Building AuraWorks: Anatomy of a Digital Studio
How I built my own corner of the internet with Next.js, AI-assisted development, and an obsession for invisible performance.
Product · 3 min read · IndieHacker · Next.js · AI
Notes
29 articles · 2023–2026
Things I worked out and wrote down. Mostly backend and infrastructure, sometimes a build log from one of the products here, occasionally something that is not about code at all.
Start with a subject
- Spring & Java12
Spring Boot, Spring Security, JWT authentication and the JVM runtime work that sits underneath them.
- AWS12
Serverless architecture on AWS: SQS and Kinesis, Lambda, Step Functions, tracing and the deployment plumbing around them.
- Docker & CI9
Containerising applications and wiring them into GitHub Actions pipelines that actually stay green.
- Building products5
Build logs from the products in this studio: what shipped, what it cost, and what the numbers said afterwards.
Product6 min readFeatured
Building SubChoice: One Source for AI Pricing
I kept opening five tabs to compare AI subscription plans, so I built one view. How SubChoice went from frustration to a live product in three weeks.
Read articleAI7 min readFeatured
Your AI Has Amnesia: Build One That Remembers
The best AI memory is not a technology problem. It's an information architecture problem. Here's how I built a stateful AI system with just markdown files.
Read articleBuilding AuraLyrics: Real-Time Spotify Lyrics
A journey of building a native macOS app to bring lyrics to your workflow without the friction. Why I chose Swift over Electron and how I built AuraLyrics.
Product · 4 min read · IndieHacker · Swift · macOS
Observability in AWS Lambda with Powertools Tracing
Lambda Powertools Tracing gives you X-Ray traces with almost no config. See how to instrument cold starts, segments and subsegments in your functions.
Ecosystem · 3 min read · AWS · Serverless · Observability
Spring Boot 3 and Spring Framework 6: What's New
Spring Boot 3 introduces support for Java 17 as well as improved support for building reactive applications. It also includes updates to…
Engineering · 2 min read · Java · SpringBoot
GraalVM: High-Performance Java Runtime Explained
GraalVM is a high-performance runtime that allows you to run programs written in multiple programming languages on a single virtual…
Engineering · 2 min read · Java
AWS X-Ray Tracing for Java Apps on Amazon ECS
Integrating AWS X-Ray into Java applications deployed on Amazon Elastic Container Service (ECS) is a transformative approach to enhancing…
Ecosystem · 4 min read · Java · AWS · Observability
AWS Nested Stacks for Serverless Deployments
Nested stacks split a monolithic CloudFormation template into composable units. How to structure them, share outputs and avoid circular dependencies.
Ecosystem · 3 min read · AWS · Serverless · DevOps
Spring Boot JWT Authentication with Spring Security
Implement JWT authentication and authorization in Spring Boot: signing and validating tokens, writing the filter, and wiring it into Spring Security.
Engineering · 6 min read · Java · SpringBoot · Security
Spring Boot in Docker: Containerize Your Application
Package a Spring Boot application as a Docker image: writing the Dockerfile, building the layer, and running the container locally.
Guides · 4 min read · Java · SpringBoot · Docker
Amazon SQS vs Kinesis: Which One Should You Use?
SQS and Kinesis solve different problems. Compare throughput, ordering, replay, fan-out and cost, with a decision table for picking the right one.
Engineering · 9 min read · AWS · Messaging
Middy.js: Middleware for AWS Lambda Explained
Middy.js is the middleware engine for AWS Lambda. This guide covers input validation, error handling, secrets injection, and how to compose middleware cleanly.
Guides · 10 min read · AWS · Serverless
Spring Boot Authorization with Spring Security
Add Spring Security to a Spring Boot app and control who reaches which endpoint: the dependency, the security configuration, and role-based rules.
Engineering · 2 min read · Java · SpringBoot · Security
ChatGPT for macOS Now Works Inside Your Code Editor
OpenAI's macOS app can now read from Xcode, VS Code and JetBrains IDEs. What the integration actually does, which apps work, and the privacy trade-off.
Ecosystem · 4 min read · AI · macOS
Amazon SQS: Standard vs FIFO Queues Compared
SQS, or Simple Queue Service, is a messaging service provided by Amazon Web Services (AWS) that allows for the exchange of messages between…
Ecosystem · 2 min read · AWS · Messaging
AWS SAM parameter_overrides: Split Dev and Prod
Deploy one AWS SAM template to several environments with parameter_overrides, samconfig.toml layout, per-stage values, and the deploy commands.
Guides · 3 min read · AWS · Serverless · DevOps
Project Loom: The Future of Java Concurrency
Project Loom brings virtual threads to Java: millions of lightweight threads without OS thread overhead. What that means for Spring Boot and reactive Java.
Engineering · 2 min read · Java
Real-Time Website Monitoring with Lambda and DynamoDB
In today’s fast-paced digital world, websites play a crucial role in communication with customers, partners, and employees. As a result, it…
Ecosystem · 4 min read · AWS · Serverless · Database
Docker Compose Tutorial: Examples and YAML Syntax
A practical Docker Compose tutorial: a working docker-compose.yml example, service and volume syntax, environment variables, and the commands you need.
Guides · 9 min read · Docker · DevOps
How to Dockerize a React Application
A step-by-step walkthrough for containerizing a React app with Docker, from writing the Dockerfile to running with Compose and optimizing the image size.
Guides · 6 min read · Docker · React
Spring Boot and InfluxDB with the Java Client
Wire InfluxDB into a Spring Boot app with the official Java client, connection config, writing points, and querying them back. Docker setup included.
Engineering · 8 min read · Java · SpringBoot · Database
Send AWS SQS Messages to Slack with Lambda
AWS Lambda is a serverless computing platform that lets you run your code without provisioning or managing servers. Slack, on the other…
Guides · 4 min read · AWS · Serverless · Messaging
Spring Boot Docker Images with GitHub Actions
Automate the Docker image build for a Spring Boot application with GitHub Actions, from the workflow file to pushing the tagged image.
Ecosystem · 2 min read · Java · SpringBoot · Docker
Spring Boot and Amazon SQS: Send and Receive Messages
Wire Amazon SQS into a Spring Boot service: the SDK dependency, queue configuration, sending messages, and consuming them with an SqsListener.
Guides · 3 min read · Java · SpringBoot · AWS
Deploy Go AWS Lambdas with GitHub Actions
How to Deploy Golang AWS Lambda using Github Actions
Guides · 4 min read · AWS · Serverless · Golang
AWS Step Functions HTTP Task: Call Any API
AWS Step Functions now supports direct HTTP calls to any external API, no Lambda wrapper needed. Here's what changed and how to use it in your state machines.
Ecosystem · 4 min read · AWS · Serverless
Spring WebFlux vs Spring MVC: Key Differences
Spring WebFlux handles high concurrency with fewer threads than the servlet stack behind Spring MVC. Here is when that tradeoff is worth it, and when not.
Engineering · 3 min read · Java · SpringBoot
Code Analysis with SonarCloud and GitHub Actions
In the world of software development, ensuring that the code we produce is high-quality, maintainable, and secure is critical. As the size…
Ecosystem · 5 min read · Java · GitHubActions · DevOps