Learn How to Build a Web App with JavaScript

This week my 21st course published. In this course I take you on a journey to build a web app in JavaScript. JavaScript is the top web programming language today with 12+ million active developers and 97% of all websites using it. It is a great language used to build dynamic and interactive web apps given its flexibility, frameworks, and modules.

The course is titled “Building a Web Application with JavaScript“. It is a part of the new “JavaScript 2022 Path” on Pluralsight. This is my 2nd course in this path. My 1st course was “Building a REST API in JavaScript with Express“. Be sure to check out my REST API course as well!

JavaScript is a must-have skill in your toolbelt when building web apps. In this course, Building a Web Application with JavaScript, you’ll learn to build a dynamic and interactive web app.

First, you’ll plan and set up your web app project. Next, you’ll discover how to build the layout, style, and CRUD for your app with HTML and CSS. Finally, you’ll learn how to code your app’s dynamic functionality in JavaScript and publish the app when done.

When you’re finished with this course, you’ll have the skills and knowledge for planning, building, styling, and publishing a web app in JavaScript needed to go from an idea to a fully functioning web app in JavaScript.

Check out the “Building a Web Application with JavaScript“ course here:

https://www.pluralsight.com/courses/javascript-building-web-application

I hope you find value in this new JavaScript course. Be sure to follow my profile on Pluralsight so you will be notified as I release new courses

Here is the link to my Pluralsight profile to follow me:

https://www.pluralsight.com/authors/steve-buchanan

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Pluralsight Spotlight: Steve Buchanan on Upskilling, Hybrid and Multi-Cloud, & Impostor Syndrome

I recently had the honor to film an episode of Spotlight at the Pluralsight headquarters.

It was an awesome experience and fun talking with Adam Gunn.

In the episode, we talked about:

Tech skills you need to master for the future, including hybrid and multi-cloud, Kubernetes, AI, and more. We also touched on how I landed in tech and how to overcome impostor syndrome to become a successful professional.

You can check out the episode here:

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20th Pluralsight Course Published – “Getting Started with Drupal”

Last week I published a new course on Pluralsight. This one is a milestone as it marks my 20th course! This course is titled “Getting Started with Drupal“. Startups, enterprises and more continue to adopt content management systems at a fast rate with Drupal being one of the top Content Management Systems used.

Drupal is one of the top choices for startups and enterprises. It is used for many uses from web apps, marketing tools, e-commerce, and even a company’s main website.

I have been working with Drupal and other content management systems in various aspects for over sixteen years. I have used Drupal for my own websites, hosted it for businesses, administered Drupal sites for customers, Drupal development for customers, and even managed the development of Drupal modules. With all of my history with Drupal, I was excited when the opportunity came up to build a course about it.

This course is ideal for bloggers, entrepreneurs, Product Managers, Marketing managers, Marketing executives, Marketing consultants, Marketing employees, web developers, project managers, business analysts, web designers, graphic designers, UX/UI, designers, and anyone interested in content management systems specifically Drupal.

This course will take you from little to no knowledge of Drupal to a place where you can be confident enough to get started. Whether you want to create a personal blog, a business website, or an online store, Drupal is a skill you should have and this course has you covered.

In this course, Getting Started with Drupal, you’ll learn its many uses, features, tech stack, and you’ll also explore hosting it. Next, you’ll learn how to install it. Finally, you’ll discover its user interface and general configuration.

Some of the major topics that are covered in this course include:

  1. Core Drupal knowledge.
  2. About its tech stack such as web servers like Apache, language PHP, Composer, Drush, & databases like MySQL & how these work with Drupal.
  3. How to acquire a domain & hosting for Drupal.
  4. & Finally, how to install and configure Drupal.

By the end of this course, you will have a better understanding of content management systems, & Drupal itself, its uses, features, & tech stack. As well as knowledge of how to get a domain name, hosting, and install Drupal along with a tour of its interface and general configuration.

This course is the 1st in a Drupal Path named “Drupal Fundamentals” on Pluralsight. The 2nd course in the path is “Drupal 10 Site Administration”. You can check out the full path here:

https://www.pluralsight.com/paths/drupal-fundamentals

Check out the “Getting Started with Drupal“ course here:

https://www.pluralsight.com/courses/drupal-getting-started

I hope you find value in this new Getting Started with Drupal course. Be sure to follow my profile on Pluralsight so you will be notified as I release new courses

Here is the link to my Pluralsight profile to follow me:

https://www.pluralsight.com/authors/steve-buchanan

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Selected for the 2023 Pluralsight Author Advisory Board

I am happy to announce I have been selected for the 2023 Pluralsight Author Advisory Board! I am honored to serve among 10 fellow authors.

