From Cover to Code

In this episode of "From Cover to Code", Angela and Michael dive deep into Chapters 3 and 4 of "AWS Certified AI Practitioner (AIF-C01) Study Guide" by Tom Taulli.

What starts as a foundational discussion of AI quickly accelerates into machine learning lifecycles, generative model architectures, transformer mechanics, and the real-world implications of foundation models.

If you’ve ever used ChatGPT, Amazon Q, or Claude and wondered, “What’s actually happening under the hood?” — this episode connects the dots between practical usage and technical foundations.

Chapters covered in this episode:

Chapter 3: AI and Machine LearningCh...

The Journey to Certification: AWS AI Practitioner

We’re back for a brand-new season of From Cover to Code 📘💻 — and this time, we’re diving into AI on AWS.

In this Season 4 premiere, Michael Jenkins and Angela Andrews kick off their review of the "AWS Certified AI Practitioner (AIF-C01) Study Guide" by Tom Taulli.

This episode sets the foundation for the entire season, focusing on *why* the AWS AI Practitioner certification exists, *who* it’s designed for, and the AWS fundamentals every AI practitioner is expected to understand before touching models, prompts, or GenAI tools...

From Cover to Code — S3E6: Next-Level DevOps with Python

In this Season 3 finale, Angela and Michael close out "Hands-On Python for DevOps" with an in-depth conversation about Chapter 13 — "The Tools to Take Your DevOps to the Next Level". They explore advanced automation techniques, real-world monitoring strategies, and modern troubleshooting workflows that help teams scale their DevOps practices with confidence.

The hosts dig into step functions, observability stacks, event-driven operations, and the growing role of AI tools that support high-velocity engineering teams. They also reflect on the biggest lessons from this season — from infrastructure automa...

Angela Andrews and Michael Jenkins continue their journey through *Hands-On Python for DevOps* with a deep dive into Chapters 11 and 12 — exploring how Python bridges the gap between data science, operations, and infrastructure management.

This episode connects the dots between MLOps, DataOps, and Infrastructure as Code (IaC) — showing how Python’s simplicity and versatility make it an essential tool for automating data workflows, deploying machine learning models, and defining infrastructure reproducibly.

Expect lively discussion, insightful quotes, and practical takeaways from real-world DevOps experience.

Book Chapters Covered

- Chapter 11: MLOps and DataOps
- Chapte...

Angela and Michael are back with another deep dive into Hands-On Python for DevOps!
In this episode, they explore Chapters 9 and 10 — Using Python for CI/CD Pipelines and Common DevOps Use Cases in Big Companies.

They unpack how Python streamlines continuous integration and delivery, making pipelines faster, more reliable, and easier to maintain. Then, they look at how major organizations apply DevOps and automation principles at scale — from Samsung’s data platform overhaul to MLB’s pitch-clock innovation — and what we can all learn from those approaches.

Expect 🔥 insights, practical pipeline breakdowns, and lively discussion from two DevO...

In this episode of From Cover to Code, Angela and Michael continue their exploration of Hands-On Python for DevOps, diving into Chapters 7 and 8 — where Python meets automation and event-driven architecture.

They unpack what happens when Python steps into the world of automating DevOps workflows and connecting systems that respond in real time. From automating routine server maintenance to building loosely coupled systems, this conversation highlights both the potential and the pitfalls of using Python in large-scale automation.

Expect real stories, practical takeaways, and thoughtful reflection on the balance between innovation, governance, and simplicity in modern DevOps.

Angela Andrews and Michael Jenkins continue Season 3 of From Cover to Code, exploring “Hands-On Python for DevOps”: 

📘 Chapter 5: Manipulating Resources   
🔐 Chapter 6: Security and DevSecOps with Python

They explore how Python fits into modern DevOps workflows—from data handling and multiprocessing to securing secrets and automating incident response. Michael even demos a Jupyter notebook visualization for CPU utilization analysis and shares tips for smoothing data with Python.

Expect lively discussion, practical insights, and a few laughs as they debate when Python *isn’t* the right tool and preview what’s next: automation and event-driven architecture with A...

In this FCTC episode, Angela and Michael kick off Season 3 with "Hands-On Python for DevOps". After a short summer break, they’re diving back into tech book discussions—this time exploring how Python and DevOps work hand-in-hand.

