Enhance your skills in expert module development, deployment, security, DevOps, and cloud Key Features *A step-by-step guide to get you started with PowerShell Core 6.0 *Harness the capabilities of PowerShell Core 6.0 to perform simple to complex administration tasks *Learn core administrative concepts such as scripting, pipelines, and DSC Book Description Beginning with an overview of the different versions of PowerShell, Learn PowerShell Core 6.0 introduces you to VSCode and then dives into helping you understand the basic techniques in PowerShell scripting. You will cover advanced coding techniques, learn how to write reusable code as well as store and load data with PowerShell. This book will help you understand PowerShell security and Just Enough Administration, enabling you to create your own PowerShell repository. The last set of chapters will guide you in setting up, configuring, and working with Release Pipelines in VSCode and VSTS, and help you understand PowerShell DSC. In addition to this, you will learn how to use PowerShell with Windows, Azure, Microsoft Online Services, SCCM, and SQL Server. The final chapter will provide you with some use cases and pro tips. By the end of this book, you will be able to create professional reusable code using security insight and knowledge of working with PowerShell Core 6.0 and its most important capabilities. What you will learn *Get to grips with Powershell Core 6.0 *Explore basic and advanced PowerShell scripting techniques *Get to grips with Windows PowerShell Security *Work with centralization and DevOps with PowerShell *Implement PowerShell in your organization through real-life examples *Learn to create GUIs and use DSC in production Who this book is for If you are a Windows administrator or a DevOps user who wants to leverage PowerShell to automate simple to complex tasks, then this book is for you. Whether you know nothing about PowerShell or just enough to get by, this guide will give you what you need to go to take your scripting to the next level. You’ll also find this book useful if you’re a PowerShell expert looking to expand your knowledge in areas such as PowerShell Security and DevOps.

Build rich and collaborative applications using client-side code with React, Redux, and Firebase About This Book ? A practical guide covering the full stack for web development with React 16 and Firebase ? Leverage the power of Firebase Cloud Storage, messaging, functions, OAuth, and database security to develop serverless web applications. ? Develop high-performance applications without the hassle of setting up complex web infrastructure. Who This Book Is For This book is for JavaScript developers who have some previous knowledge of React and want to develop serverless, full-stack applications but without the hassle of setting up a complex infrastructure. What You Will Learn ? Install powerful React.js and Firebase tools to make development much more efficient ? Create React components with Firebase to save and retrieve the data in real-time ? Use Firebase Authentication to make your React user interface secure ? Develop React and Firebase applications with Redux integration ? Firebase database security rules ? Firebase Cloud Storage Integration to upload and store data on the cloud ? Create a complete real-time application with React and firebase ? Using Firebase Cloud messaging and Cloud functions with React ? Firebase Cloud Storage integration with React In Detail ReactJS is a wonderful framework for UI development. Firebase as a backend with React is a great choice as it is easy, powerful, and provides great developer experience. It removes a lot of boilerplate code from your app and allows you to focus on your app to get it out quickly to users. Firebase with React is also a good choice for Most Viable Product (MVP) development. This book provides more practical insights rather than just theoretical concepts and includes basic to advanced examples – from hello world to a real-time seat booking app and Helpdesk application This book will cover the essentials of Firebase and React.js and will take you on a fast-paced journey through building real-time applications with Firebase features such as Cloud Storage, Cloud Function, Hosting and the Realtime Database. We will learn how to secure our application by using Firebase authentication and database security rules. We will leverage the power of Redux to organize data in the front-end, since Redux attempts to make state mutations predictable by imposing certain restrictions on how and when updates can happen. Towards the end of the book you will have improved your React skills by realizing the potential of Firebase to create real-time serverless web applications. Style and approach Practical insights rather than just theoretical concepts while including basic to advanced examples – from hello world to a real-time seat booking app and Helpdesk application.

Combine the power of analytics and cloud computing for faster and efficient insights About This Book ? Master the concept of analytics on the cloud: and how organizations are using it ? Learn the design considerations and while applying a cloud analytics solution ? Design an end-to-end analytics pipeline on the cloud Who This Book Is For This book is targeted at CIOs, CTOs, and even analytics professionals looking for various alternatives to implement their analytics pipeline on the cloud. Data professionals looking to get started with cloud-based analytics will also find this book useful. Some basic exposure to cloud platforms such as GCP will be helpful, but not mandatory. What You Will Learn ? Explore the basics of cloud analytics and the major cloud solutions ? Learn how organizations are using cloud analytics to improve the ROI ? Explore the design considerations while adopting cloud services ? Work with the ingestion and storage tools of GCP such as Cloud Pub/Sub ? Process your data with tools such as Cloud Dataproc, BigQuery, etc ? Over 70 GCP tools to build an analytics engine for cloud analytics ? Implement machine learning and other AI techniques on GCP In Detail With the ongoing data explosion, more and more organizations all over the world are slowly migrating their infrastructure to the cloud. These cloud platforms also provide their distinct analytics services to help you get faster insights from your data. This book will give you an introduction to the concept of analytics on the cloud, and the different cloud services popularly used for processing and analyzing data. If you’re planning to adopt the cloud analytics model for your business, this book will help you understand the design and business considerations to be kept in mind, and choose the best tools and alternatives for analytics, based on your requirements. The chapters in this book will take you through the 70+ services available in Google Cloud Platform and their implementation for practical purposes. From ingestion to processing your data, this book contains best practices on building an end-to-end analytics pipeline on the cloud by leveraging popular concepts such as machine learning and deep learning. By the end of this book, you will have a better understanding of cloud analytics as a concept as well as a practical know-how of its implementation Style and approach Comprehensive guide with a perfect blend of theory, examples, and implementation of real-world use-cases

