Though I have been working mostly with C# and WPF the past few years I love getting my hands dirty with new things as well. Here are some of the things I’ve had a chance to try out recently:

Docker

Docker is an abstraction layer on top of virtualization that allows you to run similar application deployments across different platforms. In simple terms this means you can define your server application deployment once and run it across any machine, cloud or local, with minimal setup.

Node.JS

NodeJS has had an immense adoption rate since it came along. No wonder really because it allows you to build real applications in Javascript, a quite compact and dynamic language which almost every developer out there has used at some point. I’ve been using it for various utilities but also JSON based REST services and web pages.

Ruby

Only a few months ago I had never used Ruby. I had heard of it and I did have a very slight contact with Rails many years ago but when it presented itself to me again now after having tried out NodeJS with the NPM, Ruby and Ruby Gems really struck a tone. The language is wonderfully distinct yet so powerful. It is amazing how you can write DSLs in Ruby just by using the default language constructs.

Selenium

Everyone wants Selenium now but it’s not just a buzzword. It is there and it solves an actual problem. I’ve found it’s not perfect though but no matter. It bridges the gap that has been previously unattainable between browser testing and it doesn’t stop there. We are currently using it to drive windows applications and I would be surprised if Selenium isn’t a stepping stone to generalized testing standards in the future to come.