If you’re a developer working in today’ tech world, you’ve probably heard the buzz about Quarkus. But what is it, and why should you care? Let’s break it down in simple terms.

What is Quarkus?

Quarkus is said to be “Supersonic Subatomic Java”. Catchy sentence, isn’t it ?  I quite like it because supersonic gives you the impression of speed. Subatomic gives you the sensation of size, atomic, so you can think that everything is small and yes, indeed it is. Quarkus is a modern framework designed for Java developers who want to build applications that are lightning-fast and ready for the cloud. Think of it as a new-and-improved toolbox that helps you create better, faster apps with less hassle.

Traditionally, Java applications have been powerful but also resource-heavy. They take longer to start, use more memory, and aren’t always the best fit for modern platforms like Kubernetes or serverless environments. Quarkus flips this script by being lightweight, fast, and cloud-native.

Why Should You Learn Quarkus?

Quarkus have become essential to streamline microservice development. Here are a few reasons to add Quarkus to your developer skillset:

1. Fast Start-Up Times

Imagine you’re working on an app that needs to start quickly—whether it’s for scaling up during peak hours or running short-lived serverless functions. Traditional Java apps can take several seconds (or even minutes) to boot up. With Quarkus, start-up times are measured in milliseconds. Faster start-ups mean happier users and more efficient systems.

2. Low Memory Usage

In the world of cloud computing, you’re often paying for resources like CPU and memory. Quarkus uses far less memory compared to traditional Java frameworks. This makes it ideal for running multiple applications on the same infrastructure without breaking the bank.

3. Built for Cloud and Kubernetes

Today, apps are increasingly run in cloud environments like Kubernetes. Quarkus is designed with these platforms in mind. It simplifies packaging, deployment, and scaling, making it easy to build apps that work seamlessly in modern cloud ecosystems.

4. Developer Joy

Let’s be honest: writing code can sometimes feel tedious. Quarkus aims to bring joy back to the process with features like hot reload. This means you can see your changes instantly, without restarting your app. It’s like having a magic wand that speeds up your development and testing.

5. Compatible with Your Existing Skills

If you’re already a Java developer, you don’t need to start from scratch. Quarkus supports familiar frameworks like Spring, Hibernate, and RESTEasy. You can bring your existing knowledge and get started quickly, making the learning curve much smoother.

6. Future-Proof Your Career

The tech industry is always evolving. By learning Quarkus, you’re positioning yourself as a developer who’s ready for the future. Companies are increasingly adopting Quarkus to build scalable, cloud-native applications. Mastering it can make you a sought-after professional.

How Do You Start?

Getting started with Quarkus is easy. Here’s a simple plan:

1. Visit the Quarkus Website: Head over to quarkus.io to explore the official documentation and guides.
2. Try the Quickstart: Follow the quickstart projects to see how Quarkus works.
3. Build Something Small: Create a simple REST API or a microservice to get hands-on experience.
4. Leverage the Community: Join forums and communities to learn from others and share your experiences.

Conclusion

Quarkus is more than just a buzzword; it’s a game-changer for Java developers. With its blazing-fast performance, cloud-native features, and developer-friendly tools, it’s a must-learn technology for anyone looking to stay ahead in the world of software development.
So why wait? Dive into Quarkus today and take your skills to the next level. To help you out more I will bring more practical guides through my blogs! Stay tuned.

Exploring Chrome DevTools: Features You Need to Know

Google Chrome DevTools is a powerful suite of tools designed to assist developers and testers in inspecting, debugging, and improving their web applications. While it offers a plethora of functionalities, some features often remain underutilized. This blog will explore essential features such as Simulate Network Throttling, CSS Overview Panel, Command Menu, Copy as cURL, and Capture Node Screenshot. Additionally, we’ll introduce other noteworthy tools to enhance your workflow.

1. Simulate Network Throttling

Testing a website under varying network conditions is crucial for a seamless user experience. Chrome DevTools enables you to simulate different network speeds, such as 3G, 4G, or offline mode.

How to Use:

1. Open the Network panel in DevTools.
2. Select the Throttling dropdown from the top menu.
3. Choose a preset profile like “Slow 4G” or “Offline,” or create a custom one.

This feature is invaluable for identifying loading issues and optimizing performance for users with slower connections.

Example Use Cases:

1. Validate the video buffering or check the page responsiveness on a slow network.
2. Offline mode testing can also be used in performance testing.

Pro Tip: Use this with the Performance panel to analyze load times under specific conditions.

2. CSS Overview Panel

Maintaining a consistent style across your website can be challenging, especially in large projects. The CSS Overview Panel simplifies this by summarizing all CSS properties on a webpage.

How to Use:

1. Open DevTools and navigate to the More Tools menu.
2. Select CSS Overview.
3. Click Capture Overview to generate a report.

The overview provides insights into unused styles, inconsistent colors, and potential accessibility issues, helping you maintain cleaner and more efficient stylesheets.

Example Use Cases:

1. It will help to maintain a consistent design by identifying the redundant style.
2. Accessibility Improvement, Optimization

3. Command Menu

The Command Menu is a powerful tool that allows you to access DevTools features quickly and efficiently.

How to Use:

1. Open DevTools and press Ctrl + Shift + P (Windows/Linux) or Cmd + Shift + P (Mac).
2. Type in commands like “show rulers” or “clear cache” to access specific features.