Get started with designing your serverless application using optimum design patterns and industry standard practices About This Book ? Learn the details of popular software patterns and how they are applied to serverless applications ? Understand key concepts and components in serverless designs ? Walk away with a thorough understanding of architecting serverless applications Who This Book Is For If you're a software architect, engineer, or someone who wants to build serverless applications, which are non-trivial in complexity and scope, then this book is for you. Basic knowledge of programming and serverless computing concepts are assumed. What You Will Learn ? Comprehend the popular design patterns currently being used with serverless architectures ? Understand the various design options and corresponding implementations for serverless web application APIs ? Learn multiple patterns for data-intensive serverless systems and pipelines, including MapReduce and Lambda Architecture ? Learn how to leverage hosted databases, queues, streams, storage services, and notification services ? Understand error handling and system monitoring in a serverless architecture a serverless architecture ? Learn how to set up a serverless application for continuous integration, continuous delivery, and continuous deployment In Detail Serverless applications handle many problems that developers face when running systems and servers. The serverless pay-per-invocation model can also result in drastic cost savings, contributing to its popularity. While it's simple to create a basic serverless application, it's critical to structure your software correctly to ensure it continues to succeed as it grows. Serverless Design Patterns and Best Practices presents patterns that can be adapted to run in a serverless environment. You will learn how to develop applications that are scalable, fault tolerant, and well-tested. The book begins with an introduction to the different design pattern categories available for serverless applications. You will learn the trade-offs between GraphQL and REST and how they fare regarding overall application design in a serverless ecosystem. The book will also show you how to migrate an existing API to a serverless backend using AWS API Gateway. You will learn how to build event-driven applications using queuing and streaming systems, such as AWS Simple Queuing Service (SQS) and AWS Kinesis. Patterns for data-intensive serverless application are also explained, including the lambda architecture and MapReduce. This book will equip you with the knowledge and skills you need to develop scalable and resilient serverless applications confidently. Style and approach Readers will be taken through a set of specific software patterns and learn, in detail, how to apply these patterns and build working software on top of a serverless system. At each step along the way, the reader will learn about the subcomponents and subsystems which comprise the larger system and which may be used in the future to solve different types of challenges.

Create succinct and expressive implementations with functional programming in Python About This Book ? Learn how to choose between imperative and functional approaches based on expressiveness, clarity, and performance ? Get familiar with complex concepts such as monads, concurrency, and immutability ? Apply functional Python to common Exploratory Data Analysis (EDA) programming problems Who This Book Is For This book is for Python developers who would like to perform Functional programming with Python. Python Programming knowledge is assumed. What You Will Learn ? Use Python's generator functions and generator expressions to work with collections in a non-strict (or lazy) manner ? Utilize Python library modules including itertools, functools, multiprocessing, and concurrent features to ensure efficient functional programs ? Use Python strings with object-oriented suffix notation and prefix notation ? Avoid stateful classes with families of tuples ? Design and implement decorators to create composite functions ? Use functions such as max(), min(), map(), filter(), and sorted() ? Write higher-order functions In Detail If you’re a Python developer who wants to discover how to take the power of functional programming (FP) and bring it into your own programs, then this book is essential for you, even if you know next to nothing about the paradigm. Starting with a general overview of functional concepts, you’ll explore common functional features such as first-class and higher-order functions, pure functions, and more. You’ll see how these are accomplished in Python 3.6 to give you the core foundations you’ll build upon. After that, you’ll discover common functional optimizations for Python to help your apps reach even higher speeds. You’ll learn FP concepts such as lazy evaluation using Python’s generator functions and expressions. Moving forward, you’ll learn to design and implement decorators to create composite functions. You'll also explore data preparation techniques and data exploration in depth, and see how the Python standard library fits the functional programming model. Finally, to top off your journey into the world of functional Python, you’ll at look at the PyMonad project and some larger examples to put everything into perspective. Style and approach This book provides a general overview of functional concepts and then delves deeper into the functional features, showing you how the Python standard library fits the functional programming model. It also demonstrates how to implement common functional programming design patterns and techniques in Python.

