Programming Puzzles: Python Edition. The Guide to Sharpen Your Coding Skills with Engaging and Challenging Puzzles

Matthew Whiteside

Programming Puzzles is a meticulously crafted collection designed to elevate your coding skills through engaging and challenging exercises. The book begins with a helpful guide on getting started, ensuring that readers are well-prepared to tackle the puzzles ahead. As you delve deeper, you'll encounter a series of challenge puzzles that test your logical thinking and problem-solving abilities, followed by fun puzzles that offer a more relaxed yet equally rewarding experience.Hints are provided for the challenge puzzles to guide you through particularly tough spots, ensuring you stay motivated without giving away the solutions. Once you've worked through the puzzles, comprehensive solutions are provided, allowing you to understand different approaches and learn from your mistakes. Each section of the book is designed to progressively build your skills, from basic logic to advanced problem-solving techniques, making it an invaluable resource for anyone looking to improve their programming abilities.The journey through this book is not just about finding solutions; it's about developing a deeper understanding of how to approach and solve complex problems. By the end of this book, you'll have honed your coding skills, enhanced your logical thinking, and gained a new appreciation for the art of problem-solving in programming.

C++ Game Animation Programming. Learn modern animation techniques from theory to implementation using C++, OpenGL, and Vulkan - Second Edition

Michael Dunsky, Gabor Szauer

If you‘re fascinated by the complexities of animating video game characters and are curious about the transformation of model files into 3D avatars and NPCs that can explore virtual worlds, then this book is for you. In this new edition, you’ll find expanded content on high-performance graphics and modern animation techniques, along with improved workflows and enhanced guidance on using OpenGL and Vulkan. You’ll learn everything you need to know about game animation, from a simple graphical window to a large crowd of smoothly animated characters.First, you’ll learn how to use modern high-performance graphics, dig into the details of how virtual characters are stored, and load the models and animations into a minimalistic game-like application. Then, you’ll get an overview of the components of an animation system, how to play the animations and combine them, and how to blend from one animation into another. You’ll also get an introduction to topics that will make your programming life easier, such as debugging your code or stripping down the graphical output.By the end of this book, you’ll have gained deep insights into all the parts of game animation programming and how they work together, revealing the magic that brings life to the virtual worlds on your screen.

Magento 2 Development Cookbook. Over 60 recipes that will tailor and customize your experience with Magento 2

Nurul Ferdous, Bart Delvaux

With the challenges of growing an online business, Magento 2 is an open source e-commerce platform with innumerable functionalities that gives you the freedom to make on-the-fly decisions. It allows you to customize multiple levels of security permissions and enhance the look and feel of your website, and thus gives you a personalized experience in promoting your business.

Apache Spark Machine Learning Blueprints. Develop a range of cutting-edge machine learning projects with Apache Spark using this actionable guide

Alex Liu

There's a reason why Apache Spark has become one of the most popular tools in Machine Learning – its ability to handle huge datasets at an impressive speed means you can be much more responsive to the data at your disposal. This book shows you Spark at its very best, demonstrating how to connect it with R and unlock maximum value not only from the tool but also from your data.Packed with a range of project blueprints that demonstrate some of the most interesting challenges that Spark can help you tackle, you'll find out how to use Spark notebooks and access, clean, and join different datasets before putting your knowledge into practice with some real-world projects, in which you will see how Spark Machine Learning can help you with everything from fraud detection to analyzing customer attrition. You'll also find out how to build a recommendation engine using Spark's parallel computing powers.

