Month: August 2017

AWS Certified Developer – Update

Since my last update, I’m proud to say that I’ve completed my course!  The major components of the second half of this course concerned Storage and Database implementations.  Here’s a brief rundown.

How is Storage handled on AWS?

The main storage offering on AWS is called S3.  This is basically bulk storage in AWS offered for a flat fee based on usage.  If you’d rather use a dynamic and shared storage that auto-scales, you’d set up a resource in Elastic File System.  The platform offers several different configurations based on availablity and performance expectations.   Versioning and replication of containers is supported.  Short and long term backups are covered by Glacier.  This is long term storage of snapshots of data at a lower fee, but binds you to a time commitment.  Those of us that have Disaster Recovery responsibilities can use this to implement Father->Grandfather backup strategies.

How are Databases implemented in AWS?

The conventional implementation of databases is by provisioning virtual DB instances.  You can choose your preferred framework, like MS-SQL or Oracle and then select the tier you need within that framework.   For the NoSQL crowd, there’s Dynamo DB which offers low latency databases for high traffic services and data analysis tools.  Certification note: The exam is mentioned by the course as being very heavy on Dynamo DB.  Calculating performance is a prominent item on the cert as you have a lot of fine tuning control with access. The key is to find that sweet spot where your bandwidth is sufficient without over provisioning.

While IAS, EC2 and S3 made up the lion’s share of the course, the remainder was short overviews of additional services such as:

  • Simple Queue Service + Simple Notification Service – Used as a clearinghouse to trigger shared events throughout your environments.
  • Simple Workflow Service – Used for management of back end processing in your API or Service Layer.
  • Cloud Formation – A framework for creating templates that provision predetermined purpose-built sets of AWS resources.
  • Elastic Beanstalk – Basically a wizard for provisioning auto-scaling application hosting environments that are immediately ready to run code.
  • Shared Responsibility Model – An overview of the demarcations between what integrity concerns the customer is responsible for as well as AWS.
  • Route 53 – More of an actual overview of DNS architecture rather than anything special about its AWS implementation.
  • Virtual Private Cloud (VPC) – This covers configuration of public and private zones of resources and defining rules for interoperation between them. Basically, taking everything we’ve learned and pulling it all together into something useful at the enterprise level. The analogy used for this is to think of a VPC as a logical data center.

Now that I’ve completed the course, it’s time to put my money where my mouth is and successfully pass the exam by the end of summer per my original commitment.  Wish me luck!

I’d love to hear any feedback on this post and invite you to share your own experiences and opinions on AWS, either your own projects or learning tracks. As always, if you have any questions or comments, please feel free to add them here or address them to john@benedettitech.com.

Thanks for looking in!

I Want To Look Good Naked


“Anti-wrinkle cream there may be, but anti-fat-bastard cream there is not.” – The Full Monty

I spend quite a bit of time over at The Art Of Manliness.  Some great tips on health and style as well as a wealth of inspirational writing, mostly in the form of fanboying on Theodore Roosevelt.  In looking for my next big challenge, I’m drawing inspiration from this article on Rites of Passage.

Speaking of TR, I remember being interested in him from a very young age.  The main connection I made was that we both had asthma.  Not like I’d ever stack myself up beside TR.  Where he made a point of seeking out adversity and testing his shortcomings, I’d often take pride in taking the shortest and easiest path possible.  Sometimes this is a virtue, but not when it comes to taking care of the self.  As such, I need to settle a long standing debt.

As I’ve mentioned before, I’ve been at an unhealthy weight for my entire adult life (and longer).  Carrying around what is essentially another person has negatively impacted my activities and general quality of life as well as put me on multiple medications.  Rather than keep this as a ‘Someday’ kind of goal, it’s time to put together a plan and get to work.  By doing so, I intend to improve my own health, extend my life and improve my self-image and self-worth dramatically.

Here is my goal:

Success is : I record a weight of 178 or below on 7/27/2018
Failure is : I record a weight above 178 on 7/27/2018

Here’s my plan:

– Use LiveStrong – Record weight daily and keep a food diary
– I will keep my daily calorie intake 500 below my BMR
– I will supplement my calorie deficit by 500 a day with daily exercise
– The data for the above will be maintained publicly here as a widget

I’ve always known what was required but never really applied myself.  But if I follow this plan, I should be able to lose 100 pounds over the next year at a healthy 2 pound a week rate.  This is perfectly reasonable and attainable.

I’m inviting everyone to encourage me.  Even more so, I invite people to hinder me and try and fuck me up.  For my own health and well being, this may very well be the most difficult and the most important thing I’ve ever attempted.  Bring it on!

As always, if you have any questions or comments, please feel free to add them here or address them to john@benedettitech.com.

Thanks for looking in!