Design accessible and creative games across genres, platforms, and development realities About This Book ? Implement the skills and techniques required to work in a professional studio ? Ace the core principles and processes of level design, world building, and storytelling ? Design interactive characters that animate the gaming world Who This Book Is For Whether you are a student eager to design a game or a junior game designer looking for your first role as a professional, this book will help you with the fundamentals of game design. By focusing on best practices and a pragmatic approach, Practical Game Design provides insights into the arts and crafts from two senior game designers that will interest more seasoned professionals in the game industry. What You Will Learn ? Define the scope and structure of a game project ? Conceptualize a game idea and present it to others ? Design gameplay systems and communicate them clearly and thoroughly ? Build and validate engaging game mechanics ? Design successful business models and prepare your games for live operations ? Master the principles behind level design, worldbuilding and storytelling ? Improve the quality of a game by playtesting and polishing it In Detail If you are looking for an up-to-date and highly applicable guide to game design, then you have come to the right place! Immerse yourself in the fundamentals of game design with this book, written by two highly experienced industry professionals to share their profound insights as well as give valuable advice on creating games across genres and development platforms. Practical Game Design covers the basics of game design one piece at a time. Starting with learning how to conceptualize a game idea and present it to the development team, you will gradually move on to devising a design plan for the whole project and adapting solutions from other games. You will also discover how to produce original game mechanics without relying on existing reference material, and test and eliminate anticipated design risks. You will then design elements that compose the playtime of a game, followed by making game mechanics, content, and interface accessible to all players. You will also find out how to simultaneously ensure that the gameplay mechanics and content are working as intended. As the book reaches its final chapters, you will learn to wrap up a game ahead of its release date, work through the different challenges of designing free-to-play games, and understand how to significantly improve their quality through iteration, polishing and playtesting. Style and approach A practical step by step guide to get you up and running with Game Design from scratch

Transform games into environments using machine learning and Deep learning with Tensorflow, Keras, and Unity About This Book ? Learn how to apply core machine learning concepts to your games with Unity ? Learn the Fundamentals of Reinforcement Learning and Q-Learning and apply them to your games ? Learn How to build multiple asynchronous agents and run them in a training scenario Who This Book Is For This book is intended for developers with an interest in using Machine learning algorithms to develop better games and simulations with Unity. The reader will be required to have a working knowledge of C# and a basic understanding of Python. What You Will Learn ? Develop Reinforcement and Deep Reinforcement Learning for games. ? Understand complex and advanced concepts of reinforcement learning and neural networks ? Explore various training strategies for cooperative and competitive agent development ? Adapt the basic script components of Academy, Agent, and Brain to be used with Q Learning. ? Enhance the Q Learning model with improved training strategies such as Greedy-Epsilon exploration ? Implement a simple NN with Keras and use it as an external brain in Unity ? Understand how to add LTSM blocks to an existing DQN ? Build multiple asynchronous agents and run them in a training scenario In Detail Unity Machine Learning agents allow researchers and developers to create games and simulations using the Unity Editor, which serves as an environment where intelligent agents can be trained with machine learning methods through a simple-to-use Python API. This book takes you from the basics of Reinforcement and Q Learning to building Deep Recurrent Q-Network agents that cooperate or compete in a multi-agent ecosystem. You will start with the basics of Reinforcement Learning and how to apply it to problems. Then you will learn how to build self-learning advanced neural networks with Python and Keras/TensorFlow. From there you move o n to more advanced training scenarios where you will learn further innovative ways to train your network with A3C, imitation, and curriculum learning models. By the end of the book, you will have learned how to build more complex environments by building a cooperative and competitive multi-agent ecosystem. Style and approach This book focuses on the foundations of ML, RL and DL for building agents in a game or simulation

Use Java features such as JAX-RS, EJBs, and JPAs to build powerful middleware for newer architectures such as the cloud About This Book ? Explore EJBs to build middleware solutions for enterprise and distributed applications ? Understand middleware designs such as event-based and message-driven web services ? Learn to design and maintain large-scale systems and vendor disputes Who This Book Is For Enterprise architects, designers, developers, and programmers who are interested in learning how to build robust middleware solutions for enterprise software will find this book useful. Prior knowledge of Java EE is essential What You Will Learn ? Implement the latest Java EE 8 APIs and manage dependencies with CDI 2.0 ? Perform CRUD operations and access databases with JPA 2.1 ? Use bean validation API 2.0 to validate data ? Develop business logic with EJB 3.2 ? Incorporate the REST architecture and RESTful API design patterns ? Perform serialization and deserialization on JSON documents using JSON-B ? Utilize JMS for messaging and queuing models and securing applications ? Test applications using JUnit and Mockito and deploy them using Docker In Detail Middleware is the infrastructure in software based applications that enables businesses to solve problems, operate more efficiently, and make money. As the use of middleware extends beyond a single application, the importance of having it written by experts increases substantially. This book will help you become an expert in developing middleware for a variety of applications. The book starts off by exploring the latest Java EE 8 APIs with newer features and managing dependencies with CDI 2.0. You will learn to implement object-to-relational mapping using JPA 2.1 and validate data using bean validation. You will also work with different types of EJB to develop business logic, and with design RESTful APIs by utilizing different HTTP methods and activating JAX-RS features in enterprise applications. You will learn to secure your middleware with Java Security 1.0 and implement various authentication techniques, such as OAuth authentication. In the concluding chapters, you will use various test technologies, such as JUnit and Mockito, to test applications, and Docker to deploy your enterprise applications. By the end of the book, you will be proficient in developing robust, effective, and distributed middleware for your business. Style and approach Learn how to design and implement professional enterprise middleware solutions using the latest techniques and features provided by the Java EE 8 platform.