As a member of this board, we will advocate for authors and help to foster the relationship between Pluralsight and the authors. Serving on this board, serving the authors, and Pluralsight will be an exciting part of 2023’s journey. I am looking forward to it!

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17th Pluralsight Course Published – “Python for Linux System Administration”

I am excited to announce that I published a Python course on Pluralsight! This course is titled “Python for Linux System Administration“. This is my 17th course with Pluralsight overall and 6th for 2022. It will teach you how to utilize Python to administer Linux servers. This course is suitable for system administrators, DevOps engineers, and anyone working with servers running on cloud.

In this course, Python for Linux System Administration, you’ll learn the core of the Python language, various Python admin modules, & how to combine python scripts with other Linux tools for administration.

Here are some of the major topics that are covered in this course:

  1. Gaining an understanding of the many benefits of using Python for systems administration.
  2. What goes into setting up a Python environment and what IDE’s are the best options to assist you with your Python scripting.
  3. How to install and use Python to Interact with the Linux System.
  4. How to utilize Python modules such as the OS module & psutil to perform various administrative functions.

When you’re finished with this course, you’ll have the skills and knowledge about the core of Python, how it can be used for administration, why you would use it for administration, how to get setup for Python scripting, insight into Python administrative modules & scripts, as well as some real-world examples of administering Linux servers with Python.

Check out the “Python“ course here: https://app.pluralsight.com/library/courses/python-linux-system-administration

I hope you find value in this new Python for Linux System Administration course. Be sure to follow my profile on Pluralsight so you will be notified as I release new courses

Here is the link to my Pluralsight profile to follow mehttps://app.pluralsight.com/profile/author/steve-buchanan

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Argo CD Course Published on Pluralsight

Yesterday my 12th course on Pluralsight was published! This course is “Getting Started with Argo CD“. In this course, you’ll learn the ins and outs of Argo CD a GitOps Operator tool, its core concepts, architecture, and how to use it with Kubernetes clusters so you can get started using it.

I am really excited about this course because it gave me a chance to continue sharing my GitOps and Kubernetes knowledge. You can view this course as a continuation of my “GitOps: The Big Picture” course. My GitOps course educates you on what GitOps is. This Argo CD course shows GitOps and a GitOps Operator in action!

Many organizations today have adopted cloud & Kubernetes. Organizations multiple production Kubernetes clusters online often across multiple clouds the complexity of management increases. GitOps has risen as a pattern used to reduce the complexity of managing Kubernetes clusters and cloud-native applications. Argo CD is a GitOps Operator that can help with the management of Kubernetes and deployment of applications to it. Some of the major topics that I covered in the Argo CD course include:

  1. Argo CD’s core concepts and architecture.
  2. An overview of Containers, Kubernetes, Helm, Kustomize, GitOps, and how these work with Argo CD.
  3. What it takes to deploy and operate Argo CD including areas such as user management, secrets, webhooks, monitoring and more, as well as how to use the Argo CD API server, Web UI, and use its command line interface.
  4. How to deploying and manage Applications with Argo CD.

Check out the course here: https://app.pluralsight.com/library/courses/argo-cd-getting-started

This is my 1st course in the Kubernetes Tooling and Techniques path on Pluralsight. I am working on another course for this path. This path focuses on the additional tools and techniques that you can integrate with your Kubernetes operations to improve efficiency, scalability, and a whole host of other factors. There are some other great courses in the Kubernetes Tooling and Techniques path.

Check the Kubernetes Tooling and Techniques path here: https://app.pluralsight.com/paths/skills/kubernetes-tooling-and-techniques

I hope you find value in this new Getting Started with Argo CD course. Be sure to follow my profile on Pluralsight so you will be notified as I release new courses including more GitOps related courses and a Rancher course in the Kubernetes Tooling and Techniques path! 

Here is the link to my Pluralsight profile to follow mehttps://app.pluralsight.com/profile/author/steve-buchanan

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“Azure Arc enabled Servers” Course on Pluralsight

Today my 11th course on Pluralsight was published! This course is “Azure Arc Enabled Servers: Getting Started“. In this course, Azure Arc-enabled Servers: Getting Started, you’ll learn how to manage external servers with Azure Arc.

Managing Windows and Linux servers across on-premises and multiple clouds can be disjointed and overly complicated. Many organizations today are choosing to adopt a multi-cloud strategy driving the boom in having servers across many clouds. After viewing this course, you’ll have knowledge of Azure Arc enabled Servers and how to use it to manage Windows and Linux servers across on-premises and multiple clouds.