Covering the first four chapters of the book, the hosts dig into DevOps principles, Python fundamentals, automation practices, and real-world cloud provisioning strategies.

Expect 🔥 insights, lively conversation, and hands-on takeaways you can start using right away.

Book chapters covered in this episode:
 🔹 Chapter 1: Introducing DevOps Principles
 🔹 Chapter 2: Talking about Python
 🔹 Chapter 3: The Simplest Ways to Start Using DevO...

In this FCTC episode, Angela and Michael go into serverless architecture and wrap up the book "Programming AWS Lambda". Topics of discussion include serverless architecture “gotchas” as well as new patterns of architecture enabled by serverless thinking.

Content covered:
 🔹 Chapter 9: Advanced Serverless Architecture
 🔹 Chapter 10: Conclusion 

Expect 🔥 insights, lively discussion, and practical takeaways you can use immediately.

00:00 Meeting Kickoff & Book Wrap-Up
01:47 At-Least-Once Delivery & Idempotency
07:47 Lambda Scaling & Downstream Impact
10:52 Concurrency Management & Cost Considerations
13:55 Reusable Serverless Components & SAM CLI
16:59 Serverless Thinking & Global Distribution
21:31 Global DynamoDB Table Demo
28:04 Edge Computing & Lamb...

In this episode of "From Cover to Code", Michael & Angela take AWS Lambda to the next level with live demos, opinionated advice, and a few laughs along the way.

This discussion covers:

* Error-handling tactics – synchronous vs. asynchronous invocations, DLQs, and why API Gateway sometimes hides your 500s.

* Tracing, logging & metrics – setting up AWS X-Ray and reading traces that flag cold starts, retries and faults.

* Scaling & concurrency – live Java demo shows Lambda spinning up extra instances (watch the function IDs change).

* Versioning, aliases & traffic shifting – when they help, and when they just add...

In this episode, we’re cracking open chapters 6 and 7 of “Programming AWS Lambda” to explore development concepts that can make or break real-world serverless apps:

🛠️ Testing – unit, integration, and end-to-end tests and how they fit into shipping quality applications
 📈 Observability – logging, metrics, and tracing so you can see exactly what just happened (and why) inside your functions.

Join us to discuss the Test Pyramid and code used to demonstrate unit, functional, and end-to-end testing.  We also demonstrate logging and monitoring with Lambda functions.

And as always,  we break down key concepts, share practical takeaways, and keep t...

Join us as we dig into what it really takes to build full applications using AWS Lambda.

This season we’re working our way through the book "Programming AWS Lambda”.  

We’ve covered the basics. Now it’s time to put it all together! In this week’s episode, we’re diving into Chapter 5: Building Serverless Applications, where we go beyond isolated functions and explore how to stitch them into real-world systems.

🛠️ What tools should you use?
🤔 What really counts as an application in a serverless world?
🔗 How do you connect functions, data stores, and event s...

This week, From Cover to Code is digging into chapter 4 of  Programming with AWS Lambda. We rolled up our sleeves and got into the real stuff:

📦 Built and packaged Lambda functions + dependencies in a clean, reproducible way
⚙️ Used AWS SAM to define infrastructure as code (hello, YAML!)
🔐 Broke down IAM for Lambda: execution roles and resource policies
🛡️ Applied least privilege with minimal config—SAM makes it smooth!

If you’ve ever struggled with packaging dependencies or writing IAM policies from scratch, this chapter is your new best friend.

00:00 Java Packaging in Lambda
09:19 Se...

We’re continuing our journey through “Programming AWS Lambda” by John Chapin and Mike Roberts, and this week we’re diving into Chapter 3: Programming AWS Lambda Functions.

In this episode, we’ll explore:

✅ The Lambda Execution Environment
✅ Input, Output, and Configuring Handlers
✅ Managing Environment Variables, and more

Whether you’re just getting started with Lambda or already a serverless pro, this discussion has something for everyone.

0:00 Welcome & Review
8:34 Lambda Input/Output and Data Handling
18:12 Lambda Configuration and Performance
28:25 Environment Variables and Deployment

Find us online at covertocode.com...

Season 2 of From Cover to Code is rolling on! Join us for Episode 2 as we crack open Programming AWS Lambda by John Chapin and Mike Roberts.

