Software Architecture for Web Developers. An introductory guide for developers striving to take the first steps toward software architecture or just looking to grow as professionals

Mihaela Roxana Ghidersa

Large-scale web applications require you to write code efficiently following business and architectural considerations. They require web developers to understand the impact of their work on the system and how they can evolve the product.With this audiobook, every developer will find something to take away. This audiobook will help web developers looking to change projects or work on a new project in understanding the context of the application, along with how some design decisions or patterns fit better in their application’s architecture. It acts as a guide, taking you through different levels of professional growth with a focus on best practices, coding guidelines, business considerations, and soft skills that will help you gain the knowledge to craft a career in web development. Finally, you’ll work with examples and ways of applying the discussed concepts in practical situations.By the end of this book, you’ll have gained valuable insights into what it means to be a web architect, as well as the impact architecture has on a web application.

Mastering Transformers. The Journey from BERT to Large Language Models and Stable Diffusion - Second Edition

Savaş Yildirim, Meysam Asgari- Chenaghlu

Transformer-based language models such as BERT, T5, GPT, DALL-E, and ChatGPT have dominated NLP studies and become a new paradigm. Thanks to their accurate and fast fine-tuning capabilities, transformer-based language models have been able to outperform traditional machine learning-based approaches for many challenging natural language understanding (NLU) problems.Aside from NLP, a fast-growing area in multimodal learning and generative AI has recently been established, showing promising results. Mastering Transformers will help you understand and implement multimodal solutions, including text-to-image. Computer vision solutions that are based on transformers are also explained in the book. You’ll get started by understanding various transformer models before learning how to train different autoregressive language models such as GPT and XLNet. The book will also get you up to speed with boosting model performance, as well as tracking model training using the TensorBoard toolkit. In the later chapters, you’ll focus on using vision transformers to solve computer vision problems. Finally, you’ll discover how to harness the power of transformers to model time series data and for predicting.By the end of this transformers book, you’ll have an understanding of transformer models and how to use them to solve challenges in NLP and CV.

Unlocking Data with Generative AI and RAG. Enhance generative AI systems by integrating internal data with large language models using RAG

Keith Bourne, Shahul Es

Generative AI is helping organizations tap into their data in new ways, with retrieval-augmented generation (RAG) combining the strengths of large language models (LLMs) with internal data for more intelligent and relevant AI applications. The author harnesses his decade of ML experience in this book to equip you with the strategic insights and technical expertise needed when using RAG to drive transformative outcomes.The book explores RAG’s role in enhancing organizational operations by blending theoretical foundations with practical techniques. You’ll work with detailed coding examples using tools such as LangChain and Chroma’s vector database to gain hands-on experience in integrating RAG into AI systems. The chapters contain real-world case studies and sample applications that highlight RAG’s diverse use cases, from search engines to chatbots. You’ll learn proven methods for managing vector databases, optimizing data retrieval, effective prompt engineering, and quantitatively evaluating performance. The book also takes you through advanced integrations of RAG with cutting-edge AI agents and emerging non-LLM technologies.By the end of this book, you’ll be able to successfully deploy RAG in business settings, address common challenges, and push the boundaries of what’s possible with this revolutionary AI technique.

Building CLI Applications with C# and .NET. A step-by-step guide to developing cross-platform CLI apps—from coding and testing to deployment

Tidjani Belmansour, Damian Brady

Developers and system administrators often face challenges like inefficient workflows, complex system operations, and the growing demand for robust automation tools. CLI applications provide a powerful solution by enhancing flexibility, efficiency, and productivity in various environments. This book will guide you through mastering the development of robust command-line tools using .NET.Written by a Microsoft Azure MVP, the book’s hands-on approach ensures practical experience with real-world projects. You’ll start with an overview of foundational principles, essential concepts, and best practices for CLI application development. From there, you’ll advance to creating interactive interfaces, integrating with external APIs and services, and implementing security measures to safeguard your applications. Each chapter will build progressively from basic to advanced topics.Beyond development, you’ll learn how to enhance application quality through testing, package for efficient distribution, and deploy effectively. The book also teaches strategies to optimize performance to ensure your applications run efficiently under heavy usage.By the end of this book, you’ll have gained a deep understanding of CLI application development with .NET to build modular, extensible, and easy-to-maintain applications.