Command Menu

This is a great way to save time, especially when working with less commonly used settings or experimental features.

Example Use Cases: 

1. Open tools like Performance, Rendering, and Coverage instantly without having to go through menus.
2. Also, ensure the fresh content loads on every page refresh during testing.

4. Copy as cURL

Debugging network requests is an integral part of web development. Chrome DevTools makes it easy to replicate and share requests using the Copy as cURL feature.

How to Use:

1. Navigate to the Network panel and locate the request you want to debug.
2. Right-click the request and choose Copy > Copy as cURL.

Copy as cURL

This command is especially useful when testing API calls in external tools like Postman or Curl in the terminal.

Example Use Cases:

5. Capture Node Screenshot

When debugging UI elements, taking precise screenshots of specific DOM nodes can save you time. The Capture Node Screenshot feature allows you to capture only the selected element, eliminating the need for cropping.

How to Use:

1. Open the Elements panel in DevTools.
2. Select the desired DOM node.
3. Right-click and choose Capture Node Screenshot.

This is perfect for sharing visual changes or debugging design issues such as modals or tooltips.

Example Use Cases: 

1. Share screenshots of modals, dropdowns, or tooltips with your team when debugging layout issues.
2. Capture error message or UI element issue for reporting.

Bonus Features You Should Explore

1. Device Mode

Toggle the Device Toolbar in the top-left corner of DevTools to test your website’s responsiveness across different screen sizes.

2. Lighthouse Audits

Generate comprehensive reports on performance, SEO, accessibility, and best practices using the Lighthouse tab.

3. Coverage Tab

Optimize your project by identifying unused CSS and JavaScript files. Access the Coverage Tab through the Command Menu.

4. Performance Insights

Analyze runtime performance using the Performance panel to identify slow scripts or layout shifts.

References and Resources

1. Official Chrome DevTools Documentation
2. Debugging with Chrome DevTools
3. DevTools Tips and Tricks
4. https://www.saucedemo.com/v1/inventory.html

By becoming proficient with these tools, you can produce high-quality web applications and streamline your workflows. Which DevTools feature do you find most useful? Let us know in the comments below!

Happy Reading!

Mega menus are an expandable menu feature with a multitude of options within a single interface, utilizing a dropdown format.

Mega menu designs can vary in complexity. They are particularly beneficial for managing a considerable amount of content or providing a quick overview of a sub-category of pages.

Steps to create:

Required:

Acquia Site Studio: (https://www.acquia.com/drupal/site-studio) 

Menu Item Extras module: (https://www.drupal.org/project/menu_item_extras)

Adding a field to your menu:

A field can be added to the menu through the “Structure -> Menus” section. To initiate this process, you must edit your existing menu or create a new one. Once in the menu editor, the next step is to add a field. This field can be of any type based on your requirements.  

Since this is a Site Studio example, we’re going to choose a “Site Studio – Layout Canvas” field. This way we’re able to drop any component into the menu.

Adding content to your new menu field:

Depending on the type of field you are using, you may need to edit the “Manage Display” options for that specific field. 

In our example, we associate the mega menu “content” with the first-level menu item.  

This menu item functions as the designated location for displaying your content. So, that’s the exact menu item where you should add your content.

Rendering your menu item field on a Site Studio menu template:  

To learn more about creating a multi-level menu, refer to Acquia’s documentation here. 

Begin by building your menu structure. Once you have the menu structure in place, identify the location where you want your layout canvas field to be displayed within the menu. In our example, we are placing the second-level menu AND our “layout canvas” field inside the first level of the menu. 

The wrapper will act as a dropdown that will be toggled.

You can utilize various elements to insert your “content” from your Drupal menu. For this example, we will use the Inline element.

Adding your token to the inline element:

Next, we’ll need to locate the token associated with the field we added to our menu item. 

Within your element, use the token browser to locate the token under the “Custom menu link” dropdown. In our example, we called it “Mega Menu Canvas”. 

Save the menu template and refresh your website. Hover over the parent menu item to which you added the mega menu! 

JavaScript is a loosely typed language which is very dynamic in nature. It has been very popular for its strong web development for decades. Indeed, it is a powerful tool, but it can sometimes lead to huge codebase and runtime errors, mainly in heavy applications. Now, speak about TypeScript, a superset of JavaScript, overcoming its technical challenges. Let’s know why the TypeScript is gaining the popularity and attention among high end developers.

What is TypeScript?

TypeScript, the hero programming language, is developed and maintained by Microsoft. It is built on top of JavaScript by adding various features such as interfaces, error detection capabilities, static typing. It helps developers to write the cleaner, neater and more flexible code. Since the TypeScript compiles to JavaScript, it goes very well in terms of compatibility with JavaScript libraries and frameworks

Key Advantages of TypeScript

1. Static Typing

Think about your last debugging session: Have you ever spent time tracking down a bug caused by a type mismatch? Let’s see how TypeScript solves this with static typing.

JavaScript Example:

What do you think happens when we use TypeScript?

TypeScript Example:

Static typing ensures that type mismatches are caught during the development phase, reducing bugs in production.

2. Error Detection and Debugging

TypeScript’s compile-time checks prevent common errors such as typos or incorrect property access.

