July 2023 Summaries

FastAPI applications can add user authentication through the PropelAuth FastAPI library using FastAPI’s dependency injection system, allowing routes to require a validated user with minimal code and returning a 401 error for unauthorized requests. Setup involves creating a PropelAuth project, configuring authentication settings and test users in its dashboard, installing the required packages, storing the PropelAuth URL and API key in environment variables, and initializing authentication when the application starts. Access tokens are JWTs whose validation metadata is retrieved during initialization, enabling subsequent local validation without external requests. Protected endpoints can access injected user information such as user IDs, while B2B applications can use organization membership checks to restrict data by organization. FastAPI’s interactive API documentation can test authenticated endpoints by accepting access tokens, and PropelAuth provides hosted account-management flows plus support for organization features, invitations, enterprise SSO, SAML, and SCIM.

Pointless programming projects, from a childhood script that logged one person into a local library website to deliberately impractical tools such as a self-modifying program that prints the current minute or JSON-based raster images with per-pixel comments, can be enjoyable demonstrations of creativity. Unlike workplace software, which must satisfy users, stakeholders, specifications, and practical requirements, these projects offer freedom to experiment without needing support systems or clear utility. They can also illustrate technical ideas, including exaggerated examples such as an overly complex Java FizzBuzz implementation. Beyond entertainment, low-stakes projects provide a useful environment for learning skills such as deployment, management, and monitoring, allowing developers to make mistakes and explore new technologies without pressure.

Next.js 13’s App Router makes Server Components the default, replacing the Pages Router and introducing architectural differences that can confuse developers accustomed to client-side React. Server Components cannot use hooks or event handlers, so interactive functionality requires a Client Component marked with `"use client"`, while simple data fetching can often be handled directly through asynchronous server-side rendering. Server Components also should not be imported directly into Client Components, because doing so can cause them to behave as client-side code; instead, they can be composed as children passed from a server-rendered parent, with client components using actions such as `router.refresh()` to request updated server-rendered data. Server Components do not automatically re-render when database records or cookies change, requiring routing refreshes or related update mechanisms. Although they can read cookies, only Route Handlers, Server Actions, or middleware can modify them, with middleware requiring special handling when newly assigned values must be accessible during the same request. Finally, data passed from Server Components to Client Components must be JSON-serializable, so classes, functions, and other non-serializable objects should be reconstructed on the client when needed.