This book will give you an all encompassing view of the domain name ecosystem combined with a comprehensive set of operations strategies. About This Book ? Manage infrastructure, risk, and management of DNS name servers. Get hands-on with factors like types of name servers, DNS queries and and so on. ? Practical guide for system administrators to manage mission-critical servers ? Based on real-world experience - Written by an industry veteran who has made every possible mistake within this field. Who This Book Is For Ideal for sysadmins, webmasters, IT consultants, and developers-anyone responsible for maintaining your organization's core DNS What You Will Learn ? Anatomy of a domain - how a domain is the sum of both its DNS zone and its registration data, and why that matters. ? The domain name ecosystem - the role of registries, registrars and oversight bodies and their effect on your names. ? How DNS queries work - queries and responses are examined including debugging techniques to zero in on problems. ? Nameserver considerations - alternative nameserver daemons, numbering considerations, and deployment architectures. ? DNS use cases - the right way for basic operations such as domain transfers, large scale migrations, GeoDNS, Anycast DNS. ? Securing your domains - All aspects of security from registrar vendor selection, to DNSSEC and DDOS mitigation strategies. In Detail Managing your organization's naming architecture and mitigating risks within complex naming environments is very important. This book will go beyond looking at “how to run a name server” or “how to DNSSEC sign a domain”, Managing Mission Critical Domains & DNS looks across the entire spectrum of naming; from external factors that exert influence on your domains to all the internal factors to consider when operating your DNS. The readers are taken on a comprehensive guided tour through the world of naming: from understanding the role of registrars and how they interact with registries, to what exactly is it that ICANN does anyway? Once the prerequisite knowledge of the domain name ecosystem is acquired, the readers are taken through all aspects of DNS operations. Whether your organization operates its own nameservers or utilizes an outsourced vendor, or both, we examine the complex web of interlocking factors that must be taken into account but are too frequently overlooked. By the end of this book, our readers will have an end to end to understanding of all the aspects covered in DNS name servers. Style and approach The book is divided into two parts, the first part looks at the wider domain name ecosystem: registries, registrars and oversight policies. The second and larger part goes into operations. Every aspect of naming is considered from the viewpoint of how this affects ones domains, what are the ramifications of different operating methods as portfolios scale.

Find out how to create visually stunning and feature-rich applications by empowering Python's built-in Tkinter GUI toolkit About This Book ? Explore Tkinter's powerful features to easily design and customize your GUI application ? Learn the basics of 2D and 3D animation in GUI applications. ? Learn to integrate stunning Data Visualizations using Tkinter Canvas and Matplotlib. Who This Book Is For This book will appeal to developers and programmers who would like to build GUI-based applications. Knowledge of Python is a prerequisite. What You Will Learn ? Implement the tools provided by Tkinter to design beautiful GUIs ? Discover cross-platform development through minor customizations in your existing application ? Visualize graphs in real time as data comes in using Tkinter's animation capabilities ? Use PostgreSQL authentication to ensure data security for your application ? Write unit tests to avoid regressions when updating code In Detail Tkinter is a lightweight, portable, and easy-to-use graphical toolkit available in the Python Standard Library, widely used to build Python GUIs due to its simplicity and availability. This book teaches you to design and build graphical user interfaces that are functional, appealing, and user-friendly using the powerful combination of Python and Tkinter. After being introduced to Tkinter, you will be guided step-by-step through the application development process. Over the course of the book, your application will evolve from a simple data-entry form to a complex data management and visualization tool while maintaining a clean and robust design. In addition to building the GUI, you'll learn how to connect to external databases and network resources, test your code to avoid errors, and maximize performance using asynchronous programming. You'll make the most of Tkinter's cross-platform availability by learning how to maintain compatibility, mimic platform-native look and feel, and build executables for deployment across popular computing platforms. By the end of this book, you will have the skills and confidence to design and build powerful high-end GUI applications to solve real-world problems. Style and approach This is a comprehensive guide that explores the essential Tkinter features and modules and implements them in building real-world cross-platform GUI applications