JavaScript Example:

TypeScript Example:

3. Better Code Maintainability

Imagine working on a large project with multiple team members. How would you ensure everyone follows a consistent data structure? TypeScript helps with constructs like enums and interfaces.

Example:

Using enums and interfaces, developers can clearly define and enforce constraints within the codebase.

4. Backward Compatibility

TypeScript compiles to plain JavaScript, meaning you can gradually adopt TypeScript in existing projects without rewriting everything. This makes it an ideal choice for teams transitioning from JavaScript.

Common Misconceptions About TypeScript

“TypeScript is Too Verbose”

It might seem so at first glance, but have you considered how much time it saves during debugging? For example:

“It Slows Down Development”

The time spent defining types is often outweighed by the time saved debugging and refactoring.

When to Use TypeScript?

TypeScript is particularly beneficial for:

• Large-scale applications: It ensures maintainability as the project grows
• Collaborative projects: Static typing helps teams understand each other’s code more easily.
• Complex data structures: For simplification of complex data structures, TypeScript is a better approach.

Conclusion

While JavaScript comes as a handy and excellent language for many projects, TypeScript addresses its flaws by introducing static typing, improved tooling and better readability and maintainability. For developers looking to build a high scale application with error-resistant code, TypeScript would be a great choice.

As private health insurers weather industry headwinds, strategic transformation priorities remain firmly centered on operations and patient-centric experiences that accelerate efficiencies. Outcomes-driven leaders recognize the value of aligning key business needs with people, technology, and processes. 

Leading Digital Transformation for U.S. Payers 

We are proud to announce the recent recognition of Perficient’s digital services for healthcare payers by an industry-leading advisory firm. This highlights the value that our expert, global teams bring to the largest U.S. health insurers as industry leaders work to improve operations, efficiency, and effectiveness.  

Now more than ever, insurers can accelerate a shift from traditional cost management to proactive health enablement. The most effective payers are integrating technologies to modernize operations, streamline experiences, and not only unlock reliable data, but elevate insights and experiences with AI and advanced, integrated analytics. AI can be harnessed to offer hyper-personalized benefit plans, predictive risk analytics, and real-time insights that not only manage costs but also enhance member experience and engagement. 

You May Enjoy: Current Digital Trends in Healthcare 

We believe our inclusion in a leading study of digital health services showcases our dedication to easing consumer journeys, ensuring integrated data is reliable and secure, and modernizing the enterprise so it can accelerate progress toward key business priorities. We are committed to helping healthcare leaders stay competitive with our award-winning, tailored solutions.  

“This acknowledgment underscores our commitment to helping healthcare leaders optimize workflows, uncover insights, innovate care experiences, and strengthen consumer trust.”– Brent Teiken, General Manager, Healthcare + Life Sciences

Our healthcare experts guide and drive a shared understanding with clients. This insight is especially vital as leaders seek solutions to highly complex business challenges that rely on protected data and span a complex healthcare ecosystem. Our technology experts further ensure that solutions are not only implemented correctly but can scale as consumer expectations and business needs evolve.  

Success In Action: Enabling Better Insight Into Key Patient Data Using GenAI 

Elevate Health and Business Outcomes With Our Expertise 

We help health insurers navigate intense technological and regulatory requirements while controlling costs and improving the user experience to support and delight members. 

• Business Transformation: Transform strategy into action: reduce costs, increase quality, and improve member experiences. 
• Modernization: Maximize technology to drive innovative, digital-first care solutions in automation, AI, and cloud. 
• Data + Analytics: Provide governed, accessible, and trusted data to drive insight and engagement for members, providers, and groups. 
• Consumer Experience: Create personalized, value added, and measurable experiences across multiple channels for all constituents. 

Explore our healthcare expertise and contact us to discover why we have been trusted by the 10 largest U.S. health insurers, including 25 BCBS-affiliated insurers, and are consistently recognized by Modern Healthcare as one of the largest healthcare consulting firms. 

In the realm of web development, SCSS and JavaScript often serve as two fundamental pillars, each responsible for distinct roles – styling and functionality respectively. However, the integration of SCSS with JavaScript offers a powerful approach to creating dynamic, responsive, and interactive web experiences. In this advanced guide, we’ll dive into techniques and best practices for this integration.

Introduction to SCSS:

A preprocessor that adds powerful features like variables, nesting, and mixins to CSS. It allows developers to write more organized and maintainable stylesheets.

Why Integrate SCSS with JavaScript?

By linking SCSS and JavaScript, developers can leverage dynamic styling capabilities based on user actions, data changes, or other interactions. This extends beyond simple class toggles to involve dynamically altering styles.

Setting up the Environment:

Before integrating, you need to set up your project to compile SCSS into CSS:

• Install Node.js.
• Use npm to install Sass: npm install -g sass.
• Compile your SCSS: sass input.scss output.css.

Dynamic SCSS Variables using JavaScript:

Here’s where the magic happens. By using CSS custom properties (often called CSS variables), we can bridge the SCSS and JavaScript worlds:

This changes the primary color from blue to red, affecting any element styled with –primary-color variable.

