resources in a cluster, it is sometimes necessary to deploy them in a specific order. For example, a Custom Resource Definition (CRD) must exist before any custom resources of that type can be created. Sveltos can help you solve this problem by allowing you to specify the order in which Kubernetes resources are deployed.