Learn to build a full-fledged application in Spring and Kotlin taking a reactive, microservice-based approach for scalability and robustness in the cloud About This Book ? Build a full-fledged application in Spring and Kotlin ? Architect your application to take a microservice-based approach in the cloud ? Integrate your application with a variety of Spring components Who This Book Is For Developers comfortable using Spring who have basic knowledge of Kotlin and want to take their development skills to the next level and build enterprise-grade applications will benefit from this book. What You Will Learn ? Explore Spring 5 concepts with Kotlin ? Learn both dependency injections and complex configurations ? Utilize Spring Data, Spring Cloud, and Spring Security in your applications ? Create efficient reactive systems with Project Reactor ? Write unit tests for your Spring/Kotlin applications ? Deploy applications on cloud platforms like AWS In Detail Kotlin is being used widely by developers because of its light weight, built-in null safety, and functional and reactive programming aspects. Kotlin shares the same pragmatic, innovative and opinionated mindset as Spring, so they work well together. Spring when combined with Kotlin helps you to reach a new level of productivity. This combination has helped developers to create Functional Applications using both the tools together. This book will teach you how to take advantage of these developments and build robust, scalable and reactive applications with ease. In this book, you will begin with an introduction to Spring and its setup with Kotlin. You will then dive into assessing the design considerations of your application. Then you will learn to use Spring (with Spring Boot) along with Kotlin to build a robust backend in a microservice architecture with a REST based collaboration, and leverage Project Reactor in your application. You’ll then learn how to integrate Spring Data and Spring Cloud to manage configurations for database interaction and cloud deployment. You’ll also learn to use Spring Security to beef up security of your application before testing it with the JUnit framework and then deploying it on a cloud platform like AWS. Style and approach Everything you learn will be demonstrated on real-world Spring project. In each chapter we will cover some of Spring features and apply it on our project. We will guide you from the project initialization till the project deployment.

Discover how to use the next-generation language Red for full-stack development, from systems coding over user-interfaces to blockchain programming About This Book ? Explore the latest features of Red to build scalable, fast, and secure applications ? Learn graphical programming and build highly sophisticated reactive applications ? Get familiar with the specific concepts and techniques of Red development, like working with series, viewing code as data, and using dialects. Who This Book Is For This book is for software developers and architects who want to learn Red because of its conciseness, flexibility, and expressiveness, and more specifically for its possibilities in GUI apps and blockchain / smart contracts programming. Some knowledge of the basic concepts and experience of any programming language is assumed. What You Will Learn ? Set up your Red environment to achieve the highest productivity ? Get grounded in Red, gaining experience and insight through many examples and exercises ? Build simple, compact, and portable applications ? Analyze streams of data through Parse ? Compose GUI applications with View and Draw ? Get prepared for smart contract blockchain programming in Red In Detail A key problem of software development today is software bloat, where huge toolchains and development environments are needed in software coding and deployment. Red significantly reduces this bloat by offering a minimalist but complete toolchain. This is the first introductory book about it, and it will get you up and running with Red as quickly as possible. This book shows you how to write effective functions, reduce code redundancies, and improve code reuse. It will be helpful for new programmers who are starting out with Red to explore its wide and ever-growing package ecosystem and also for experienced developers who want to add Red to their skill set. The book presents the fundamentals of programming in Red and in-depth informative examples using a step-by-step approach. You will be taken through concepts and examples such as doing simple metaprogramming, functions, collections, GUI applications, and more. By the end of the book, you will be fully equipped to start your own projects in Red. Style and approach This book will gently guide you step by step into the fascinating programming universe of the Red language, offering real-world examples and practical exercises to sharpen your insight.

Explore the latest features of Unity 2018 to create immersive VR projects for Oculus Rift, HTC Vive, Daydream and Gear VR About This Book ? A project-based guide to teach you how to develop immersive and fun VR applications using Unity 3D ? Build experiences with interactable objects, physics, UI, animations, C# scripting, and other Unity features ? Explore the world of VR by building experiences such as diorama, first-person characters, 360-degree projections, social VR, audio fireball game, and VR storytelling Who This Book Is For If you're a non-programmer unfamiliar with 3D computer graphics, or experienced in both but new to virtual reality, and are interested in building your own VR games or applications, then this book is for you. Any experience in Unity is an advantage. What You Will Learn ? Create 3D scenes with Unity and other 3D tools while learning about world space and scale ? Build and run VR applications for specific headsets, including Oculus, Vive, and Daydream ? Interact with virtual objects using eye gaze, hand controllers, and user input events ? Move around your VR scenes using locomotion and teleportation ? Implement an audio fireball game using physics and particle systems ? Implement an art gallery tour with teleportation and data info ? Design and build a VR storytelling animation with a soundtrack and timelines ? Create social VR experiences with Unity networking In Detail Unity has become the leading platform for building virtual reality games, applications, and experiences for this new generation of consumer VR devices. Unity Virtual Reality Projects walks you through a series of hands-on tutorials and in-depth discussions on using the Unity game engine. With its practical and project-based approach, this book will get you up to speed with the specifics of Virtual Reality development in Unity. You will learn how to use Unity to develop VR applications that can be experienced with devices such as Oculus, Daydream, and Vive. Among the many topics and projects, you will explore gaze-based versus hand controller input, world space UI canvases, locomotion and teleportation, software design patterns, 360-degree media, timeline animation, and multiplayer networking. You will learn the Unity 3D game engine via the interactive Unity Editor as well as C# programming. By the end of the book, you will be fully equipped to develop rich, interactive virtual reality experiences using Unity. Style and approach A practical step-by-step guide to building impressive VR experiences with Unity 2018.