Using JavaScript to Manage SCSS Mixins:

While direct integration isn’t possible, you can simulate behavior by creating various classes corresponding to mixins and then toggling them with JS:

SCSS Maps and JavaScript:

Maps can store theme configurations, breakpoints, or any other set of values. While you can’t access them directly in JS, you can output them as CSS custom properties:

Event-driven Styling:

By adding event listeners in JS, you can alter styles based on user interactions:

Conclusion:

Integrating Syntactically Awesome Style Sheets with JavaScript broadens the horizons for web developers, enabling styles to be as dynamic and data driven as the content they represent. While there are inherent boundaries between styling and scripting, the techniques outlined above blur these lines, offering unparalleled control over the user interface and experience.

In a previous blog post I discussed various content authoring approaches within Drupal and the importance of selecting the right one for your specific situation. Towards the end I mentioned a new iteration of Drupal(Starshot). It is now here, Startshot, i.e. Drupal CMS was released on Jan 15th. As it becomes part of the Drupal Ecosystem, here are 5 key areas to consider when tackling a new project or build.

1. What is Drupal CMS?

Drupal CMS is a tooling built on top of Drupal 11 Core. This takes some of the most commonly used configurations, recipes, modules and more, puts them into an installable package and offers it for a great starting point for small to moderate complexity websites and portals.

2. What are the advantages of Drupal CMS?

As mentioned above, Drupal CMS is a pre-bundled installation of Drupal 11 Core, Contributed modules, Recipes and configuration that provides a rapid starting point for marketing teams.

The advantages include quicker time to market, easier configuration of toolings for cookie compliance, content workflows, permissions, multilingual support and more. Drupal CMS as a product will enable marketing teams to build and maintain a web presence with limited technical staff requirements. You may be able to take advantage of an implementation partner like Perficient and have much smaller learning curve for web editors and managers as opposed to a completely custom build on top of Drupal Core.

The ability for a CMS to be spun up with limited customization and overhead, is a big departure from traditional Drupal development which required extensive experience and technical support. This will be a huge time and budget saver for certain situations and organizations.

Another advantage of Drupal CMS is that is built upon the standard Drupal 11 core. This allows a site to evolve, grow and take advantage of the more complex technical underpinnings as needed. If you start with Drupal CMS, you are not handcuffed to it, and have the entire Drupal open source ecosystem available to you as you scale.

3. What are the disadvantages of Drupal CMS?

Or course, no situation is a win-win-win, so what are the tradeoffs of Drupal CMS?

The major disadvantages of Drupal CMS would come to light in heavily customized or complex systems. All of the preconfigured toolings that make a simple to moderately complex site easier on Drupal CMS can cause MORE complexity on larger or completely custom builds, as a technical team may find themselves spending unnecessary time undoing the unnecessary aspects of Drupal CMS.

Another (for the meantime)disadvantage of Drupal CMS is that it is built on top of Drupal 11 core, while Drupal 11 is a secure and final release, the community support historically lags. It is worth evaluating support for any contributed modules for Drupal 11 before making the decision on Drupal CMS.

4. Drupal 10, Drupal 11, Drupal CMS, which is the right choice?

With all of the advantages and disadvantages to various Drupal Core and CMS versions. It can be a large choice of what direction to go. When making that decision for your organization, you should evaluate 3 major areas. First, look at the scale of your technical team and implementation budget. A smaller team or budget would suggest evaluating Drupal CMS as a solution.

Secondly, evaluate your technical requirements. Are you building a simple website with standard content needs and workflows? Drupal CMS might be perfect. Are you building a complex B2B commerce site with extensive content, workflow and technical customizations? Drupal Core might be the right choice.

Finally, evaluate your technical requirements for any needs that may not be fully supported by Drupal 11 just yet. If you find an area that isn’t supported, it would be time to evaluate the timeline for support, timeline for your project as well as criticality of the functional gaps. This is where a well versed and community connected implementation partner such as Perficient can provide crucial insights to ensure the proper selection of your underlying tooling.

5. I am already on Drupal 7/8/9/10/11, do I need to move to Drupal CMS?

In my opinion this is highly dependent of where you currently are. If you are on Drupal 7/8, you are many versions behind, lacking support and any upgrade is essentially a rebuild. In this case, Drupal CMS should be considered just like an new build considering the points above. Drupal 9/10/11, an upgrade to Drupal 10/11 respectively might be your best bet. Drupal CMS can be layered on top of this upgrade if you feel the features fit the direction of your website, but it is important to consider all the above pros and cons when making this decision. Again, a trusted implementation partner such as Perficient can help guide and inform you and your team as you tackle these considerations!

Hey there! If you’re reading this, chances are you’re curious about React and wondering how to get started. A few weeks ago, I was in the same boat—completely new to React, feeling overwhelmed by tutorials and thinking, “Where do I even begin?”

Now that I’ve made some progress, I want to share my step-by-step roadmap with you. Whether you’re a complete beginner or just getting started, this guide will help you navigate your React journey in a fun and engaging way. Let’s dive in!

Why Should You Learn React?

React is one of the most popular libraries for building modern web applications, and here’s why you should learn it:

1. It’s in Demand: React is widely used in the industry, from startups to tech giants like Facebook and Instagram.
2. Component-Based Architecture: React makes your code reusable, scalable, and easier to manage.
3. Fast and Dynamic: React apps update efficiently with their virtual DOM.