Check out the course here: https://app.pluralsight.com/library/courses/azure-arc-enabled-servers-getted-started

This is my 2nd course in the Azure Arc path titled “Managing Environments with Azure Arc” on Pluralsight. There are other courses in the path already such as Azure Arc: The Big Picture, Azure Arc enabled Kubernetes: Getting Started (by me), Azure Arc-enabled Data Services: The Big Picture, and Azure Arc & Azure Lighthouse: First Look, and many more Azure Arc courses on the way.

Here is a link to check out the new Azure Arc path: https://app.pluralsight.com/paths/skills/managing-environments-with-azure-arc

I hope you find value in this new Azure Arc enabled Kubernetes: Getting Started course. Be sure to follow my profile on Pluralsight so you will be notified as I release new courses including my second Azure Arc related course! 

Here is the link to my Pluralsight profile to follow mehttps://app.pluralsight.com/profile/author/steve-buchanan

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Azure Arc enabled Kubernetes: Getting Started – Pluralsight Course

Today Pluralsight published 1 of 2 Azure Arc courses I am building. This marks my 10th course on Pluralsight! This first course is Azure Arc enabled Kubernetes: Getting Started. Azure Arc is a key service in the Azure story extending Azure to the on-premises data center and or multiple clouds outside of Azure.

This course is just under 2 hours and packed full of information & demos to help you get started with the topic. I go into a deeper understanding of the multi-cloud market, Kubernetes in the enterprise, and Azure Arc enabled Kubernetes. Azure Arc enabled Kubernetes architecture. Setting up and using Azure Arc enabled Kubernetes. And using GitOps with Azure Arc enabled Kubernetes.

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I am excited about releasing this course for several reasons: #1 Azure Arc is a newer technology from Microsoft and I am happy to share my knowledge about it, #2 This one is a combination of Azure Arc, Kubernetes, & GitOps all technologies I have been working with regularly, #3 Azure is growing, Kubernetes is growing, and multi-cloud is growing all in the enterprise and this course covers all three of these.

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Here is the description of the course:

Managing Kubernetes clusters across on-premises and multiple clouds can be disjointed and overly complicated. In this course, Azure Arc Enabled Kubernetes: Getting Started, you’ll learn to how to manage external Kubernetes clusters with Azure Arc. First, you’ll explore what Azure Arc k8s is and how to use it. Next, you’ll discover the features of Azure Arc K8s and how to use them. Finally, you’ll learn how to how to use Azure Arc K8s and GitOps to deploy applications. When you’re finished with this course, you’ll have the skills and knowledge of Azure Arc enabled Kubernetes needed to manage Kubernetes clusters across on-premises and multiple clouds.

Here are the areas and topics of the course:

Understanding Azure Arc Enabled Kubernetes                

Intro and Topics                

Understanding Azure Arc Enabled Kubernetes                

Understanding Azure Arc Enabled Kubernetes Use Cases                

Understanding Azure Arc Enabled Kubernetes Architecture                

Summary

 

Working with Kubernetes Clusters Using Azure Arc                

Intro and Topics                

Connecting Kubernetes Clusters to Azure Arc                

Demo: Connecting a Kubernetes Cluster to Azure Arc                

Monitoring projected Kubernetes Clusters with Azure Monitor and Azure Arc                

Demo: Setup Azure Monitor of Projected Kubernetes Cluster in Azure Arc                

Defining Authorization on Azure Arc Projected Kubernetes with Azure RBAC                

Protecting Azure Arc Projected Kubernetes Clusters with the Azure Defender                

Administering Projected Kubernetes Clusters with Azure Policy and Azure Arc                

Summary

 

Deploying Applications to Projected Kubernetes Clusters Using Azure Arc and GitOps                

Intro and Topics                

Understanding How GitOps Works with Azure Arc Enabled Kubernetes                

Deploying Applications and Configurations to Projected Kubernetes Clusters with Azure Arc and GitOps                

Demo: Deployment of an Application to a Projected Kubernetes Cluster via GitOps and Azure Arc K8s                

Deploying Helm Charts to Projected Kubernetes Clusters with Azure Arc and GitOps                

Deploying IoT Workloads with Azure Arc and GitOps                

Understanding the Future of Azure Arc Enabled Kubernetes                

Summary               

Here is a preview of the Azure Arc enabled Kubernetes course:

Here is a link to the full Azure Arc enabled Kubernetes course on Pluralsight: https://app.pluralsight.com/library/courses/azure-arc-enabled-kubernetes-getting-started

This course is also a part of the all new Azure Arc path titled “Managing Environments with Azure Arc” on Pluralsight. There are other courses in the path already such as Azure Arc: The Big Picture, Azure Arc-enabled Data Services: The Big Picture, and Azure Arc and Azure Lighthouse: First Look and many more Azure Arc courses on the way.