Connect things to create amazing IoT applications in minutes About This Book ? Use Blynk cloud and Blynk server to connect devices ? Build IoT applications on Android and iOS platforms ? A practical guide that will show how to connect devices using Blynk and Raspberry Pi 3 Who This Book Is For This book is targeted at any stakeholder working in the IoT sector who wants to understand how Blynk works and build exciting IoT projects. Prior understanding of Raspberry Pi, C/C++, and electronics is a must. What You Will Learn ? Build devices using Raspberry Pi and various sensors and actuators ? Use Blynk cloud to connect and control devices through the Blynk app ? Connect devices to Blynk cloud and server through Ethernet and Wi-Fi ? Make applications using Blynk apps (App Builder) on Android and iOS platforms ? Run Blynk personal server on the Windows, MAC, and Raspberry Pi platforms In Detail Blynk, known as the most user-friendly IoT platform, provides a way to build mobile applications in minutes. With the Blynk drag-n-drop mobile app builder, anyone can build amazing IoT applications with minimal resources and effort, on hardware ranging from prototyping platforms such as Arduino and Raspberry Pi 3 to industrial-grade ESP8266, Intel, Sierra Wireless, Particle, Texas Instruments, and a few others. This book uses Raspberry Pi as the main hardware platform and C/C++ to write sketches to build projects. The first part of this book shows how to set up a development environment with various hardware combinations and required software. Then you will build your first IoT application with Blynk using various hardware combinations and connectivity types such as Ethernet and Wi-Fi. Then you'll use and configure various widgets (control, display, notification, interface, time input, and some advanced widgets) with Blynk App Builder to build applications. Towards the end, you will learn how to connect with and use built-in sensors on Android and iOS mobile devices. Finally you will learn how to build a robot that can be controlled with a Blynk app through the Blynk cloud and personal server. By the end of this book, you will have hands-on experience building IoT applications using Blynk. Style and approach A step-by-step guide that will help you build simple yet exciting project in no time.

A definitive guide to creating an intelligent web application with the best of machine learning and JavaScript About This Book ? Solve complex computational problems in browser with JavaScript ? Teach your browser how to learn from rules using the power of machine learning ? Understand discoveries on web interface and API in machine learning Who This Book Is For This book is for you if you are a JavaScript developer who wants to implement machine learning to make applications smarter, gain insightful information from the data, and enter the field of machine learning without switching to another language. Working knowledge of JavaScript language is expected to get the most out of the book. What You Will Learn ? Get an overview of state-of-the-art machine learning ? Understand the pre-processing of data handling, cleaning, and preparation ? Learn Mining and Pattern Extraction with JavaScript ? Build your own model for classification, clustering, and prediction ? Identify the most appropriate model for each type of problem ? Apply machine learning techniques to real-world applications ? Learn how JavaScript can be a powerful language for machine learning In Detail In over 20 years of existence, JavaScript has been pushing beyond the boundaries of web evolution with proven existence on servers, embedded devices, Smart TVs, IoT, Smart Cars, and more. Today, with the added advantage of machine learning research and support for JS libraries, JavaScript makes your browsers smarter than ever with the ability to learn patterns and reproduce them to become a part of innovative products and applications. Hands-on Machine Learning with JavaScript presents various avenues of machine learning in a practical and objective way, and helps implement them using the JavaScript language. Predicting behaviors, analyzing feelings, grouping data, and building neural models are some of the skills you will build from this book. You will learn how to train your machine learning models and work with different kinds of data. During this journey, you will come across use cases such as face detection, spam filtering, recommendation systems, character recognition, and more. Moreover, you will learn how to work with deep neural networks and guide your applications to gain insights from data. By the end of this book, you'll have gained hands-on knowledge on evaluating and implementing the right model, along with choosing from different JS libraries, such as NaturalNode, brain, harthur, classifier, and many more to design smarter applications. Style and approach This is a practical tutorial that uses hands-on examples to step through some real-world applications of machine learning. Without shying away from the technical details, you will explore machine learning with JavaScript using clear and practical examples.