So, if you’re ready to future-proof your career, learning React is the way to go.

Step 1: Master the Prerequisites

Before diving into React, make sure you’re comfortable with the following:

• HTML & CSS: Know how to structure and style a webpage.
• JavaScript (ES6+): Get familiar with features like let/const, arrow functions, map/filter, and promises.
• TypeScript Basics: Understand how to add types to your JavaScript for more robust code.

Interactive Tip: Try building a simple webpage using just HTML, CSS, and vanilla JavaScript to test your skills.

Step 2: Setting Up Your Environment

Let’s get your environment ready for React development:

1. Install Node.js: Download it from Node.js.
2. Set Up a Project: Run the following command to create a React app with TypeScript:

bash

Copy code

npx create-react-app my-first-app –template typescript

1. Start Your App: Run npm and start to see your app in action at http://localhost:3000.

Now you have a working React project—congratulations!

Step 3: Core Concepts to Learn

Understanding these core concepts is the foundation of React:

1. Components: Reusable building blocks for your UI.
2. JSX: Write HTML-like syntax in your JavaScript files.
3. Props: Pass data to components as arguments.
4. State: Store dynamic data inside components.
5. Hooks: Add functionality like state (useState) and side effects (useEffect) to functional components.

Challenge: Look at any app you use daily (like a weather app). Can you identify components like buttons, headers, or input fields?

Step 4: Styling Your React App

React gives you several ways to style your app:

1. CSS Modules: Scoped CSS for each component.
2. Styled Components: Write CSS directly in your JavaScript using a library like styled-components.
3. Tailwind CSS: A utility-first CSS framework for fast styling.

Mini-Project: Try changing the default styles of your app to make it unique. Experiment with CSS modules or Tailwind CSS.

Step 5: Learn TypeScript with React

Adding TypeScript to React ensures your code is type-safe and easier to debug. Learn to:

• Type props with type or interface.
• Use useState and useReducer with typed states.
• Type events like onClick or onChange.

Pro Tip: Start small—add types to a single component and see how it catches errors before runtime.

Step 6: Working with APIs

Fetching and displaying data is a key part of React apps. Learn to:

1. Use the fetch API or libraries like Axios.
2. Handle loading, success, and error states.
3. Work with hooks like useEffect to fetch data when components mount.

Interactive Prompt: Think of an open API you’d like to use, like a movie database or weather API. Fetch data and display it in your app!

Step 7: Routing in React

Modern apps often have multiple pages, and that’s where React Router comes in. Learn to:

1. Add navigation with BrowserRouter and Route.
2. Use Link to create clickable navigation links.
3. Implement dynamic routing with URL parameters.

Quiz: What happens when you try to refresh a single-page React app in the browser? Learn how React Router handles this for you.

Step 8: State Management

For larger apps, managing the state becomes more complex. Explore tools like:

1. Context API: Built into React for lightweight state sharing.
2. Redux Toolkit: For scalable and predictable state management.
3. Zustand or MobX: Simple alternatives to Redux.

Think About It: When building an e-commerce app, how would you share the cart’s state across multiple components?

Step 9: Performance Optimization

As your app grows, optimizing performance is key. Learn about:

1. React.memo: Prevent unnecessary re-renders.
2. useCallback and useMemo: Cache functions and values for better performance.
3. Code Splitting: Load components only when needed using React’s lazy and Suspense.

Challenge: Identify parts of your app that re-render unnecessarily and optimize them.

Step 10: Build Real-World Projects

The best way to cement your knowledge is by building! Here are some ideas:

• Recipe App: Fetch recipes and let users save their favorites.
• Expense Tracker: Track income and expenses with visual charts.
• Portfolio Website: Showcase your skills and projects with React.

Conclusion

Learning React (and TypeScript!) might initially feel overwhelming, but taking it step by step makes it manageable and fun. The key is to practice, build projects, and stay curious.

Now it’s your turn: what’s the first React app you’re excited to build? Let me know in the comments below, and let’s create something awesome together.

Happy coding!

Upskilling in React Native, especially with experience in Flutter, iOS, or Android, can be effectively achieved by leveraging your knowledge of mobile development. Here’s a step-by-step guide to help you get started and progress quickly.

To rapidly upskill in React Native, focus on solidifying your JavaScript fundamentals, actively practice building small projects, leverage online learning platforms with hands-on exercises, dive into key React Native concepts like components, state management, navigation, and API integration, and actively engage with the community to learn from others and solve problems efficiently.

Understand the Basics of React Native

• What to Focus On: Learn about React Native’s architecture, JSX syntax, and how it builds upon React.
• Resources:
  • Introduction
  • Tutorial

Set Up the Development Environment

• Follow the React Native setup guide for your platform.
• Install and configure:
  • Node.js and npm (or yarn)
  • Android Studio and Xcode for emulators
  • Expo CLI for a simpler development experience.
• Resources:
  • Get Started with React Native

Core Concepts to Master

• React Basics: Props, State, and Lifecycle Methods.
  • Equivalent to managing state and widgets in Flutter.
• Components: Learn about core React Native components (View, Text, Image, etc.).
• Flexbox Layout: React Native relies heavily on Flexbox for UI layout (similar to Row and Column in Flutter).
• Navigation: Learn React Navigation (equivalent to Navigator in Flutter).
• Resources:
  • Navigation
  • Layout with FlexBox 