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Here is a link to check out the new Azure Arc path: https://app.pluralsight.com/paths/skills/managing-environments-with-azure-arc

I hope you find value in this new Azure Arc enabled Kubernetes: Getting Started course. Be sure to follow my profile on Pluralsight so you will be notified as I release new courses including my second Azure Arc related course! 

Here is the link to my Pluralsight profile to follow mehttps://app.pluralsight.com/profile/author/steve-buchanan

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9 Pluralsight Courses

I recently published 2 new courses bringing my total Pluralsight courses to 9! These two new courses wrap up my time authoring courses for the SAP on Azure path. These 2 new courses are Migrating SAP Workloads to Azure and Designing an Azure Solution to Support SAP Workloads.

This brand new path is Planning and Administering Microsoft Azure for SAP Workloads (AZ-120). This path also has a course by Tim Warner as well as two more being developed right now! Also, I should mention this path also contains my SAP on Azure: The Big Picture course.

This new path will help you prepare to take the AZ-120 exam to earn your Microsoft Certified: Azure for SAP Workloads Specialty certification and ramp up on SAP on Azure in general.

Check out the path here: https://app.pluralsight.com/paths/certificate/planning-and-administering-microsoft-azure-for-sap-workloads-az-120

I hope you find value in this new SAP on Azure learning path on Pluralsight. Again these two new courses bring me to a total of 9 courses now published on the Pluralsight platform! Next up I will start working on some Azure courses. These new courses will cover managing servers and Kubernetes with Azure Arc. I am very excited about my next courses. Be sure to follow my profile on Pluralsight so you will be notified as I release these new courses! 

Here is the link to my Pluralsight profile to follow mehttps://app.pluralsight.com/profile/author/steve-buchanan

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2020 Year Review – Podcasts, Speaking, New Courses, & Certifications

2020 was an extraordinarily tough year with many downs for so many people all over the world. For me losing 3 people in a week and a half (not to COVID) along with all the funerals to follow was rough. Also, the injustice in my home city with the murder of George Floyd and unrest was unbelievable but not a surprise with injustice going un-noticed for so long. It was amazing to see the world wake up and acknowledge what has been happening for so long.

In spite of all of the bad stuff from 2020, there was a tremendous amount of good stuff happening and progress. I believe there is always an opportunity in the middle of chaos. To see the opportunity it is needed to take a step back, slow down, and analyze the board. In this post, I am going to recap the positives from this year as I have done in the past few years.

Let me start off with the fact that I was renewed for my 9th year as a Microsoft MVP! I was re-awarded in the Azure category for the 3rd year. I never take the Microsoft MVP award for granted as it is never guaranteed. I am honored to once again be among such a talented group of people across the globe!

The next thing I want to call out is a message I received from someone from my home city after listening to one of the podcasts I was featured on. In this message this upcoming tech star talked about how he was inspired by the episode and how he can relate to me. This message was inspiring to me as this is a huge part of what I want to do through sharing my story. I hope to see more of it in the future. Here is the message:

Ok, now lets get into the list of activity from 2020!

-Podcasts-

In 2020 I was honored to be featured on 7 podcasts! Some of the podcasts in the US, Europe, and Africa! Here are the podcasts:

Guest on “Lisa at the Edge” Podcast EP13: In the podcast episode Lisa and I talked about: Evolving your career as technology evolves, Transformation of IT dept to Strategic Business Partner, DevOps, Containers 101, Azure Kubernetes Service, Diversity in tech. Episode link here

https://www.buchatech.com/2020/06/guest-on-lisa-at-the-edge-podcast-ep13/

Guest on Packet Pushers podcast Cloud Governance, Bringing Order To Your Cloud Chaos. Podcast episode here:

https://www.buchatech.com/2020/01/cloud-governance-bringing-order-to-your-cloud-chaos-podcast

Guest on a #podcast by @blacktechtalent. The founder & I discuss topics such as: breaking into tech, finding black tech talent, black employee retention, racism, colorism & more. You can listen here: https://www.blacktechtalent.org/btt-discussions-ep-3-ft-steve-buchanan/

Was a guest on Tech Talk Wednesday podcast and radio show with Kazeem Adegboyega Topic: Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS) in 30 minutes. Streamed online via Microsoft Teams and aired in Lagos, Nigeria on Lagos State University (LASU) radio (95.7).

