Understand Python’s new lock file format
Python Enhancement Proposal (PEP) 751 gives Python a new file format for specifying dependencies. This file, called a lock file, promises to allow developers to reproduce the installation of their Python projects, with the exact same sets of dependenc...
Modernizing push notification API for Teams
Push Notification Hub is an essential internal service that plays a crucial role in the messaging and calling flows within Teams and other platforms. This article describes its recent overhaul, which has significantly enhanced its performance and reduc...
How to start developing a balanced AI governance strategy
The best defense is a good offense, right? When it comes to AI governance, organizations need both. The reason is that genAI capabilities evolve quickly, hype accelerates investments, and data risks are amplified through AI applications. This article ...
Java plan prepares to restrict final field mutation
A JDK Enhancement Proposal (JEP) to prepare to make final mean final in Java would issue warnings about uses of deep reflection to mutate final fields. The warnings would prepare Java developers for a future release that ensures integrity by default b...
New Python lock file format will specify dependencies
Python’s builders have accepted a proposal to create a universal lock file format for Python projects that would specify dependencies, enabling installation reproducibility in a Python environment. Python Enhancement Proposal (PEP) 751, accepted Mar...
Apple’s Swift language gets version manager
Apple has introduced swiftly 1.0, a version manager for the Swift programming language that is intended to ease the process of installing, managing, and updating the user’s Swift tool chain. Swiftly 1.0 was announced March 28. While swiftly has been...
14 alternative managed Kubernetes platforms
Kubernetes is mighty powerful but highly complex. This has influenced many organizations to ditch self-hosted solutions and move toward more fully managed Kubernetes platforms. Nearly 90% of Kubernetes users use cloud-managed services, DataDog reporte...
How Terraform is evolving infrastructure as code
Last week I talked up OpenTofu—and for good reason. The Terraform fork has moved beyond being the darling of the infrastructure-as-code (IaC) community to becoming a real, if early, enterprise contender. However, in so doing, I inadvertently threw s...
Google introduces Gemini 2.5 reasoning models
Google has introduced version 2.5 of its Gemini AI model, which the company said offers a new level of performance by combining an enhanced base model with improved post-training. The Gemini 2.5 models are thinking models, capable of reasoning through...
ECMAScript 2025 JavaScript standard takes shape
ECMAScript 2025, the next version of an ECMA International standard for JavaScript, will standardize new JavaScript capabilities ranging from JSON modules to import attributes, new Set methods, sync iterator helpers, and regular expression modifiers. ...
Thread-y or not, here’s Python!
There’s more than one way to work with threads, or without them, in Python. In this edition of the Python Report: Get the skinny on Python threads and subprocesses, use Python’s native async library to break up non-CPU-bound tasks, and get started...
Are we creating too many AI models?
A few days ago, I stared at yet another calendar invitation from a vendor eager to showcase their “groundbreaking” large language model (LLM). The irony wasn’t lost on me—just weeks ago, this same company had proudly showcased its environmenta...
Adobe announces AI agents for customer interaction
Adobe has announced Adobe Experience Platform Agent Orchestrator, an intelligent reasoning engine that allows AI agents to perform complex decision-making and problem-solving tasks to accelerate customer experience orchestration. The Agent Orchestrato...
How RamaLama helps make AI model testing safer
Consider this example: An amazing new software tool emerges suddenly, turning technology industry expectations on their heads by delivering unprecedented performance at a fraction of the existing cost. The only catch? Its backstory is a bit shrouded i...
What next for WASI on Azure Kubernetes Service?
Microsoft announced at the end of January 2025 that it would be closing its experimental support for WASI (WebAssembly System Interface) node pools in its managed Azure Kubernetes Service. This shouldn’t have been a surprise if you have been followi...
Microsoft lauds Hyperlight Wasm for WebAssembly workloads
Microsoft has unveiled Hyperlight Wasm, a virtual machine “micro-guest” that can run WebAssembly component workloads written in a multitude of languages including C and Python. Introduced March 26, Hyperlight Wasm serves as a Rust library crate. W...