Learn React Native-Specific Features

• Native Modules and APIs: Interact with device hardware (camera, location, etc.).
• Styling: React Native uses JavaScript for styling (similar to CSS).
• Animation: Learn libraries like react-native-reanimated or Animated.
• State Management:
  • Start with Context API and React Hooks.
  • Gradually move to advanced solutions like Redux or MobX.
• Resources:
  • React Native Styles
  • Start Redux

Work on a Project

• Start with a small project to apply concepts:

• • Example 1: Build a To-Do app.
  • Example 2: Create a weather app using an open API.
• Tips:
  • Start simple and gradually add complexity (e.g., navigation, API integration).
  • Use tools like Expo for faster development.
• Resources:
  • React Native

Compare React Native and Flutter

• Similarities:
  • Both offer hot reload.
  • Component-based architecture.
• Differences:
  • React Native uses JavaScript or TypeScript, while Flutter uses Dart.
  • React Native relies on native components, while Flutter uses a custom rendering engine.
• Focus on understanding these differences to avoid confusion during development.

Dive Into Advanced Topics

• Native Development: Learn how to React Native bridges JavaScript with native code (iOS/Android).
• Performance Optimization: Study techniques to enhance performance (e.g., using FlatList for lists).
• Code Sharing: Explore more repos or code-sharing patterns if you maintain Flutter and React Native apps.
• Resources:
  • React Native Performance Overview

Practice with Open Source Projects

• Contribute to open-source projects to gain hands-on experience.
• Explore repositories on GitHub tagged with React Native.
• Resources:
  • 15 React Native Sample Projects

Use Online Learning Platforms

• Enroll in React Native-specific courses:
  • Udemy
  • Pluralsight
  • Frontend Masters
• Watch YouTube tutorials for real-world projects.

Network and Stay Updated

• Join React Native communities and forums:
  • Reactiflux Discord
  • React Native Reddit
• Follow blogs and changelogs to stay updated with the latest features.

Sample Roadmap for 1 Month

1. Week 1: Basics – Set up, understand JSX, and learn components.
2. Week 2: Intermediate – Navigation, API calls, and state management.
3. Week 3: Advanced – Native modules, animations, and performance optimization.
4. Week 4: Project – Build a small but complete app.

Final Thoughts on Upskilling in React Native

React Native not only enables you to create high-performance, cross-platform apps but also opens doors to diverse opportunities in the tech industry. With dedication, hands-on practice, and community support, you’ll soon become proficient and confident in delivering impactful mobile solutions.

Have you ever wondered about integration in API development or how to become familiar with the concept?

In this blog, we will discuss one of the integration technologies that is very easy and fun to learn, IBM ACE.

What is IBM ACE?

IBM ACE stands for IBM App Connect Enterprise. It is an integration platform that allows businesses to connect various applications, systems, and services, enabling smooth data flow and communication across diverse environments. IBM ACE supports the creation of Integrations using different patterns, helping organizations streamline their processes and improve overall efficiency in handling data and business workflows.

Through a collection of connectors to various data sources, including packaged applications, files, mobile devices, messaging systems, and databases, IBM ACE delivers the capabilities needed to design integration processes that support different integration requirements.

One advantage of adopting IBM ACE is that it allows current applications to be configured for Web Services without costly legacy application rewrites. By linking any application or service to numerous protocols, including SOAP, HTTP, and JMS, IBM ACE minimizes the point-to-point pressure on development resources.

Modern secure authentication technologies, including LDAP, X-AUTH, O-AUTH, and two-way SSL, are supported through MQ, HTTP, and SOAP nodes, including the ability to perform activities on behalf of masquerading or delegated users.

How to Get Started

Refer to Getting Started with IBM ACE: https://www.ibm.com/docs/en/app-connect/12.0?topic=enterprise-get-started-app-connect

For installation on Windows, follow the document link below. Change the IBM App Connect version to 12.0 and follow along: https://www.ibm.com/docs/en/app-connect/11.0.0?topic=software-installing-windows

IBM ACE Toolkit Interface

This is what an IBM ACE toolkit interface looks like. You can see all the applications/APIs and libraries you created during application development. In Pallete, you can see all the nodes and connectors needed for application development.

Learn more about nodes and connectors: https://www.ibm.com/docs/en/app-connect/12.0?topic=development-built-in-nodes

IBM ACE provides flexibility in creating an Integration Servers and Integration Node where you can deploy and test your developed code and application, which you can do with the help of mqsi commands.

How to Create a New Application

• To create a new application, click on File -> New -> Application.

• Give the Application a name and click finish.

• To add a message flow, click on New under Application, then Message Flow.

• Give the message flow a name and click finish.

• Once your flow is created, double-click on its name. The message flow will open, and you can implement the process.
• Drag the required node and connectors to the canvas for your development.

How to Create an Integration Node and Integration Server

• Open your command window for your current installation.

• To create an Integration server, run the following command in the command shell and specify the parameter for the integration server you want to create: mqsicreateexecutiongroup IBNODE -e IServer_2

• To create an Integration node, run the following command in the command shell and specify the parameter for the integration node you want to create.
  • For example, If you want to create an Integration node with queue manager ACEMQ, use the following command: mqsicreatebroker MYNODE -i wbrkuid -a wbrkpw -q ACEMQ

 How to Deploy the Application

• Right-click on the application, then click on Deploy.