https://www.buchatech.com/2020/08/tech-talk-wednesday-guest-topic-azure-kubernetes-service-aks/

10/31/2020 FEATURED ON BITTECHTALK EPISODE #127 – BITTechTalk ep. #127 Steve Buchanan – PC Tech to Microsoft MVP

https://www.buchatech.com/2020/10/featured-on-bittechtalk-episode-127-pc-tech-to-microsoft-mvp/

Guest on Black Tech Talent podcast.

https://www.buchatech.com/2020/10/featured-on-black-tech-talent-podcast/

11/5/2020 Guest on the RunAs Radio Podcast

https://www.buchatech.com/2020/11/featured-on-runasradio-podcast-terraform-vs-bicep-arm/

Guest on  Headinthecloud Heartinthecommunity a community show by Isidora Katanic and Holly Lehman.

-Pluralsight Courses-

In 2020 I developed 5 new courses for Pluralsight bringing the total to 6! This is an opportunity to continue sharing my knowledge with the world through Pluralsight’s global platform. You can find my Pluralsight Author page here:

https://app.pluralsight.com/profile/author/steve-buchanan

Here are my blogs about the courses throughout 2020:

https://www.buchatech.com/2020/12/sap-on-azure-course-on-pluralsight/
https://www.buchatech.com/2020/10/2-new-pluralsight-courses-heroku-cloud-computing-fundamentals/
https://www.buchatech.com/2020/07/third-pluralsight-course-published-microsoft-azure-pricing-and-support-options/
https://www.buchatech.com/2020/06/second-pluralsight-course-published-monitor-and-maintain-a-software-defined-datacenter-with-scom/

One more highlight from my journey with Pluralsight in 2020 is that my AZ-900 course broke into the top 100 courses on Pluralsight! This actually stayed here for multiple months!

https://www.buchatech.com/2020/11/my-az900-course-broke-into-the-top-100-on-pluralsight/

I am excited about the potential with Pluralsight for 2021!

-Speaking-

In 2020 I presented at some conferences and user groups. Here is where I presented in 2020:

Inside Azure Management event conference

I was a speaker during the “Inside Azure Management Summit” on 7/23/2020. This was a free community event. It featured Microsoft cloud experts from the authoring team of “Inside Azure Management” book, Microsoft MVP’s, and community experts from around the world. I presented on Azure Policy! My session can be watched here:

https://www.buchatech.com/2020/07/inside-azure-management-sessions-now-on-youtube/

I was one of the experts in several Ask the Expert sessions during Microsoft Ignite 2020! Sessions included PowerShell on Azure, Kubernetes on Azure, and Azure Migrations.

https://www.buchatech.com/2020/09/speaking-at-microsoft-ignite-2020/

Presented at an Azure User Group based in Ghana, in Africa on Terraform for Azure!

https://www.buchatech.com/2020/11/speaking-at-a-ghana-based-azure-user-group-on-terraform-and-azure/

-Interviews-

I was featured on AzureCrazy.com in an article! In the Interview we discuss being a #Microsoft MVP, getting certified in #Azure, the positive impact #PowerShell can have on your #ITCareer, getting started with #AKS#AzureStackHub & more. Check it out here:

https://www.buchatech.com/2020/10/featured-on-azurecrazy-com/

-Certifications-

Since 2020 was full of time spent inside at home I took some time to knock out a few certifications.

I took and passed the Docker certification! CKA will be in my future.

https://www.buchatech.com/2020/02/passed-docker-certified-associate-study-guide/

I decided to study for and passed an AWS certification!

https://www.buchatech.com/2020/07/passed-aws-cloud-practitioner-exam/

I also gained a Terraform certification by contributing to the Terraform associate exam and helped out with a Terraform certification study guide!

https://www.buchatech.com/2020/04/hashicorp-terraform-certified-associate-exam-study-guide/

-More-

I also spent time writing blogs, volunteering with some youth tech programs, as well as shared a couple of scripts on GitHub! Here are some posts about some of these:

https://www.buchatech.com/2020/03/build-release-a-container-image-from-azure-devops-to-azure-web-app-for-containers/
https://www.buchatech.com/2020/04/application-gateway-ingress-controller-deployment-script-for-azure-kubernetes-service/

2020 was a full year. I already have plans and stuff in the works to make 2021 an exciting year continuing with a focus on Azure, Containers, Kubernetes, IaC, Terraform, GitOps, and more! Please check back here often for new blogs, scripts, and more.

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