In this episode we dive into the fundamentals: 

📘 Chapter 1: Introduction to Serverless, Amazon Web Services, and AWS Lambda
⚙️ Chapter 2: Getting Started with AWS Lambda

Whether you're new to serverless or looking to sharpen your Lambda game, this episode is packed with insights to help you build smarter, more efficient cloud applications.

This is your chance to explore the core concepts behind Lambda and AWS’s serverless...

New Season, New Adventures – And Our First Guest! 🥳

We’re back and kicking off a brand-new season of our book club live stream! Fresh off the heels of our pilot season, we’re keeping the momentum going—this time with something special.

For the very first time, we’ll be joined by an incredible guest: the one and only Angie Jones!

🌟 About Angie Jones 🌟 

Angie is the Global VP of Developer Relations at Block, Inc., an award-winning teacher, international keynote speaker, and Master Inventor with more than 25 patented inventions. Known for her innovative thinking...

On the this episode of From Cover to Code live stream we dive into Part 6 of The DevOps Handbook and exploring how to integrate Information Security, Change Management, and Compliance into our workflows without slowing things down.

- How do we keep security teams happy and keep deployments on schedule?
- Can compliance actually be...streamlined?
- Is change management just another word for bureaucracy? (Spoiler: It doesn’t have to be!)

Let’s break it all down together in a lively discussion with your hosts Angela and Michael. Whether you’re reading along with u...

What happens when DevOps teams embrace risk, failure, and relentless practice? They build systems that actually get better over time!

Join us as we explore Part 5 of The DevOps Handbook: The Third Way: The Technical Practices of Continual Learning and Experimentation.

In this session, wel break down:
 - Why great teams make time to improve daily work
 - How rewarding risk-taking fuels innovation
 - What happens when you intentionally introduce faults (and why it makes you stronger!)

Failure isn’t the enemy—it’s the path to mastery. So let’s talk about...

We're diving into Part 4: "The Second Way: The Technical Practices of Feedback" from The DevOps Handbook—because what’s DevOps without a solid feedback loop?

We discuss case studies from the book that demonstrate how top teams use real-time metrics to improve software delivery and operations.   Let’s talk about how feedback fuels innovation!




 

Find us online at covertocode.com.

Hosted by:
Angela A.  @scooterphoenix Michael J.  @managedkaos ​

Ever wonder how elite DevOps teams keep work moving like a well-oiled machine? How do they eliminate bottlenecks, make deployments seem effortless, and adopt practices like continuous integration?

We unpack these and other topics in this episode!

In this live stream, we’re diving into Part 3 of The DevOps Handbook: "The First Way – The Technical Practices of Flow."

Expect lively discussions, real-world insights, and first-hand reflections as we share our experiences while reflecting on the content from the book. Whether you’re new to DevOps or a seasoned pro, you’ll learn something for sure!

In this book club live stream we dive into Part 2 of The DevOps Handbook: "Where to Start" with a focus on "Selecting a Value Stream."

In this session, we discuss practical ways to identify value streams in your organization and why this step is critical for successful DevOps transformations. Whether you’re just starting your DevOps journey or looking to refine your approach, this conversation is for you!




Find us online at covertocode.com.

Hosted by:
Angela A.  @scooterphoenix Michael J.  @managedkaos ​

We’re back for the second meeting of our book club live stream, diving into Part 1 of The DevOps Handbook! Last week, we introduced the book and set the cadence—now it’s time to roll up our book-reading sleeves and get into the core ideas of this foundational book.

This episode focuses on "The Three Ways of DevOps": Flow, Feedback, and Continual Learning and Experimentation.

Join us as we explore key insights, share experiences, and connect with others passionate about improving how technology delivers value.  

#covertocode #DevOps #BookClub #LiveStream #TheDevOpsHandbook

Find us onli...

We’re thrilled to launch our book club with *The DevOps Handbook* by Gene Kim, Jez Humble, Patrick Debois, and John Willis! In this first meeting, we introduce the book, discuss its structure, and outline what to expect in the weeks ahead.
 
In this episode:
00:00 Welcome
00:10 Kickoff of "From Cover to Code" Book Club
02:27 Book Relevance and Audience
05:54 Reading Schedule and Structure
08:13 Meeting Logistics

Here’s what’s on the horizon:  
- Part 1: The Three Ways  
- Part 2: Where to Start: Selecting a Value Stream  
- Part 3: The First Way...