March 2019 Summaries

The tutorial provides detailed instructions on creating a Stripe charge using PubNub Functions, a serverless environment for executing JavaScript event handlers. It explains use cases such as selling products, restricting web page access, selling files, and accepting donations. Functions can handle tasks like real-time translation, secure API calls, network logic, and serving data with minimal latency, reduced cost, and quick time-to-market. To set up the Stripe Charge Function, users must sign up for Stripe and PubNub accounts, obtain API keys, and use Stripe.js to tokenize payment information, ensuring sensitive data isn't exposed. The tutorial outlines creating a function module in the PubNub Admin Dashboard, configuring the function to initiate a charge with Stripe, and testing it using Stripe test tokens and curl commands. Finally, it suggests using Stripe Checkout to build a frontend for accepting charges and offers creative application ideas like integrating with Slackbot or building smart home features.

The tutorial provides a comprehensive guide on using Slack Incoming Webhooks to send messages from a Function, which is a serverless environment for executing JavaScript event handlers on PubNub messages or via RESTful API over HTTPS. Incoming Webhooks allow users to create interactive notifications and alerts for various scenarios, such as user payments, errors, or service disruptions, and to request permission for resources with responses directly from Slack. The tutorial outlines the steps to set up a Slack Incoming Webhook Function within the PubNub Admin Dashboard, including configuring the necessary settings and replacing placeholder code with a function to send messages to Slack. It emphasizes the benefits of using Functions, such as reduced costs, decreased time to market, and lowered latency by leveraging PubNub's global presence. Additionally, it offers testing guidance using Curl and proposes potential applications, such as integrating with Slackbots or smart home systems, inviting readers to reach out with questions or suggestions.

PubNub has launched a new API called Message Counts, designed to facilitate the retrieval of unread message counts across multiple channels using a single API call, without relying on third-party services. This API is particularly optimized for mobile and low latency scenarios, offering an efficient and resource-saving solution for determining message activity since a specified timestamp. It supports several programming languages, including Objective-C, Swift, Java, JavaScript, Go, Unity, Python, PHP, and C#, and aims to enhance user experience by allowing subscribers to catch up with real-time data streams even when connectivity is intermittent. The API is applicable beyond chat applications, enabling various use cases such as monitoring sensor activity, and it helps developers streamline interface elements like badge counts, ultimately providing a more intuitive and informative user experience. Full technical documentation is available in the Message Counts API docs for developers seeking to integrate this functionality into their real-time applications.