Things I've Learned in 2024
2024 was a pretty lackluster year for me all things considered. However, it may have also been the year where I was the most excited to try and experiment with new things. Ranting aside, let's dive into all the cool new gadgets I've played with in 2024.
This is about a 5 minute read.
Databases and Caching
Working with and managing databases was a new experience for me in 2024. When I was writing a custom application for a client, we needed to reliably manage data without the risk of data corruption. Normally, JSON was my go-to choice because it was familiar to me, but it was far, far too unreliable for the situation at hand.
I've settled with PostgreSQL as my go-to choice when working with databases. It's probably overkill for small applications, but it definitely gets the job done. It even comes with a cool dashboard called pgAdmin to help visualize your data.
However, making requests to your database can be computationally expensive. That's where caching comes in. If data is frequently requested, it may be worth looking into caching solutions. I use Redis for this. Unlike a traditional database, Redis stores your data in-memory which makes it much faster and less expensive on your hardware.
My biggest complaint about SQL is it's just not fun to write. Please use an ORM. It'll make you and your colleagues' lives so much easier. However, it's still important to be weary of what SQL is capable of, so don't drop it off your mind entirely.
Managing Websites with Cloudflare
I purchased this domain about a year ago and linked it to my GitHub account. Managing a website has showed me both the beauty and ugly of this world, but it was all worth it just to get these cool letters to appear in your searchbar. I personally recommend you get a grasp of HTML and CSS instead of using an off-the-shelf website builder like Wix and Wordpress. It'll take time, but having full creative control over your website is worth the hardship.
Cloudflare is probably the safest and most secure way to manage your website. It's especially vital if you host your website on your own hardware. It also provides a bunch of useful tools such as analytics, storage, and workers. If you want a fancy business email, they'll handle that for you too.
Building My First PC
Learning how to build your first PC is certainly an experience to have. You start off clueless, and then you know everything. It involves so much research even before you start assembling anything. For example, what are you looking for in a computer? Video editing? Music production? Gaming? Programming? Digital art? All of these should be considered when looking for PC components. You can also just order a prebuilt one, but that's no fun.
For me, I wanted something for programming, and of course, gaming. A lot of my work involves performance testing, so I needed a CPU that could handle millions of operations per second without stuttering. I don't play very graphically demanding games, so I just went with a solid midrange GPU. However, some games are memory hogs like modded Minecraft, so I got ahold of some fat 32 GB RAM sticks, but most people could settle with 16 GB. If you have several downloaded games or video recordings, you might also want to peek at big storage options.
I've also made a few mistakes too. I ordered a TN monitor instead of an OLED monitor. Honestly, it's not worth getting anything TN or LCD these days. Color accuracy simply outweighs anything they could ever offer. My current build also doesn't support Bluetooth. Like I said earlier, please do the research. These mistakes could've been avoided if I just read the fine print. Use something like PCPartPicker to compile your parts.
Computer Servers
When I upgraded my PC, it left me with some cold metal, i.e., my old computer. Not sure what to do with it, it just sat in a corner for a few months collecting dust overtime. Then all of sudden, eureka! Its new purpose was to now host a Minecraft server. I wiped out everything and installed a fresh copy of Ubuntu (I'm a normie, I know) onto it. Normally, the spare HDMI cable lying around was used for accessing it, but then I discovered how much more convenient SSH was.
Today, it's still being used for a Minecraft server, but I also run other things on it such as a Jellyfin, a media server for watching your totally legally obtained media on it. My Discord bots are also running on it which alleviates some of the stress from my main computer. I also run a Nextcloud server for better privacy when managing sensitive files. Check out the Awesome-Selfhosted repository. It might be fun setting up a homelab of your own.
Conducting My Own Business
The knowledge I have for managing my own "brand" is quite bleak and the learning experience will have to carry into 2025. Working with actual clients by yourself is fun, exciting, depressing, and stressful all at the same time. Just pace yourself in a way that doesn't burn you out. Anyway, whatever I write here next year will probably be more interesting.
Conclusion
Overall, it was certainly a year. Anyway, that's enough yapping.