• Then click on the Integration node and Finish.

Advantages of IBM ACE

• ACE offers powerful integration possibilities. Allowing for smooth communication between different applications, systems, and data sources.
• It supports a variety of message patterns and data formats, allowing it to handle a wide range of integration scenarios.
• It meets industry standards, ensuring compatibility and interoperability with many technologies and protocols.
• ACE has complete administration and monitoring features, allowing administrators to track integration processes’ performance and health.
• The platform encourages the production of reusable integration components, which decreases development time and effort for comparable integration tasks.
• ACE offers comprehensive security measures that secure data during transmission and storage while adhering to enterprise-level security standards.
• ACE offers a user-friendly development environment and tools to design, test, and deploy integration solutions effectively.

Conclusion

In this introductory blog, we have explored IBM ACE and how to create a basic application to learn about this integration technology.

Here at Perficient, we develop complex, scalable, robust, and cost-effective solutions using IBM ACE. This empowers our clients to improve efficiency and reduce manual work, ensuring seamless communication and data flow across their organization.

Contact us today to explore more options for elevating your business.

In this blog post, I will share my journey of developing a Python-based solution to remove strikethrough text from PDFs. This solution is specifically designed for PDFs where strikethrough is applied as a style rather than an annotation.

The Challenge

Strikethrough text in PDFs can be tricky to handle, mainly when applied as a style. Standard PDF manipulation libraries often fall short in these cases. Determined to find a solution, I leveraged Python to create a practical approach.

The Solution

The solution involves three main steps: converting the PDF to a DOCX file, removing the strikethrough text from the DOCX file, and converting the modified DOCX file back to a PDF.

Dependencies

Before diving into the code, install the necessary Python dependencies. You will need:
• pdf2docx for converting PDF to DOCX
• python-docx for manipulating DOCX files
• docx2pdf for converting DOCX back to PDF

You can install these dependencies using pip:

pip install pdf2docx python-docx docx2pdf

Step-by-Step Guide to Remove Strikethrough Text from PDFs

Step 1: Convert PDF to DOCX

The first step is to convert the PDF file to a DOCX file. This allows us to manipulate the text more easily. We use the pdf2docx library for this conversion. Here is the code for the conversion function:

from pdf2docx import Converter
def convert_pdf_to_word(pdf_file, docx_file):
    """Convert PDF to DOCX format."""
    try:
        cv = Converter(pdf_file)
        cv.convert(docx_file, start=0, end=None)
        cv.close()
        print(f"Converted PDF to DOCX: {pdf_file} -> {docx_file}")
    except Exception as e:
        print(f"Error during PDF to DOCX conversion: {e}")
        sys.exit(1)

In this function, we create an instance of the Converter class, passing the pdf_file as an argument. The convert method of the Converter class is called to perform the conversion, and the close method is called to release any resources the converter uses. If the conversion is successful, a message is printed indicating the conversion. If an error occurs, an exception is caught, and an error message is printed.

Step 2: Remove Strikethrough Text

Once we have the DOCX file, we can remove the strikethrough text. This step involves iterating through the paragraphs and runs in the DOCX file and checking for the strikethrough style. We use the python-docx library for this task. Here is the code for the strikethrough removal function:

from docx import Document
def remove_strikethrough_text(docx_file):
    """Remove all strikethrough text from a DOCX file."""
    try:
        document = Document(docx_file)
        modified = False
        for paragraph in document.paragraphs:
            for run in paragraph.runs:
                if run.font.strike:
                    print(f"Removing strikethrough text: {run.text}")
                    run.text = ''
                    modified = True
        if modified:
            modified_docx_file = docx_file.replace('.docx', '_modified.docx')
            document.save(modified_docx_file)
            print(f"Strikethrough text removed. Saved to: {modified_docx_file}")
            return modified_docx_file
        else:
            print("No strikethrough text found.")
            return docx_file
    except Exception as e:
        print(f"Error during strikethrough text removal: {e}")
        sys.exit(1)

In this function, we create an instance of the Document class, passing the docx_file as an argument. We iterate through each paragraph in the document and then through each run within the section. If the strike attribute of the run’s font is True, we print a message indicating removing the strikethrough text and set the run’s text to an empty string. If strikethrough text was removed, we save the modified document to a new file with _modified appended to the original filename. If no strikethrough text was found, we return the original DOCX file.

Step 3: Convert DOCX Back to PDF

The final step is to convert the modified DOCX file back to a PDF file. This ensures that the strikethrough text is removed in the final PDF. We use the docx2pdf library for this conversion. Here is the code for the conversion function:

from docx2pdf import convert

def convert_docx_to_pdf(docx_file, output_pdf):
    """Convert DOCX back to PDF format."""
    try:
        convert(docx_file, output_pdf)
        print(f"Converted DOCX to PDF: {docx_file} -> {output_pdf}")
    except Exception as e:
        print(f"Error during DOCX to PDF conversion: {e}")
        sys.exit(1)

We call this function the convert function, passing the docx_file and output_pdf as arguments to perform the conversion. If the conversion is successful, a message is printed indicating the conversion. If an error occurs, an exception is caught, and an error message is printed.