Architecting Salesforce Success. Quick tips to help you kickstart your career as a Salesforce Architect

Amit Chaudhary

Salesforce stands as a leading cloud-based customer relationship management (CRM) platform with extensive support for businesses in managing their sales, marketing, customer service, and other critical activities. Becoming a Salesforce Architect opens doors to lucrative career opportunities in a thriving industry, given the high demand for skilled professionals.This guide offers expert insights and best practices for developers who want to ascend the Salesforce ladder, technical leads honing their prowess in Salesforce, and enthusiasts exploring the dynamic world of Salesforce architecture. Whether you’re seeking a roadmap to success as a Salesforce Architect or want to enhance your skills, this concise yet insightful report ensures your growth in the vibrant Salesforce community.This guide will help you change your mindset from developer to architect, highlighting key considerations when designing a solution for clients. By the end of this book, you’ll have gained a comprehensive understanding of the role of a Salesforce Architect and the prerequisites and essential soft skills necessary for success within the Salesforce ecosystem.

Getting Started with MariaDB. Explore the powerful features of MariaDB with practical examples

Daniel Bartholomew

MariaDB is a database that has become very popular in the few short years that it has been around. It does not require a big server or expensive support contract. It is also powerful enough to be the database of choice for some of the biggest and most popular websites in the world, taking full advantage of the latest computing hardware available.From installing and configuring through basic usage and maintenance, each chapter in this revised and expanded guide leads on sequentially and logically from the one before it, introducing topics in their natural order so you learn what you need, when you need it. The book is based on the latest release of MariaDB and covers all the latest features and functions. By the end of this beginner-friendly book, not only will you have a running installation of MariaDB, but you will have practical, hands-on experience in the basics of how to install, configure, administer, use, and maintain it.

Unleashing Your Data with Power BI Machine Learning and OpenAI. Embark on a data adventure and turn your raw data into meaningful insights

Greg Beaumont

Microsoft Power BI is the ultimate solution for businesses looking to make data-driven decisions and unlock the full potential of their data. Unleashing Your Data with Power BI Machine Learning and OpenAI is designed for data scientists and BI professionals seeking to improve their existing solutions and workloads using AI. The book explains the intricacies of the subject by using a workshop-style data story for data ingestion, data modeling, analytics, and predictive analytics with Power BI machine learning. Along the way, you’ll learn about AI features, AI visuals, R/Python integration, and OpenAI integration. The workshop-style content allows you to practice all your learnings in real-life challenges and gain hands-on experience. Additionally, you’ll gain an understanding of AI/ML, step by step, with replicable examples and references. From enhancing data visualizations to building SaaS Power BI ML models, and integrating Azure OpenAI, this book will help you unlock new capabilities in Power BI.By the end of this book, you’ll be well-equipped to build ML models in Power BI, plan projects for both BI and ML, understand R/Python visuals with Power BI, and introduce OpenAI to enhance your analytics solutions.

Mastering SAP ABAP. A complete guide to developing fast, durable, and maintainable ABAP programs in SAP

Pawe?Ç Grze?okowiak, Wojciech Ciesielski, Wojciech fÜwik

Advanced Business Application Programming (ABAP) is an established and complex programming language in the IT industry. This book is designed to help you use the latest ABAP techniques and apply legacy constructions using practical examples.You'll start with a quick refresher on language and database concepts, followed by agile techniques for adding custom code to a modern ABAP system. After this, you will get up to speed with the complete ABAP toolset for importing data to and from different environments. Next, you'll learn how to print forms and work with the different ABAP tools for Extensible Markup Language (XML) manipulation. While covering further chapters, you'll gain insights into building stunning UI5 interfaces, in addition to learning how to develop simple apps using the Business Object Processing Framework (BOPF). You will also pick up the technique of handling exceptions and performing testing in ABAP. In the concluding chapters, you can look forward to grasping various techniques for optimizing the performance of programs using a variety of performance analysis tools.By the end of this book, you will have the expertise you need to confidently build maintainable programs in Systems, Applications, and Products (SAP).

