Building a Better Web
June 11–12, 2018: Training
June 12–14, 2018: Tutorials & Conference
San Jose, CA

Schedule: Web services and APIs sessions

9:00am–12:30pm Tuesday, June 12, 2018
Web performance API deep dive
Location: 210 D/H
Secondary topics:  Hands-on, Technical
Dan Shappir (Wix)
Average rating: *****
(5.00, 15 ratings)
Performance is at the forefront of many, if not most, web development projects. Fortunately, modern browsers provide a wealth of performance-related information and services, which can be used to optimize page load speed and responsiveness. Dan Shappir offers an overview of the aptly named Web Performance API and shows how to best use it to extract detailed performance information. Read more.
9:50am–10:30am Wednesday, June 13, 2018
A frontend developer's guide to GraphQL
Location: 210 C/G
Secondary topics:  Developer Experience Track: Tools, Platforms, and Techniques, Hands-on, Technical
Peggy Rayzis (Meteor Development Group)
Average rating: ***..
(3.22, 9 ratings)
GraphQL is a new API technology that has exploded in popularity over the past year. But what's all the hype about? Peggy Rayzis details what GraphQL is and explains how integrating it into your application can solve many of the pain points frontend developers face when working with remote data. Read more.
11:00am–11:40am Wednesday, June 13, 2018
The evolution of a Node.js service
Location: 210 D/H
Secondary topics:  Case study, Developer Experience Track: Tools, Platforms, and Techniques, Technical
Gergely Németh (GoDaddy)
Average rating: ***..
(3.00, 2 ratings)
Gergely Németh outlines the evolution of a Node.js application from a proof-of-concept implementation to a mature, prospering product that earns revenue and scales to millions of customers Read more.
4:25pm–5:05pm Wednesday, June 13, 2018
Blockchain as a backend: How to utilize current cryptocurrencies in your applications
Location: 210 B/F
Secondary topics:  Best practice, Case study
Destry Saul (Unchained Capital)
Average rating: ****.
(4.00, 4 ratings)
Accessing the data and logic stored in a blockchain is significantly different than accessing your own servers. Destry Saul walks you through APIs for the most popular blockchains, outlines dangers to watch out for, and explains which current applications make use of blockchains. Read more.
9:50am–10:30am Thursday, June 14, 2018
Does it NEED to be a PWA?
Location: 212 A/B
Secondary topics:  Best practice, Developer Experience Track: Tools, Platforms, and Techniques, Hands-on
Tara Z. Manicsic (Progress)
Average rating: ****.
(4.33, 3 ratings)
There is a lot of talk about progressive web apps these days, but what apps actually need to be progressive? Maybe users don't need a push notification every time you post a picture of your pet. Tara Manicsic details what kinds of apps really benefit from the advancements of modern web technologies and walks you through spinning one up. Read more.
3:35pm–4:15pm Thursday, June 14, 2018
Group games with GraphQL subscriptions
Location: 210 B/F
Secondary topics:  Developer Experience Track: Tools, Platforms, and Techniques, Hands-on, Technical
Alex Banks (Moon Highway)
Average rating: ****.
(4.33, 3 ratings)
Instead of allowing our phones to make us oblivious to the world around us, what if we were able to use them to facilitate interactivity in the real world? Alex Banks details (and invites you to participate in) interactive challenges that use the power of GraphQL to create graphable relationships, covering the code that produces each activity and the data produced by the activity itself. Read more.
4:25pm–5:05pm Thursday, June 14, 2018
Building Alexa skills just to mess with your kids
Location: 212 A/B
Secondary topics:  Developer Experience Track: Tools, Platforms, and Techniques, Technical
Bobby Johnson (Auth0)
Average rating: *....
(1.00, 1 rating)
Alexa, Amazon's voice-controlled assistant, is incredibly easy to build for. Bobby Johnson walks you through building Alexa skills for the sole purpose of having fun with your kids. Read more.