One of the top requested features for my daily Chinese vocab app was the ability to hear the audio pronunciation for words. To generate audio files from text in bulk, I built a Step Functions workflow that uses the AWS text to speech service, Polly. The workflow generates an audio file for a vocabulary word, saves the audio file to S3, and updates the DynamoDB record for the vocab word with the S3 file location. I'm also speeding up the process of generating audio files for thousands of vocabulary words by processing files in parallel. →

Looking back at 2022. →

In this post, I walk through exporting data from my existing DynamoDB table, reformatting it to fit the new data model, and importing it into a new DynamoDB table using Python scripts. While my goal was to migrate to a single-table design, this strategy works for any major change you want to make to your data model. →

This blog post is Part 1 in a series on refactoring my daily Chinese vocab app to a single-table design in Amazon DynamoDB. In this post, I explain why I chose single-table design, the resources I used to learn it, and walk through the design process and a few example access patterns. →

A look back at things I worked on in 2021 - personal coding project progress, speaking, a new role at AWS, new hobbies, and getting to do a little bit of travel! →

This post explains what unit tests are and how they can help you write and make changes to Lambda function code more quickly. It also walks through an example Python function and unit test. →

It was such a privilege to be able to give a re:Invent talk this past year, especially one that is so important to me! This session packs in the past 2 years that I've spent building serverless apps in my free time with just a few months of programming experience prior. →

I'm so excited to share one of the projects that's kept me busy over the last few months - moving from Seattle to London for a new role at AWS! →

Over the past two years, I've learned the basics of Python and JavaScript in order to develop web applications in my free time. In this post, I'm going to share the resources and tips that worked for me while learning to code. →

For deploying my applications, I have a CI/CD pipeline that uses the AWS Serverless Application Model (SAM), GitHub, and CircleCI. In this post, I'll show you how to set it up. →

If you're looking to get started building serverless applications on AWS, this resource guide is for you! I've gathered tutorials and example projects of my own that will help you progressively grow your skills and comfort level with serverless. →

Here I'll explain and share code samples for how to set up a pipeline to analyze DynamoDB table data in QuickSight. This pipeline uses Lambda, EventBridge scheduled events, and S3 to generate weekly QuickSight reports. →

I joined James Beswick on Serverless Coffee Break for a quick chat about my serverless development journey. Check out the recording here. →

I recently migrated a few core components of my daily Chinese vocab app - including contact lists, subscribe/unsubscribe API, and email sending functionality - from SendGrid to a custom built backend that uses DynamoDB, SES, Lambda, and API Gateway. Here I'll share about my architecture and some of the considerations in the migration. →

In my daily Chinese vocab app, I built the ability for users to review past daily words by adding a database. Here I'll share how I designed and implemented my DynamoDB table, including the SAM template I used to define the table, my data structure, and how I integrated it in my Lambda-based application. →

I built a website, mtg.emshea.com, that lets you search for Magic: The Gathering cards. This post will talk about how I built it using Vue.js. →

Passing the Associate Certified Solutions Architect exam was one of the top recommendations I received on how to get more technical depth with AWS services, along with getting hands-on experience. Here I'll walk through how I prepared for the exam. →

I built a web app for Chinese language learners to receive daily vocab words, Haohaotiantian.com. In this post, I'll give an overview of how the app works, how I developed it, and the serverless architecture behind it. →