.NET Core
Blogs|Aug 30, 2018

Creating a Daemon with .NET Core (Part 2)

This little project is a practical implementation of a blog post I wrote about implementing daemons in .NET Core. This daemon is a .NET Core console app that is using a Generic Host to host an MQTT Server based on the code in MQTTNet, which has become my go-to library for MQTT for .NET apps…
Read More→
.NET Core
Blogs|Aug 13, 2018

Creating a Daemon with .NET Core (Part 1)

Daemons are as essential to servers as caffeine and pizza are to developers. The executables run as services on a server waiting to receive input usually from a network call, and respond to it by providing something back to the the user who called it.  .NET Core is the venerable cross-platform development stack for Linux,…
Read More→
Security
Docker|Jul 26, 2018

Security Best Practices for Docker Images

Docker Hub is a blessing and a curse at times. It’s a great way to share Docker images to the public, but it can be used by hackers to sneak code into environments with malicious intent. Recently, a hacker uploaded images into Docker Hub that were downloaded over 5,000,000 times. The intent was to turn…
Read More→
Burnt Computer
Blogs|Jul 26, 2018

Using Rclone with Azure for a Low-cost Backup

While backups are often one of the most overlooked planks in a comprehensive data security plan, they are are probably among the most important things one can do for data security. It’s works as an insurance policy against data loss which can be caused by a myriad of things ranging from accidental deletion, to drive…
Read More→
OpenVPN
Azure, Mobile and Cloud Computing|Jun 27, 2018

Using OpenVPN on Azure For a Low Cost, Private VPN

A personal VPN is a nice way of securing traffic between your device and the Internet. Securing your traffic is good for several reasons including safe browsing when one is away from a trusted network like one’s home or office. Untrusted networks would be those at coffee shops, airports, hotels, public libraries, and other places…
Read More→
Blockchain
Blogs|Jun 15, 2018

Is Blockchain Interest Really Low?

Gartner’s 2018 CIO survey had some pretty damning information when it came to blockchain technology. According to the survey, CIO’s in general have very little to no interest in blockchain technology. The media naturally noticed this and reported it as a wet blanket being thrown on the blockchain hype. Something about this though did not…
Read More→
Blockchain
.NET|Jun 7, 2018

Interfacing .NET and Ethereum Blockchain Smart Contracts with Nethereum

.NET is the venerable framework that indie and enterprise developers alike have come to love. The ability to choose a variety of languages as well as deploy to a variety of platforms ranging from mobile to servers makes .NET a great choice for all kinds of applications. While .NET does a lot, it doesn’t do…
Read More→
Blockchain
Blockchain|May 2, 2018

Chip Off The Ol’ Blockchain – Chip 2: Deploy a Smart Contract

Most people have probably heard about blockchains and even fewer people probably understand how they actually work. But even so, what makes blockchain technology itself so appealing is not about what you can do with the blockchain itself, rather what you can do with Smart Contracts. Smart Contracts, or “distributed apps” or “DApps” as they…
Read More→
JavaScript
Tutorials|Apr 12, 2018

How To Do Data Binding in Pure JavaScript

Data binding for modern applications is about as fundamental as addition is to mathematics. To write any major application without it would seem absurd. An related to data binding is one of the most fundamental architectural patterns that has birth dozens of progeny, the Model-View-Controller pattern. I wanted to write this post not as an…
Read More→
Blockchain
Blogs|Apr 4, 2018

Chip Off The Ol’ Blockchain: What is a Blockchain? Part 1

Blockchain – just the word seems to stir up confusion.  Because there is so much confusion surrounding blockchain, it’s often hard to get clarity about what it really is and how it works. Blockchain is not that complicated, rather it’s remarkably simple. And moreover it has the potential to fundamentally change the way that businesses…
Read More→
Blogs|Mar 12, 2018

Implement a CAPTCHA with Azure Functions

CAPTCHA’s are those things that site administrators love because they stop comment and form spam but user hate because they are impossible to read. Regardless though, they have become a mainstay in Internet usage, particularly on websites that allow for unauthenticated feedback. CAPTCHA’s are intended to prevent automated responses from computers by generating a test that…
Read More→