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Instruct is a series of lectures and presentations hosted by Chris Tite, CTO and software architect at Kaleidocode with more than two decades of industry experience. Instruct is proudly sponsored by Kaleidocode.
Catch up with past sessions on the Instruct YouTube channel. You can view companion information for the sessions on Chris' blog. Instruct was created to provide a forum for technical growth in software development in South Africa. |
Latest Event
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Chris Tite presented on apprenticeships at DevConf 2023 in Pretoria.
7 years ago Kaleidocode and Kaleidocode Pivot made the decision to change our approach and instead of only trying to find great people, we decided to help develop them as well. Leveraging our internal company ethos of learning, as well as our tagline "Learn, Grow, Deliver" we embarked on a journey to grow young developers and positively contribute to the software development ecosystem.
This presentation from Kaleidocode CTO, Chris Tite is not only the story of our journey, it is also the story of some of our juniors who have been through the apprenticeship program and are now leaders in our and other organisations. In the video Chris covers:
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Growing a Software Development Apprenticeship ProgramEvent recorded at Devconf, May, 25th 2023, Pretoria.
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Catch up on previous events
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Chris Tite presented on data fabrics at DevConf 2022 in Johannesburg.
The value of data to organisations is only increasing, yet many architectures still make use of data lakes and/or data warehouses which come with severe limitations. In this talk, we compare these old technologies to the newer data fabric technologies.
How does it solve common problems and what cool things can we do in the backend. We also practically explore the architecture; microservices, Kubernetes and Apache Spark engine. |
Integrating distributed enterprise data using data fabric technologyRecorded on 30 May 2022 DevConf22, South Africa.
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Chris Tite presented on Mentoring and growing stronger teams using Agile techniques on 20 November 2019, hosted at Kaleidocode's training facilities in Durban.
We manage the outcome of our software projects using Agile principles and techniques like time boxed cycles, shorter feedback cycles and small defined outcomes… so why don’t we apply these techniques to staff growth? Staff grow at different rates, they have unique needs and differing circumstances, so why do we impose a one-size-fits-all approach to staff development? Furthermore, why do we subject our teams to a sterile and delayed feedback KPO / KPI approach in the tech industry, an industry that is growing and experiencing rapid change? These are all questions that puzzled Chris as a company leader. Five years ago he started mentoring 3 team members using an agile approach which was refined over time and with each iteration, it is now an accepted and valued practice on all my teams. This is the story that led from that decision to mentor. In this talk Chris unpacked;
Chris shared a fresh approach to mentoring team members which ultimately results in;
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Mentoring and growing stronger teams using AgileRecorded on 20 November 2019 at Instruct in Durban, South Africa.
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Log files hold a vault of useful information for operations as well as business.
Processing your log files could reveal a host of useful information:
Processing application and server log files used to be such a chore. Getting a unified view of all logs required wizard-like skills! But over the past few years simple and easy solutions have emerged. Best of all, they’re free. That’s right, they’re all open source! Join Chris for a hands-on presentation, where we’ll pull some useful open source Docker containers and set to work making them weave some magic on our log files. Chris covers some Docker Compose basics to get you started with a simple ELK stack (Elastic Search, Log Stash and Kibana), configure some endpoints and setup log shipping (for Linux and Windows) so that we can process log files. He will have you processing logs, and then looking at ways to transform and embellish your log data to add IT operational, as well as business value. Using your transformed data, he also covers visualising the data using Kibana. To close out he will have you considering alternative technologies such as Prometheus and Grafana, and discuss the pros and cons of the different technologies. Mining log files has never been so simple. Watch this session to see how easy it is to get started. |
Mining your log files with the ELK StackRecorded on 1 August 2018 at Instruct in Durban, South Africa.
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On 13 June, Chris Tite, entrepreneur, architect and speaker presented on A Developers introduction to Docker.
