November 05, 2023

Less Code Alternatives to Low Code

Embracing a “minimalist coding” philosophy is foundational. It’s anchored in a gravitation toward clarity, prompting you to identify the indispensable elements in your code, and then discard the rest. Is there a more succinct solution? Can a tool achieve this outcome with less code? Am I building something unique and valuable or rehashing solved problems? Every line of code must be viewed for the potential value it delivers and the future burden it represents. Reduce that burden by avoiding or removing code when you can and leveraging the work of others. ... Modern frameworks offer a significant enhancement to development productivity, primarily by reducing the amount of code written to perform common tasks. Additionally, the underlying code of the framework is tested and maintained by the community, alleviating peripheral maintenance burdens. The same goes for code generators; they’re not merely about avoiding repetitive keystrokes, but about ensuring that the generated code itself is consistent and efficient.?

Software Deployment Security: Risks and Best Practices

Blue-Green Deployment is a release management strategy designed to reduce downtime and risk by running two identical production environments, known as Blue and Green. At any time, only one of these environments is live, with the live environment serving all production traffic. The primary security implication of the Blue-Green deployment is the risk of data inconsistency during the switchover. If not properly managed, sensitive data could be exposed, lost or corrupted. Furthermore, because two environments are maintained, security measures must be duplicated, potentially leading to inconsistencies and vulnerabilities if not properly managed. ... Canary deployment is a strategy where new software versions are gradually rolled out to a small subset of users before being deployed to the entire infrastructure. This strategy allows teams to test and monitor the performance of the new release in a live environment with less risk. Canary deployment can potentially expose new software versions to a smaller user base, potentially exposing vulnerabilities before a full-scale release. If a vulnerability is exploited during this stage, it could lead to a security breach affecting a subset of users.?

It’s time to take your genAI skills to the next level

The workforce of the future will learn AI in school and during the next 15 years, each successive generation of graduates will likely have much stronger AI kung fu than the last. In fact, my own son owns a Silicon Valley based startup called Chatterbox, which exists to teach AI literacy to kids as young as eight years old. Learning AI at that age is unimaginable to adults currently in the workforce. Young workers entering the workforce will have a vastly superior knowledge of, and ability with, AI than the workforce that went to school before the LLM-based genAI revolution of 2022 and 2023. That’s why one of the smartest things you can do now, regardless of your specific occupation, is to get very serious about learning a lot more about genAI. “Prompt engineering” — the ability to use words to get output from genAI tools — is the skill of the year. But it’s only a matter of time before basic proficiency in prompt engineering becomes commonplace and banal. It’s important to set yourself apart from the crowd by going further and really studying how generative AI works, its limitations and potentialities, and the ethical and legal issues are around its output.

Why digital banking is a crucial financial literacy skill for kids

By starting early and providing guidance, parents and educators play a crucial role in helping children develop strong financial literacy skills. Digital banking not only enables children to understand the mechanics of money but also fosters a healthy relationship with finances. For instance, some innovative neobanks in India are currently providing prepaid cards that are exceptionally user-friendly and intuitive. These cards offer a unique opportunity for children to develop crucial financial literacy skills, such as prudent money management, efficient budgeting, and smart savings habits. ... The positive impact of early financial education, including digital banking literacy, on long-term financial well-being cannot be overstated. Introducing children to digital banking at a young age provides them with the knowledge and skills needed to make informed financial decisions throughout their lives. It not only equips them with the tools to navigate the cashless economy effectively but also fosters financial independence, responsibility, and resilience in the face of evolving financial challenges.

Mastering a multi-cloud environment

It is essential to understand the challenges that exist while creating a robust multi-cloud architecture. You need to incorporate the right set of tools and technologies to support workload placement across diverse platforms and services. A solid operating model to effectively manage multi-cloud use is imperative – breaking it down into process security, technology, financial operations and people and skills. One of the keys is aligning IT service management with your multi-cloud operating model – implementing the right technology to effectively operate, manage, monitor and secure resources and services among providers – from data management, governance and security to vendor licenses, contracts and more. ...?In today’s fast-changing and threat-laden environment, a new approach to resilience is indispensable – one that helps ensure your ability to ‘bounce back’ quickly from disruptions and maintain application availability. New functional capabilities and skills to embed resilience through design is the way forward and it will likely require businesses to give resilience greater priority as they invest in innovation.

Do we have enough GPUs to manifest AI’s potential?

The current production and availability of GPUs is insufficient to manifest AI’s ever-evolving potential. Many businesses face challenges in obtaining the necessary hardware for their operations, dampening their capacity for innovation. As manufacturers continue ramping up GPU unit production, many companies are already being hobbled by GPU accessibility. According to Fortune, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman privately acknowledged that GPU supply constraints were impacting the company’s business. ... Exploring alternative hardware to power AI applications presents a viable route for organizations striving for efficient processing. Depending on the specific AI workload requirements, CPUs, field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), and application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs) may be excellent alternatives. FPGAs, which are known for their customizable nature, and ASICs, specifically designed for a particular use case, both have the potential to effectively handle AI tasks. However, it’s crucial to note that these alternatives might exhibit different performance characteristics and trade-offs.

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