Mastering AWS Security. Strengthen your cloud environment using AWS security features coupled with proven strategies - Second Edition

Laurent Mathieu

If you’re trying to navigate the complex world of AWS security and fortify your organizational cloud environment, then this book is for you. Written by an accomplished cybersecurity and AWS cloud consultant, Mastering AWS Security will help you understand and master the complexities of AWS security. This book offers an in-depth and practical exploration of AWS security concepts, features, and services, focusing on how they apply to modern cloud-based application environments. As you progress, you’ll gain a thorough introduction to the art of security automation and DevSecOps. You’ll learn how to automate security tasks, integrate security into your development process, and maintain a high level of security as your applications evolve and scale. Emphasizing continuous monitoring and improvement, this book will teach you how to set up monitoring systems, interpret security data, and make informed decisions to enhance your security over time. Through real-world case studies, you’ll learn how to tackle the challenges and find solutions for securing AWS environments. By the end of this book, you’ll confidently secure your AWS environments, and stay up to date with the latest security trends and updates in the AWS ecosystem.

Refactoring in Java. Improving code design and maintainability for Java developers

Stefano Violetta

Refactoring in Java serves as an indispensable guide to enhancing your codebase’s quality and maintainability.The book begins by helping you get to grips with refactoring fundamentals, including cultivating good coding habits and identifying red flags. You’ll explore testing methodologies, essential refactoring techniques, and metaprogramming, as well as designing a good architecture. The chapters clearly explain how to refactor and improve your code using real-world examples and proven techniques. Part two equips you with the ability to recognize code smells, prioritize tasks, and employ automated refactoring tools, testing frameworks, and code analysis tools. You’ll discover best practices to ensure efficient code improvement so that you can navigate complexities with ease. In part three, the book focuses on continuous learning, daily practices enhancing coding proficiency, and a holistic view of the architecture. You’ll get practical tips to mitigate risks during refactoring, along with guidance on measuring impact to ensure that you become an efficient software craftsperson.By the end of this book, you’ll be able to avoid unproductive programming or architecturing, detect red flags, and propose changes to improve the maintainability of your codebase.

Mastering QuickBooks(R) 2025. Bookkeeping for small businesses with US QuickBooks® Online - Sixth Edition

Crystalynn Shelton

Mastering QuickBooks® 2025 is the definitive guide for small-business owners, bookkeepers, and accounting students. This new edition covers both the fundamentals, like setting up the US version of QuickBooks Online, as well as advanced features, like integrating with e-commerce platforms. You'll grasp core business transactions such as sales, expenses, and payroll while ensuring compliance with tax regulations. You'll gain complete mastery of the US-based QuickBooks Online features—from setting up the platform to fi ling taxes like a professional.Updated for the latest QuickBooks 2025, this book introduces advanced topics like time tracking for hourly billing, inventory management techniques, and real-time financial reporting. Detailed guidance on payroll processing and 1099 contractor tracking is also included to help manage your financial operations. With the purchase of the book, you'll gain access to bonus chapters and video tutorials by the author, off erring deeper insights on how to navigate key reports, reconcile bank transactions, sharpen bookkeeping fundamentals, and generate detailed sales and expense reports.By the end of this book, you'll know how to effectively leverage QuickBooks Online for the fi nancial management of your business.

C++ in Embedded Systems. A practical transition from C to modern C++

Amar Mahmutbegović, Steve Branam

Transitioning from C can be daunting, with concerns about performance overhead, added complexity, and unfamiliar tooling. Addressing these challenges, Amar Mahmutbegovic, an advocate for modern C++ in embedded development, shows you how to harness zero-cost abstractions, compile-time checks, and powerful modern C++ capabilities to preserve performance while achieving safer, cleaner code. This book bridges the gap between traditional C and advanced C++, helping you retain the efficiency C developers demand while unlocking the safety and expressiveness of modern C++. Starting with a modern development environment setup, including a Docker container for seamless example replication, you’ll overcome the hurdles of using the C++ standard library in memory-constrained settings and get acquainted with the Embedded Template Library (ETL) as an alternative. The book walks you through essential C++ concepts before exploring advanced topics such as templates, strong typing, error handling, compile-time computation, and RAII. Through practical examples, you'll implement a sequencer, write a type-safe HAL, and apply patterns like Command, State, and Observer to solve common embedded development problems. By the end of this book, you’ll have learned how to apply modern C++ to develop robust, modular firmware with performance matching or exceeding hand-coded C solutions.