The Modern Vulkan Cookbook. A practical guide to 3D graphics and advanced real-time rendering techniques in Vulkan

Preetish Kakkar, Mauricio Maurer

Vulkan is a graphics API that gives the program total control of the GPU, allowing the GPU to be used to its full potential. This cookbook will uncover useful techniques for emerging new technologies, such as hybrid rendering, extended reality – mixed reality (MR), augmented reality (AR), virtual reality (VR) – and GPU-driven rendering, and even features a dedicated chapter to help you debug and profile your graphics applications with tips and tricks tested in real-world scenarios.The book starts by explaining basic Vulkan concepts while guiding you through the implementation of a basic graphics engine. The building blocks presented in the first few chapters will then help you implement more advanced techniques and algorithms, while getting you acquainted with the inner workings of Vulkan. Gradually, you’ll discover how Vulkan can be used to build hybrid renderers as well as leveraged for the future of graphics with AR/VR/MR. Moreover, you’ll gain an understanding of how it can be debugged or measured for performance.By the end of this book, you’ll be well versed in how to use Vulkan to write graphics applications and how graphics algorithms are implemented using Vulkan.

Clang Compiler Frontend. Get to grips with the internals of a C/C++ compiler frontend and create your own tools

Ivan Murashko

Discover the power of Clang, a versatile compiler known for its compilation speed and insightful error and warning messages. This book will get you acquainted with the capabilities of Clang, helping you harness its features for performance improvements and modularity by creating custom compiler tools.While focused on Clang compiler frontend, this book also covers other parts of LLVM, essential to understanding Clang's functionality, to keep up with the constantly evolving LLVM project.Starting with LLVM fundamentals, from installation procedures to development tools, this book walks you through Clang's internal architecture and its integral role within LLVM. As you progress, you’ll also tackle optimizing compilation performance through features such as C++ modules and header maps.The later chapters cover tools developed using the Clang/LLVM, including clang-tidy for linting, refactoring tools, and IDE support, and feature many examples to illustrate the material.By the end of this book, you’ll have a solid understanding of Clang, different Clang Tools, and how to use them to their fullest potential.

Mastering Kotlin. Learn advanced Kotlin programming techniques to build apps for Android, iOS, and the web

Nate Ebel

Using Kotlin without taking advantage of its power and interoperability is like owning a sports car and never taking it out of the garage. While documentation and introductory resources can help you learn the basics of Kotlin, the fact that it’s a new language means that there are limited learning resources and code bases available in comparison to Java and other established languages.This Kotlin book will show you how to leverage software designs and concepts that have made Java the most dominant enterprise programming language. You’ll understand how Kotlin is a modern approach to object-oriented programming (OOP). This book will take you through the vast array of features that Kotlin provides over other languages. These features include seamless interoperability with Java, efficient syntax, built-in functional programming constructs, and support for creating your own DSL. Finally, you will gain an understanding of implementing practical design patterns and best practices to help you master the Kotlin language.By the end of the book, you'll have obtained an advanced understanding of Kotlin in order to be able to build production-grade applications.

Generative AI with LangChain. Build large language model (LLM) apps with Python, ChatGPT, and other LLMs

Ben Auffarth

ChatGPT and the GPT models by OpenAI have brought about a revolution not only in how we write and research but also in how we can process information. This book discusses the functioning, capabilities, and limitations of LLMs underlying chat systems, including ChatGPT and Gemini. It demonstrates, in a series of practical examples, how to use the LangChain framework to build production-ready and responsive LLM applications for tasks ranging from customer support to software development assistance and data analysis – illustrating the expansive utility of LLMs in real-world applications.Unlock the full potential of LLMs within your projects as you navigate through guidance on fine-tuning, prompt engineering, and best practices for deployment and monitoring in production environments. Whether you're building creative writing tools, developing sophisticated chatbots, or crafting cutting-edge software development aids, this book will be your roadmap to mastering the transformative power of generative AI with confidence and creativity.

