The Unreasonable Effectiveness of 12-Factor Apps This issue is brought to you by: Twingate: It's time to ditch your VPN. Keep private resources and internet traffic protected with Zero Trust security tools built for the modern world of work. Start securing your Kubernetes clusters today! The title of this newsletter isn’t just fluff; it points to a fundamental truth in software development. Often, the most expensive problems stem from ignoring a few simple, foundational rules. The...
11 days ago • 5 min read
FFmpeg Converts ANYTHING - The Trick Book I Wish I Had This issue is brought to you by: Learn backend development the smart way with boot.dev Use the code DEVOPSTOOLBOX to get 25% off your first payment for boot.dev. Get Started Today The title of this newsletter isn't an exaggeration. There's a single, free tool that can genuinely convert, create, and manipulate almost any media file you throw at it. It’s the hidden engine powering everything from YouTube, through OBS, online media...
25 days ago • 4 min read
Is Gemini CLI Worth The Hype? This issue is brought to you by: Securing AI agents is now possible with Auth0 . AI agents are reshaping digital experiences. But securing them requires rethinking identity and access controls built for a human-first world. Get Started Today With a new AI coding assistant announced every other week, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed by the “paradox of choice.” Google entered the game late with its Gemini CLI, but they made a smart move: they made it free and...
about 2 months ago • 4 min read
I Used Heroku Open Source Alternatives So You Don't Have To This issue is brought to you by: Enjoy fast, secure and reliable web hosting with Hostinger. Use "devopstoolbox" at checkout of extra discounts on op! Start hosting with Hostinger today! I recently went down the rabbit hole of self-hosted application platforms. Just 5 weeks ago I made a video covering Coolify end 2 end.Once that got released (or maybe, because of that?) I started seeing many similar, open source, self-hostable...
about 2 months ago • 4 min read
SQLite Is the ULTIMATE Choice For 99% of Projects When you need to crack a nut, you grab a nutcracker, not a sledgehammer. So why, when it comes to databases, do so many of us immediately reach for a heavy, complex solution, just because we “feel” it’s right? too much? This simple question changes how you look at building software.The default solution for most developers is to spin up a dedicated database server like MySQL, Postgres, or a NoSQL option. This means dealing with separate running...
2 months ago • 3 min read
I've Been Using AWS Wrong for YEARS... For years, my approach to AWS felt like a battle. As a DevOps engineer and later and architect, building infra always involved a tedious process of carefully building templates and structure, reviewing, deploying, testing and iterating over and over. I’d either spend hours clicking through the console or writing endless infrastructure code, always feeling like I was one misconfiguration away from a headache. It turns out, I was making it much harder than...
3 months ago • 3 min read
You've been lied to about self hosting... This issue is brought to you by: Auth0, my auth provider for the last 6 years. Join their free virtual dev_day on June 18th to learn how to secure AI agents and applications. Save your free spot That title might sound a bit aggressive, but this isn't about hating on hosting platforms. It's about loving the freedom, control, and cost-savings that come from owning your deployment process, without giving up the slick, easy experience we all love. And...
3 months ago • 4 min read
How DHH Solved Deploying to Production (with Open Source) Ever felt depressed by the sheer complexity of getting your application live and serving users? You’re not alone. But what if deploying to production, even (or especially) across multiple servers, could be straightforward and more importantly, free? That’s the reality DHH, the creator of Ruby on Rails and CTO of Basecamp & HEY, wanted to create, and he delivered with an open source tool called Kamal. DHH’s approach to technology always...
4 months ago • 4 min read
The UNDERRATED Open Source Powering My HomeLab This issue is brought to you by: Secure Your AI Future at Snyk Launch 2025 Join Snyk Launch to discover how to establish a foundation to build securely and confidently in the age of AI. Register for Snyk Launch 2025 (It’s Free!) Kestra, an open-source automation platform that's been a game-changer for my homelab and, frankly, could be for a lot more. It's one of those tools that flies under the radar for too many people, but packs so much...
4 months ago • 5 min read