Technology
The CAP Theorem in Real Life
The CAP theorem, also known as Brewer’s theorem, states that it is impossible for a distributed computer system to simultaneously provide all three of the following guarantees: Consistency Availability Partition tolerance Consistency means that all nodes see the same information at the same time, which implies that when a piece of information is written to […]
IoTBue Workshop – Getting closer to a real IoT device
Recently the Buenos Aires Internet of Things (IoTBue) Meetup held a workshop to train developers on IoT development from scratch. This workshop was hosted by developers from R/GA, Patagonia Technology and Cran.io. The goal was simple: build a Nest thermostat clone in 6 hours. We split the exercise into 3 phases. We established communications with the sensors, then added a […]
Building the Nike 10K Registration for Scale
A few months ago we launched a registration site for the Nike 10k race in Buenos Aires. Keeping the site performing while under load was a major concern for the client, so we carefully considered the site’s architecture. Ultimately we mixed and matched best-of-breed tools to create a solid infrastructure. Our backend consisted of: AWS, with a Elastic […]
Tech + Journalism: HackHackers Media Party @ Buenos Aires
We recently took part in the 3rd annual HackHackers Media Party in Buenos Aires, an event that combines Technology with journalists from all around the world. The goal was to share, learn, and create new ways to consume and produce media. We were mesmerized by some of the trends in this space, from how to […]
The Rebirth of Webcam Apps
The release of the first commercial webcam in the mid ’90s (the Logitech QuickCam) sparked a flurry of interactive webcam applications that continues to this day. Apps have ranged from mini-games to creative visual filters to video recording to rudimentary motion tracking. Over the last decade the webcam went from being a specialized peripheral to a […]
7 things you probably didn’t know about iBeacons
Last year Apple announced iBeacons at the WWDC conference in June, and while most people know what it is, most have the wrong idea of what iBeacons can really do. You can also read the two earlier posts about iBeacons: part 1 and part 2 to learn more. My team and I decided to build […]
Math Driven CSS
As recently as a few years ago front-end developers had to rely solely on images, JavaScript, or Flash when trying to build complex layout components and animations. Fortunately things have changed. The W3C’s new standard was thankfully broadly adopted, leading to a big step in a front-end developer’s capabilities. Difficult problems we once faced can now […]
Combining BTLE and SpriteKit for Alvio’s iPad game
Alvio by Qol Devices is one of 10 companies from the first R/GA Connected Devices Accelerator. Their breathing training system combines an iPad with a breath-powered Bluetooth controller to help kids with respiratory challenges such as asthma. This platform makes breathing therapy fun for kids by gamifying what was previously a tiresome process for both parent and child. A myriad of […]
Dr. Wolfram’s Magic Language
I got my first PC somewhere around 1985. It was a Tandy 1000. Almost immediately, my father taught me the basics of DOS batch scripting. One of the first things he said to me was: “If the computer doesn’t do what you expect, it’s your fault. It can only do exactly what you tell it […]
High Schoolers Coding in NYC’s AFSE
Over the course of the past 3 months I’ve had the opportunity to visit NYC’s Academy for Software Engineering a few times. AFSE is a “high school for the design and development of software and applications”. The school’s curriculum is largely comprised of the standard high school courses. But AFSE differs in one major way – […]