CISA - Certified Information Systems Auditor Study Guide. Aligned with the CISA Review Manual 2024 with over 1000 practice questions to ace the exam - Third Edition

Hemang Doshi, Javen Khoo Ai Wee

Following on from the success of its bestselling predecessor, this third edition of the CISA - Certified Information Systems Auditor Study Guide serves as your go-to resource for acing the CISA exam. Written by renowned CISA expert Hemang Doshi, this guide equips you with practical skills and in-depth knowledge to excel in information systems auditing, setting the foundation for a thriving career.Fully updated to align with the 28th edition of the CISA Official Review Manual, this guide covers the latest exam objectives and provides a deep dive into essential IT auditing areas, including IT governance, systems development, and asset protection. The book follows a structured, three-step approach to solidify your understanding. First, it breaks down the fundamentals with clear, concise explanations. Then, it highlights critical exam-focused points to ensure you concentrate on key areas. Finally, it challenges you with self-assessment questions that reflect the exam format, helping you assess your knowledge.Additionally, you’ll gain access to online resources, including mock exams, interactive flashcards, and invaluable exam tips, ensuring you’re fully prepared for the exam with unlimited practice opportunities.By the end of this guide, you’ll be ready to pass the CISA exam with confidence and advance your career in auditing.

HashiCorp Infrastructure Automation Certification Guide. Pass the Terraform Associate exam and manage IaC to scale across AWS, Azure, and Google Cloud

Ravi Mishra

Terraform is a highly sought-after technology for orchestrating infrastructure provisioning. This book is a complete reference guide to enhancing your infrastructure automation skills, offering up-to-date coverage of the HashiCorp infrastructure automation certification exam. This book is written in a clear and practical way with self-assessment questions and mock exams that will help you from a HashiCorp infrastructure automation certification exam perspective. This book covers end-to-end activities with Terraform, such as installation, writing its configuration file, Terraform modules, backend configurations, data sources, and infrastructure provisioning. You'll also get to grips with complex enterprise infrastructures and discover how to create thousands of resources with a single click. As you advance, you'll get a clear understanding of maintaining infrastructure as code (IaC) in Repo/GitHub, along with learning how to create, modify, and remove infrastructure resources as and when needed. Finally, you'll learn about Terraform Cloud and Enterprise and their enhanced features.By the end of this book, you'll have a handy, up-to-date desktop reference guide along with everything you need to pass the HashiCorp Certified: Terraform Associate exam with confidence.

Blender 3D 2.49 Incredible Machines

Allan Brito, Ton Roosendaal

Blender 3D provides all the features you need to create super-realistic 3D models of machines for use in artwork, movies, and computer games. Blender 3D 2.49 Incredible Machines gives you step-by-step instructions for building weapons, vehicles, robots, and more.This book will show you how to use Blender 3D for mechanical modeling and product visualization. Through the pages of the book, you will find a step-by-step guide to create three different projects: a fantasy weapon, a spacecraft, and a giant robot. Even though these machines are not realistic, you will be able to build your own sensible and incredible machines with the techniques that you will learn in this book along with the exercises and examples.All the three sections of this book, which cover three projects, are planned to have an increasing learning curve. The first project is about a hand weapon, and with that we can image a small-sized object with tiny details. This first part of the book will show you how to deal with these details and model them in Blender 3D.In the second project, we will create a spacecraft, adding a bit of scale to the project, and new materials and textures as well. With this project, we will be working with metal, glass, and other elements that make the spacecraft. Along with the object, a new space environment will be created in the book too.At the end we have a big and complex object, which is the transforming robot. This last part of the book will cover the modeling of two objects and show how you can make one transform into the other. The scale and number of objects in this project are quite big, but the same principles as in the other projects are applied here with a step-by-step guide on how to go through the workflow of the project.

PostgreSQL Server Programming. Extend PostgreSQL using PostgreSQL server programming to create, test, debug, and optimize a range of user-defined functions in your favorite programming language

Usama Dar, Kirk Roybal, Jim Mlodgenski, Hannu Krosing