Scale, Crop, and Zoom Images in a React Web Application

If you’ve been keeping up with the blog, you might remember a few tutorials I wrote around the Cropper.js library for JavaScript applications. In these tutorials I demonstrated how to manipulate images in Angular as well as Vue.js web applications. While the tutorials were more or less the same, the framework was different, which resulted in some differences in the code used.

So what if we were building a React application and needed to manipulate images prior to uploading them to a server?

In this tutorial we’re going to see how to use Cropper.js to crop images within a React web application. While we won’t be uploading these images to a remote server for storage, such as a task can be easily accomplished with a bit of imagination.

Make HTTP Requests with Axios or Fetch in a React Web Application

In most client facing applications there’s a need to consume data from remote web services, also referred to as APIs. This is because there is a separation of backend and frontend logic in modern applications, not specific to the web. With JavaScript, there are quite a few options when it comes to making HTTP requests, some of which I explored in my previous tutorial titled, Execute HTTP Requests in JavaScript Applications.

What if we wanted to execute HTTP requests using a popular framework like React?

In this tutorial, we’re going to look at what it takes to make HTTP requests and consume data from remote web services using React and simple JavaScript.

Test Password Strength with RegEx in a React Application

While some organizations think it is up to the user to protect themselves by choosing strong usernames and passwords, the developer can help influence good password choices by including it in the design of the application. For example, the developer could include bars, percentages, or colors to help dictate quality of a password as the user enters it into a form.

A lot of us know a weak password is short and contains either alpha or numeric, but never both. We also know strong passwords include symbols as well as variations of character case-sensitivity. So how can we check for these things in the application?

In this tutorial we’re going to make use of regular expressions to test the quality of a password. This is going to be done with simple JavaScript in a React application.

Developing Alexa Skills with MongoDB and Golang

The popularity of Amazon Alexa and virtual assistants in general is no question, huge. Having a web application and mobile application isn’t enough for most organizations anymore, and now you need to start supporting voice operated applications.

So what does it take to create something for Alexa? How different is it from creating a web application?

In this tutorial we’re going to see how to create an Amazon Alexa Skill, also referred to as an Alexa application, that interacts with a MongoDB cluster using the Go programming language (Golang) and AWS Lambda.

Automating a Brand with Automate.io, Social Media, and Email Marketing

When it comes to blogging or running any kind of brand or business, you’re going to find a certain rhythm in the activities that you do to keep it functioning. Many of these activities are simple, repetitive, and time consuming over the long term. In certain circumstances, the activities can be automated without needing your intervention.

I know what you’re thinking. For what possible reason could a marketing automation entry on The Polyglot Developer make any sense, since The Polyglot Developer is known for development related topics. While not really a technical topic, you have to remember that The Polyglot Developer is a brand that needs to find its way into the eyes of a technical audience.

In this article, you’re going to learn about how I’m using various marketing and automation tools to create workflows that reduce some of the repetitive tasks that happen daily.

My Activity Report For 2019

It has been another great year for technology and The Polyglot Developer. Like I’ve done in a 2018 activity report, and the years before it, I wanted to take a moment to reflect on all that was accomplished for the 2019 calendar year.

If you’re unfamiliar with this kind of post, it is more or less a numbers report for the various things that happened throughout the year. Such things include blog, podcast, and YouTube metrics, as well as information around events and speaking engagements.

Not only is this an opportunity for me to keep track of things, but you can use it as an opportunity to learn about how I’ve conducted business and apply it towards your own.

Change the Host File of an Android Emulator

While working on a bug in one of my projects recently, I found an issue that I could only recreate on an Android device. However, due to some cross-origin resource sharing (CORS) issues on my server, I had to serve my development environment from a changed hostfile that had a specific subdomain of my project.

With the ability to use a remote Chrome debugger from your desktop to a mobile device, you can use an emulator and still have your full Chrome debugging capabilities. The only problem then, is how to get the host file to match your desktop environment. Following these steps will allow you to do just that!