Docker is a container technology that is creating a lot of buzz in the industry. Unlike virtual machines, containers do not have the high overhead and hence enable more efficient usage of the underlying system and resources. As a software developer, if you are not playing with Docker and realising the power of containers you need to be. Docker is changing the way we work and the way we develop and architect applications. It is also adds an interesting dimension the way we host applications. Chris introduces the basic concepts around Docker:
This talk is a building block for future talks which cover the ELK Stack and Kubernetes. |
A Developers introduction to Docker.Introduction to Docker, recorded 13 June 2018 at Instruct in Durban, South Africa.
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Do you have dark places in your database where only the knowledgeable few fear to tread? Shouldn’t you try to change this?
Treating your database as code and refactoring it as your software evolves is a good first step. Join Chris as he introduces Agile Database Techniques, looking at tools and techniques which can be used to manage your database in an Agile fashion, so that your database evolves as your software changes. |
Agile Database TechniquesAgile Database Techniques – Refactoring to keep your database current, recorded 16 June 2017 at the Durban Agile User Group.
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Divan Visagie discusses the challenges facing all of us when we need to make technology decisions on our projects.
We face a constant barrage of new ideas that promise to help us do our job better, but it can be easy to get overwhelmed or even misled by the news cycle. In this video Divan points out some of the traps one may fall into and how to come to less biased conclusions about our technology choices. |
Making Better Technology DecisionsMaking Better Technology Decisions, recorded 16 June 2017 at the Durban Agile User Group.
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Architects, those that design buildings, study architecture from the past to the present to best understand their craft.
As software developers we aren't easily afforded this opportunity, this has always frustrated me, and has thus lead me to always want to share with my fellow craftsmen. In this talk I lift the veil on a two of my enterprise projects implemented using a message based architecture. I walk through the architecture of the projects highlighting the SOA patterns used. The first architecture focuses on patterns employed for performance and scalability and the second focuses on big data principles for data visualization using projections . This presentation also focuses on the do's and don'ts when designing a scalable message based architecture, as well as potential technology you may consider such as NServiceBus. |
Scalable ArchitecturesScalable Distributed Design - Let me show you my architectures, recorded 21 April 2016 (hosted at SA Home Loans)
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Managing and working with knowledge workers can be a real challenge, the old adage applies “Managing developers is like herding cats”. Seven years ago Chris picked up a book which changed his outlook on team dynamics and working with knowledge workers. “Adrenaline Junkies and Template Zombies” compiles 150 years of software team experience into simple easy to understand patterns. In this talk Chris shares his experiences and observations after applying some of these patterns to his working environment.
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Team DynamicsTeam Dynamics: Adrenalin Junkies and Template Zombies, recorded 26 March 2015 (hosted at SA Home Loans)
Contact us if you are interested in having this topic presented at your offices.
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Iterative flexibility is the core tenant of agile software development – it’s well known, accepted and by now mainstream. But, how does this stack up against real world fixed deadlines, fixed budgets, and fixed contracts? In this session follow along as we explore project management caught in the tension between agile process and business delivery constraints, covering war stories and strategies along the way.
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Project AgilityAgility in a Fixed World, recorded 26 March 2015 (hosted at SA Home Loans)
Contact us if you are interested in having this topic presented at your offices.
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KitKat, Jelly Bean, iOS, Windows Mobile ... Where on earth do you start when you get into mobile development!
Mobile applications development is an ever shifting space, and transitioning into this environment means a steep learning curve. Differing operating platforms and the various development environments add layers of complexity! The Kaleidocode team faced a mountain of questions when we started mobile development on a large enterprise driven application. In an attempt to modify the extremity of learning required and accommodate the myriad of operating platforms, we reached for Xamarin Studio. In this session we looked at;
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Xamarin UnpackedXamarin Mobile Apps Unpacked recorded on 10 March 2015 (hosted at the Riverside Hotel, Durban)
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More?
If you want to see more Instruct videos take a look at our YouTube InstructChannel.
