Humm

In 2012, I embarked on my app development journey with a personal project called Humm. This vinyl cataloging and discovery app began as an Objective-C iOS application. Learning Objective-C was a challenge that took three attempts, with the first two ending in frustration before I finally persevered. The resulting app was functional but far from polished, storing data in a simple text file and featuring less-than-elegant code.

The 2018 Rewrite Six years later, armed with significantly more experience, I revisited Humm. This time, I opted for a Progressive Web App (PWA) approach. The frontend was built using Vue and TypeScript, while the backend comprised Go microservices. The entire stack ran on Kubernetes, with data stored in PostgreSQL. Frontend queries were handled via GraphQL, and internal service communication utilized gRPC for optimal efficiency.

Design Evolution The design journey of Humm was an exploration in aesthetics. Initially inspired by vaporwave, the UI later transitioned to a more minimalist approach. I implemented SCSS with variables, allowing for quick and easy design iterations.

Infrastructure and DevOps The application's infrastructure was containerized using Docker and orchestrated with Kubernetes. While Kubernetes initially presented a learning curve, this project helped me gain a deep understanding of the technology. The CI/CD pipeline, set up in GitLab, automated the building and deployment of Docker images to GCP. Helm charts facilitated most deployments.

For monitoring, I implemented a comprehensive stack including Jaeger Tracing, Loki, and Prometheus. Weekly backups of both the databases and the entire cluster were managed using Velero, ensuring data safety and system recoverability.

This project not only showcases my technical growth over the years but also my ability to adapt to and implement modern development practices and technologies.