Using JWT Authentication on a GraphQL API with OTP Issued ID Tokens
Depending on the type of application you are building, you may want to utilize a different authentication strategy than basic email and password forms. This decision can be for the sake of security, UX, as well as a myriad of other reasons. That said, it’s important that you choose a tech-stack that gives you the flexibility to use whichever authentication strategy you decide on.
Given that the 8base API accepts ID Tokens (JWT) issued by any OpenID compliant auth provider, you have a ton of flexibility how you’d like to implement your user authentication strategy. …
Using serverless functions to stand up REST endpoints on an 8base Workspace
By default, the 8base platform auto-generates an extremely powerful GraphQL API that gives you immediate API access to your data. Sometimes though, developers are using a 3rd party service or another tool that doesn’t easily support the authoring and execution of GraphQL queries. Instead, they require that a REST API (or discrete endpoints) be available.
Developing a REST API in 8base can easily be accomplished using the Webhook custom function type. Using Webhooks, a developer can quickly code and deploy serverless functions that become available using traditional HTTP verbs (GET, POST, PUT, DELETE, etc.) and a unique path.
Getting Started Building a REST API on 8base
To get started building a REST API on top of an 8base workspace, you’re going to need to have the following resources created/installed. …
Building Web Applications on Webflow using custom Javascript
In the first section of this tutorial we covered how to set up user authentication on Webflow using an 8base backend. Now, we’re going to add a customizable user profile that allows for a user avatar to get uploaded. This tutorial is a Part 2 of the 8base + Webflow series so please complete Setting up Authentication on Webflow before proceeding!
A quick recap from authentication on Webflow
In Part 1 we added some custom code to the head tag of our Webflow site. The first script imported via CDN is the Vue.js …
Building Web Applications on Webflow using custom JavaScript
There are many amazing low-code and no-code development tools available today. Whether it’s for a non-technical person needing to bridge their skill gap or a technical person that can realize a productivity boost, such tools are quickly reshaping the world’s conception of Who, What, and How software gets developed. Simply put, more people with wildly varying skillsets can create software using low-code and no-code development tools.
Just like every development framework has its unique pros and cons, so do low-code and no-code development tools. While some tools might be too limiting from a design standpoint, others are limited in allowing meaningful data to be worked with. …
Developing apps that rely on geo-coordinates to enable important features must go far beyond simply storing latitude and longitude data. Geo coordinate algorithms that calculate bounds and distances can be a fun brain challenge to implement, though more often than not they become time-consuming distractions from one’s core project.
In this tutorial, we’re going to look at how we can quickly set up and use an API that has advanced and ready to use Geo Coordinate operations. …
Low-code and no-code technologies have enabled everybody to build business software and apps
The proliferation of low-code and no-code technologies during the last several years has been profound. Across the globe, more and more people that don’t possess traditional computer science backgrounds or coding experience are able to ideate and implement software projects. In many cases this happens without them writing a single line of code.
There are countless custom software tools that can get developed to best enable productivity within specific use-cases. Unfortunately, developing such tools rarely justifies the budget for hiring engineers to do “from scratch” builds or even top-shelf SaaS subscriptions.
It’s in this realm that the low-code and no-code platforms provide so much value; for the “citizen developer” that often spearheads internal business app projects to drive efficiencies within their organizations. …
Setup a registration and authorization system for connected devices using GraphQL, Javascript, and Serverless Functions.
When we think of authorization in app development, it’s usually from the perspective of a user that has specific roles and permissions. For example, a fitness app that tracks a user’s workouts might allow an Athlete (user role) to create journal entries, as well only read their own journal entries from the API. Most applications that are user-centric and data-driven end up thinking through and defining these types of scenarios; who can do what?
That said, not all applications are centered around an individually logged-in user. It’s not uncommon that authorization for a given application needs to be handled within the context of a device. Think of Internet of Things (IoT) devices, VR headsets, registration kiosks, and others where the device itself — or installed application — is the authenticated entity. …
Build a chat room app leveraging GraphQL, VueJS, and the power of modern software development tools.
My father likes to remind me that as a computer engineer in the 1970s, “ he was a coder before coding was cool.” Once or twice he even pulled out old school Fortran and COBOL scripts. After reading that code, I feel confident saying that coding today is definitely cooler!
A remarkable trait of modern computer languages and development frameworks is how much less code they allow a developer to write. By leveraging high-level languages alongside the many APIs, open-source packages, and paid services that are available, applications — even ones with complex requirements-can get built incredibly fast.
A helpful comparison for conceptualizing this point in software development’s evolution is to look at construction. Once upon a time, building any house started with cutting down your own trees. However, standard materials, tools, and best practices developed to allow projects to complete faster, structures stand studier, and alleviate workers from lower-level tasks. …
Eight years ago I started writing for myself. Before then, every character I typed went towards a professor’s stipulated word-count. Writing was an assignment, not a pleasure.
Watching Woody Allen’s biography is what tipped me. Early in his career he wrote acts for a dinner show. Twice a week, every week, the beclub needed 4-hours of new material, and Woody had to write all of it; feeling inspired or not.
His dinner show experience struck me in a profound way. Allen trained to be as much a litterary machine as an artist. Churning out material by quantity, not necessarily quality. Surely, he wrote some great material in those years. …
My first job out of school was in the coffee industry, working on a farm in Panama. It was the beginning of an 18-month journey where I learned what it really takes to make a great cup of coffee.
To disperse any unnecessary suspense, I’ll get straight to the answer — which isn’t a fancy brewing contraption, too-cool-for-school baristas, or even Fair Trade. The world’s best coffees are the fruits of a philosophy — one where stewardship, consistency, and passion combine to form a unified system, guiding each seed carefully from soil to sip.
Now, surely that answer was a let down. Too lofty, perhaps? In industries where the supply chain produces such varied results, it’s the commitment to purpose and a value system that governs quality throughout a product’s journey to market. That journey holds valuable lessons, not just for would — be coffee producers, but marketers, brand managers and other professionals — who are hard-pressed to make sure the customer experiences they control live up to a brand’s promise. …
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