Taking a Patterns-First Approach With Bluemix [Presentation]

This post introduces you to the Bluemix Developer Console and a patterns-first approach. It can also serve as a quick and short intro to cloud native. This was presented at Great Indian Developer Summit (GIDS) 2017.

What Is Cloud Native?

Cloud native is a term describing software designed to run and scale reliably and predictably on top of potentially unreliable cloud-based infrastructure.

Cloud-native applications are purposefully designed to be infrastructure unaware, meaning they are decoupled from infrastructure and free to move as required.

Why Bluemix Developer Console?

A developer can now build out Cloud Native applications using a patterns-first approach. You simply select the type of building block you’d like to create followed by which services you’d like to incorporate into your application (i.e., Cloudant database, WatsonConversation, and Push Notifications). After choosing a language, the console will generate a starter project for you to download and edit, deploy locally or to Bluemix, and add more services. Not sure which pattern to choose? Here’s a short description of those available in the first release.

• Mobile App: If you’re building a client-side mobile app, start with this pattern. This will enable you to easily integrate with mobile services like Push and Mobile Analytics, data services like Object Store and Cloudant, and even add security using AppID. The starter will also give you the ability to easily connect with a backend starter.

• Web App: If you’re building a client-side web app, start with this pattern. Depending on the pattern, you can download runnable code pre-baked with modern web technologies like Gulp, SASS, React, WebPack, and more.

• Backend for Frontend: If you’re implementing logic to support a mobile or web front end, start with this pattern. This pattern allows you to easily integrate with data, security and other backend patterns.

• Microservice: If you’re implementing server-side logic for a single function reusable by multiple clients, use this pattern to get your starter code. This will come with a pre-configured manifest.yml or Dockerfile, so you can run it as a CloudFoundry application or in a Docker container anywhere.

Where Do I Get started?

It all happens on Bluemix. Follow the video and generate code for your desired pattern.

Generating starter code via Bluemix Developer Console from Vidyasagar MSC on Vimeo.

Slide Deck

If you're interested, you can check out a slide deck here.

Happy Coding!!! Check other blog posts and post your comments.