Enterprise Agility is practical framework for enhancing Agility and equipping your company with the tools to survive. About This Book ? Prepare your company to navigate the rapidly-moving business world ? Enhance Agility in every component of your organization ? Build a framework that meets the unique requirements of your enterprise Who This Book Is For Enterprise Agility is a tool for anyone with the motivation to influence outcomes in an enterprise, who aspires to improve Agility. Readers from the following backgrounds will benefit: chief executive officer, chief information officer, people/human resource director, information technology director, head of change program, head of transformation, and Agile coach/consultant. What You Will Learn ? Drive agility-oriented change across the enterprise ? Understand why agility matters (more than ever) to modern enterprises ? Adopt and influence an Agile mindset in your teams and in your organization ? Understand the concept of a CAS and how to model enterprise and leadership behaviors on CAS characteristics to enhance enterprise agility ? Understand and convey the differences between Agile and true enterprise agility ? Create an enterprise-specific action plan to enhance agility ? Become a champion for enterprise agility ? Recognize the advantages and challenges of distributed teams, and how Agile ways of working can remedy the rough spots ? Enable and motivate your IT partners to adopt Agile ways of working In Detail The biggest challenge enterprises face today is dealing with fast-paced change in all spheres of business. Enterprise Agility shows how an enterprise can address this challenge head on and thrive in the dynamic environment. Avoiding the mechanistic construction of existing enterprises that focus on predictability and certainty, Enterprise Agility delivers practical advice for responding and adapting to the scale and accelerating pace of disruptive change in the business environment. Agility is a fundamental shift in thinking about how enterprises work to effectively deal with disruptive changes in the business environment. The core belief underlying agility is that enterprises are open and living systems. These living systems, also known as complex adaptive systems (CAS), are ideally suited to deal with change very effectively. Agility is to enterprises what health is to humans. There are some foundational principles that can be broadly applied, but the definition of healthy is very specific to each individual. Enterprise Agility takes a similar approach with regard to agility: it suggests foundational practices to improve the overall health of the body—culture, mindset, and leadership—and the health of its various organs: people, process, governance, structure, technology, and customers. The book also suggests a practical framework to create a plan to enhance agility. Style and approach Enterprise Agility is a step-by-step guide to facing change and uncertainty head-on. The books provides practical ways to apply Agile methodologies and boost Agility throughout a business.

Look at all of the different types of animals there are! Young readers will discover what noises different farm animals make in this fun book. Based in Stow, Ohio, Twin Sisters Productions has been dedicated to producing quality educational and inspirational music resources for over 25 years. Fraternal twins Karen Mitzo Hilderbrand and Kim Mitzo Thompson founded the company when they realized Kim’s success teaching third grade math through her catchy multiplication song could help children beyond her classroom. From there, Twin Sisters expanded its product line to include e-books, digital music, CDs, read-along and sing-along books, floor puzzles and educational workbooks, all with the purpose of learning through music. These internationally sold products have received nearly 170 awards, including nine Record Industry Association of America (RIAA) certified Gold albums and one Platinum albu, over the years for excellence, creativity and amusement. With thousands of songs and 35 million albums sold, Twin Sisters positions itself as the leader in children’s educational music.

Build real-world applications for the Apple Watch platform using the WatchKit framework and Swift 2.0 About This Book Find out how to download and install the Xcode development tools before learning about Xcode playgrounds and the Swift programming language Discover everything you need to know about the WatchKit platform architecture, its classes, as well its limitations This book introduces you to the very latest mobile platform with hands-on instructions so you can build your very own Apple Watch apps Who This Book Is For This book is for developers who are interested in creating amazing apps for the Apple Watch platform. Readers are expected to have no prior experience of programming. What You Will Learn Navigate within the WatchKit interface using the page-based, modal, and hierarchical navigation techniques Work with context menus to allow your users to interact with the Apple Watch and respond to their actions to perform a task Use the MapKit framework to display a map within the WatchKit interface to track the user's current location Build effective user interfaces for the WatchKit platform and integrate iCloud capabilities to synchronize data between the iOS app and the WatchKit UI Design your apps for the Apple Watch platform by adhering to the set of User Interface design guidelines set out by Apple Reinforce image caching to display animations within the Apple Watch user interface Explore WatchKit tables, which allow your users to purchase groceries and pay for them using Apple Pay Analyze the new layout system to ensure that your Apple Watch apps work with various screen sizes In Detail Wearable are the next wave of mobile technology and with the release of Apple’s WatchKit SDK, a whole new world of exciting development possibilities has opened up. Apple Watch App Development introduces you to the architecture and possibilities of the Apple Watch platform, as well as an in-depth look at how to work with Xcode playgrounds. Benefit from a rapid introduction to the Swift programming language so you can quickly begin developing apps with the WatchKit framework and the Xcode Development IDE. Get to grips with advanced topics such as notifications, glances, iCloud, Apple pay, closures, tuples, protocols, delegates, concurrency, and using Swift Playgrounds, with each concept is backed up with example code that demonstrates how to properly execute it. Finally, discover how to package and deploy your Watch application to the Apple AppStore. By the end of this book, you will have a good understanding of how to develop apps for the Apple Watch platform, and synchronize data using iCloud between the wearable and the iOS device. Style and approach This book takes a step-by-step approach to developing applications for the Apple Watch using the Swift programming language and the WatchKit UI. Each topic is explained in a conversational and easy-to-follow style.