Main Execution Block

The following block of code is the main execution section of the script. It starts by checking if the script is being run directly. It then verifies that the correct number of command-line arguments is provided and that the specified PDF file exists. If these conditions are met, the script defines intermediate file paths and performs the three main steps: converting the PDF to a DOCX file, removing strikethrough text from the DOCX file, and converting the modified DOCX back to a PDF. After completing these steps, it prints the location of the modified PDF file and cleans up any intermediate files. If errors occur during execution, they are caught and printed, and the script exits gracefully.

if __name__ == "__main__":
    if len(sys.argv) != 2:
        sys.exit(1)

    pdf_file = sys.argv[1]

    if not os.path.exists(pdf_file):
        print(f"Error: File not found - {pdf_file}")
        sys.exit(1)

    try:
        # Define intermediate file paths
        base_name = os.path.splitext(pdf_file)[0]
        temp_docx_file = f"{base_name}.docx"
        modified_docx_file = f"{base_name}_modified.docx"
        output_pdf_file = f"{base_name}_modified.pdf"

        # Step 1: Convert PDF to DOCX
        convert_pdf_to_word(pdf_file, temp_docx_file)

        # Step 2: Remove strikethrough text
        final_docx_file = remove_strikethrough_text(temp_docx_file)

        # Step 3: Convert modified DOCX back to PDF
        convert_docx_to_pdf(final_docx_file, output_pdf_file)

        print(f"Modified PDF saved to: {output_pdf_file}")

        # Clean up intermediate DOCX files
        if os.path.exists(temp_docx_file):
            os.remove(temp_docx_file)
        if final_docx_file != temp_docx_file and os.path.exists(final_docx_file):
            os.remove(final_docx_file)

    except Exception as e:
        print(f"Error: {e}")
        sys.exit(1)

Complete Script

import sys
import os
from pdf2docx import Converter
from docx import Document
from docx2pdf import convert

def convert_pdf_to_word(pdf_file, docx_file):
    """Convert PDF to DOCX format."""
    try:
        cv = Converter(pdf_file)
        cv.convert(docx_file, start=0, end=None)
        cv.close()
        print(f"Converted PDF to DOCX: {pdf_file} -> {docx_file}")
    except Exception as e:
        print(f"Error during PDF to DOCX conversion: {e}")
        sys.exit(1)

def remove_strikethrough_text(docx_file):
    """Remove all strikethrough text from a DOCX file."""
    try:
        document = Document(docx_file)
        modified = False

        for paragraph in document.paragraphs:
            for run in paragraph.runs:
                if run.font.strike:
                    print(f"Removing strikethrough text: {run.text}")
                    run.text = ''
                    modified = True

        if modified:
            modified_docx_file = docx_file.replace('.docx', '_modified.docx')
            document.save(modified_docx_file)
            print(f"Strikethrough text removed. Saved to: {modified_docx_file}")
            return modified_docx_file
        else:
            print("No strikethrough text found.")
            return docx_file
    except Exception as e:
        print(f"Error during strikethrough text removal: {e}")
        sys.exit(1)

def convert_docx_to_pdf(docx_file, output_pdf):
    """Convert DOCX back to PDF format."""
    try:
        convert(docx_file, output_pdf)
        print(f"Converted DOCX to PDF: {docx_file} -> {output_pdf}")
    except Exception as e:
        print(f"Error during DOCX to PDF conversion: {e}")
        sys.exit(1)

if __name__ == "__main__":
    if len(sys.argv) != 2:
        sys.exit(1)

    pdf_file = sys.argv[1]

    if not os.path.exists(pdf_file):
        print(f"Error: File not found - {pdf_file}")
        sys.exit(1)

    try:
        # Define intermediate file paths
        base_name = os.path.splitext(pdf_file)[0]
        temp_docx_file = f"{base_name}.docx"
        modified_docx_file = f"{base_name}_modified.docx"
        output_pdf_file = f"{base_name}_modified.pdf"

        # Step 1: Convert PDF to DOCX
        convert_pdf_to_word(pdf_file, temp_docx_file)

        # Step 2: Remove strikethrough text
        final_docx_file = remove_strikethrough_text(temp_docx_file)

        # Step 3: Convert modified DOCX back to PDF
        convert_docx_to_pdf(final_docx_file, output_pdf_file)

        print(f"Modified PDF saved to: {output_pdf_file}")

        # Clean up intermediate DOCX files
        if os.path.exists(temp_docx_file):
            os.remove(temp_docx_file)
        if final_docx_file != temp_docx_file and os.path.exists(final_docx_file):
            os.remove(final_docx_file)

    except Exception as e:
        print(f"Error: {e}")
        sys.exit(1)

Run the Script

Execute the script by running the following command, replacing it with the path to your PDF file:

python <script_name>.py <pdf_file_path>

This Python-based solution effectively removes strikethrough text from PDFs by leveraging the strengths of the pdf2docx, python-docx, and docx2pdf libraries. By converting the PDF to DOCX, modifying the DOCX, and converting it back to PDF, we can ensure that the strikethrough text is removed without affecting other content. This approach provides a robust and efficient method for handling strikethrough text in PDFs, making your documents clean and professional.