Author: Nic Raboy

TPDP Episode #8: Asynchronous and Event-Based Programming with RxJS

August 13, 2016 Nic Raboy

When it comes to modern JavaScript development, there are a few different ways to handle asynchronous events or data. You could use promises and callbacks, but as great as they are, present certain limitations. This is where RxJS comes into play with its reactive programming model. In this episode of The Polyglot Developer Podcast, guest speaker Ben Lesh and I discuss RxJS and where it fits in modern JavaScript development, whether it be server-side or front-end.

Ben Lesh is a senior software engineer at the very popular entertainment streaming company, Netflix. One of Ben’s projects at Netflix includes the development and maintenance of RxJS since it is heavily used by the company. In the eighth episode, Asynchronous and Event-Based Programming with RxJS we discuss everything from what is RxJS, how it was inspired, who is using it, and why you should use it over a few of the alternative methods. If you’ve ever heard of RxJava or Rx.NET, these projects share some similarities to RxJS.

Create An Amazon Alexa Skill Using Node.js And AWS Lambda

August 12, 2016 Nic Raboy

Recently I published my first skill for Amazon’s Alexa voice service called, BART Control. This skill used a variety of technologies and public APIs to become useful. In specific, I developed the skill with Node.js and the AWS Lambda service. However, what I mentioned is only a high level of what was done to make the Amazon Alexa skill possible. What must be done to get a functional skill that works on Amazon Alexa powered devices?

We’re going to see how to create a simple Amazon Alexa skill using Node.js and Lambda that works on various Alexa powered devices such as the Amazon Echo.

Converting Your Ionic Framework 1 Application To Ionic 2

August 10, 2016 Nic Raboy

Ionic Framework has been around for a few years now and has completely changed the way people develop hybrid mobile applications. With Angular out and Ionic 2 nearing stable release, the Ionic 1 and AngularJS predecessor will be a thing of the past and forgotten. What if you’ve gone all in with the first version of Ionic Framework, how do you convert to the latest and greatest?

We’re going to see how to take a simple Ionic Framework application and convert it to Ionic 2. While there will be similarities, the process is manual, but better in the long run.

Use Mozilla’s LocalForage For Key-Value Storage In Ionic 2

August 8, 2016 Nic Raboy

When it comes to saving data in an Ionic 2 mobile application, there are many ways to get the job done. You can use the classic HTML5 local storage, but run the risk of compatibility problems between all available devices. You can use SQLite, which is part of Ionic Native, but that will only work for Android and iOS and has more of a mobile API. You can also use SqlStorage, but that is a very proprietary solution. This brings us to localForage from Mozilla.

Mozilla advertises localForage as a wrapper to IndexedDB, WebSQL and localStorage which will offer maximum compatibility across the grid.

We’re going to see how to include localForage in our application which is a valid option for Ionic 2.

Using Couchbase Server In A Golang Web Application

August 5, 2016 Nic Raboy

Not too long ago I wrote an article regarding how to create a RESTful API using the Go programming language, but in it I only used mock data rather than an actual database. What happens if we want to use a database with Golang? What database, or more importantly, what kind of database should be used? Most APIs transfer data in JSON format, so it might make sense to store data in the same format. This means that a relational database might not make sense. Instead, NoSQL databases fit quite well when it comes to RESTful APIs. A popular NoSQL database that stores data in JSON format is the open source Couchbase Server.

We’re going to take a look at how to include Couchbase Server into our RESTful web application written in the Go programming language.

Using SqlStorage Instead Of SQLite In An Ionic 2 App

August 3, 2016 Nic Raboy

When it comes to Ionic 2 there are many ways that you can store your data. For example you could use HTML5 local storage, Mozilla’s localForage library, or Ionic’s SQLite extension that is part of Ionic Native. With these options available, I get a lot of requests for information on Ionic’s less advertised SqlStorage option.

We’re going to take a look at using SqlStorage in an Android and iOS application rather than the SQLite alternative.

Connect To Multiple Wireless Networks With A Raspberry Pi

August 1, 2016 Nic Raboy

So I recently picked up some more Raspberry Pi 3 units. You’re probably thinking I’m building my own T1000 (Terminator reference) with these things. No, actually I got these units for work to play around with some IoT projects around the office at Couchbase. I have a few offices that I visit at Couchbase which brought up my need to have multiple possible wireless networks to connect to as I travel. These are headless units so I’m not connecting to them with a mouse and keyboard.

Now one would imagine that I can just add a bunch of networks to a configuration file in Linux, but that wasn’t the case. There are special configurations that must be done to allow the Raspberry Pi to automatically connect to different wireless networks as they become available.

We’re going to see how to add multiple WiFi network SSIDs to a Raspberry Pi operating with Raspbian so it can automatically connect as they become in range.