Boost your scientific and analytic capabilities in no time at all by discovering how to build real-world applications with NumPy About This Book Optimize your Python *s with powerful NumPy modules Explore the vast opportunities to build outstanding scientific/ analytical modules by yourself Packed with rich examples to help you master NumPy arrays and universal functions Who This Book Is For If you are an experienced Python developer who intends to drive your numerical and scientific applications with NumPy, this book is for you. Prior experience or knowledge of working with the Python language is required. What You Will Learn Manipulate the key attributes and universal functions of NumPy Utilize matrix and mathematical computation using linear algebra modules Implement regression and curve fitting for models Perform time frequency / spectral density analysis using the Fourier Transform modules Collate with the distutils and setuptools modules used by other Python libraries Establish Cython with NumPy arrays Write extension modules for NumPy code using the C API Build sophisticated data structures using NumPy array with libraries such as Panda and Scikits In Detail In today’s world of science and technology, it’s all about speed and flexibility. When it comes to scientific computing, NumPy tops the list. NumPy gives you both the speed and high productivity you need. This book will walk you through NumPy using clear, step-by-step examples and just the right amount of theory. We will guide you through wider applications of NumPy in scientific computing and will then focus on the fundamentals of NumPy, including array objects, functions, and matrices, each of them explained with practical examples. You will then learn about different NumPy modules while performing mathematical operations such as calculating the Fourier Transform; solving linear systems of equations, interpolation, extrapolation, regression, and curve fitting; and evaluating integrals and derivatives. We will also introduce you to using Cython with NumPy arrays and writing extension modules for NumPy code using the C API. This book will give you exposure to the vast NumPy library and help you build efficient, high-speed programs using a wide range of mathematical features. Style and approach This quick guide will help you get to grips with the nitty-gritties of NumPy using with practical programming examples. Each topic is explained in both theoretical and practical ways with hands-on examples providing you efficient way of learning and adequate knowledge to support your professional work.

Transform your Raspberry Pi into a multi-purpose web server that supports your entire multimedia world with this practical and accessible tutorial! About This Book Host websites, games, and even stream HD videos with the impressive power of Raspberry Pi 2 Get to grips with embedded programming by turning your Pi into the cloud server that can be used to power Internet of Things projects Make the Raspberry Pi 2 the center of your latest tech experiments and discover how it can manage and host resources Who This Book Is For Seeking inspiration for some new tech projectsWant to get more from your Raspberry PiThis book has been created especially for you! What You Will Learn Host your Raspberry Pi as a web server using the minimum power resources Connect your Pi to the Internet and perform network benchmarking Explore the cross-platform features of the Pi as you run Python, Node.JS, ASP.NET, and PHP all in one place Share files over the Internet using your Pi as a file server Turn your Pi into a game server, host and engage into playing Enjoy live HD video streaming and exclusive real-time text overlays In Detail There’s no end to what you can do with a Raspberry Pi – it makes a huge range of tech projects possible. This book shows you how to transform it into a multipurpose web server, able to store and manage resources that lets you build some truly innovative and impressive computing creations. You’ll learn how to use your Raspberry Pi 2 to host a website using a range of different languages, host a game server, store files, and run everything from a media center to a cloud network. If you want to take control of your technological world, start building your own server and find out what’s possible with the Raspberry Pi microcomputer. Begin by getting your Pi set up – follow each step as the book shows you how to prepare a network and configure the additional features that you’ll need to build your projects. Once you’ve done this you’ll dig a little deeper and set up your pi as a file server, making sure it’s built for speed using a range of different tools, including Python, Node.js and ASP.NET. Following this the book shows you how to extend your server to allow you to host games, and stream live HD video before customizing it even further to create a fully-fledged media center. It doesn’t stop there however – the book then dives into the exciting world of the Internet of Things (IoT). You’ll learn how to install Windows IoT onto your Raspberry Pi, the operating system that’s driving embedded software projects all around the world. Once you’ve done this you’ll be ready to explore IoT further, as the book shows you how to use your device to host a cloud network that can form the basis of a wider IoT project. Style and approach Packed with plenty of practical examples that walk you through a number of Raspberry Pi projects, this book is an accessible journey into embedded computing and Internet of Things.

Over 120 practical and easy-to-understand recipes that explain how to use Sass and Compass to write efficient, maintainable, and reusable CSS code for your web development projects About This Book Leverage Sass to make your CSS code maintainable, reusable and prevent code duplications Shorten debug time with Sass when creating complex CSS code for different browsers and devices Write easy and bullet-proof CSS with Compass using this step-by-step and detailed guide Who This Book Is For This book is mainly intended for web developers and designers who are comfortable with CSS and HTML. If you are someone with some experience with CSS, you will find the learning curve of learning Sass syntax to be less steep. Basic knowledge of web development is helpful but you don't have to be a programmer to understand Sass. What You Will Learn Spend less time debugging code Compile Sass code into readable and maintainable CSS Integrate Sass in your own projects Reuse your code to prevent code duplications Write reusable and portable CSS code Make use of pre-built and established code written by other developers Reduce development and maintenance time of your projects Set up a development environment with Gulp In Detail Sass and Compass Designer's Cookbook helps you to get most out of CSS3 and harness its benefits to create engaging and receptive applications. This book will help you develop faster and reduce the maintenance time for your web development projects by using Sass and Compass. You will learn how to use with CSS frameworks such as Bootstrap and Foundation and understand how to use other libraries of pre-built mixins. You will also learn setting up a development environment with Gulp. This book guides you through all the concepts and gives you practical examples for full understanding. Style and approach This book is the perfect mix of essential theory combined with real-life examples and problems, with clear explanations of the more sophisticated Sass concepts. Learn Sass and Compass with practical and well-explained example code. This book follows a problem and solution approach that is convenient to understand and follow.