node.js ko

Here are some useful tutorials and services that we recommend for the competition.

Tutorials

Installation & Package Management

  1. How to install node & npm
  2. Managing dependencies with npm

Web Frameworks

  1. Writing a web app with Express
  2. Creating a RESTful API with hapi
  3. restify and DTrace for performant web services
  4. Full stack web development with Geddy

Debugging & Error Handling

  1. Debugging with Node Inspector
  2. Error tracking with Ratchet.io

Data Persistence

  1. Storing users and data in Apigee
  2. Introduction to MongoDB
  3. Persisting data with MongoDB & Mongoose
  4. Advanced MongoDB: storing files using GridFS
  5. Advanced MongoDB: geospatial indexes

Libraries and Utilities

  1. Using Socket.IO for real-time messaging
  2. Implementing OAuth login with Passport
  3. Cross-platform graphics with Bonsai
  4. Sending email with Nodemailer

Services

Nodejitsu

Nodejitsu's platform actually gives you access to free instances of several popular databases.

MongoLab

MongoLab is a full-featured MongoDB-as-a-Service cloud solution that completely automates the operational aspects of running MongoDB. With the MongoLab cloud platform developers can deploy and manage highly available databases for their applications and leverage automated backups, web-based tools, 24/7 monitoring, and expert support. Free 500MB databases are available on Amazon AWS, Azure, Joyent, and Rackspace.

No special credentials are needed to use MongoLab's free 500MB plan during Node Knockout. Just sign up to get a free account.

Check out the getting started blog post for how to quickly get up and running with MongoLab.

MongoHQ

MongoHQ is the fastest and easiest way to create a MongoDB database to use with your application. Our goal is to allow developers to focus on what they do best while we keep your database fast, optimized and reliable. It takes less than 30 seconds to sign up and create a MongoDB database.

For NodeKnockout, we have available 512MB plans in multiple data centers. Simply sign up and create a database and you will have full access to our industry-leading tools and a friendly and intelligent support team. We're excited to see what you build ... Good luck!

Apigee

Apigee will give out $4,000 in November to great apps that use node.js + App Services — read the blog post for details!

Apigee App Services is a hosted cloud service to store, retrieve & query your data — and so much more. Create a user record in our database and boom — we automatically give you a method to let that user sign-in to the service (using OAuth), let him own other pieces of data, post stuff to his activity wall, and the ability to become friends & share data with other users — without having to write a single line of code. Want to store arbitrary data? If you can express it as JSON, we can store it!

Check out the getting started blog post for more…

To sign up during the knockout, please go here.

We have a node SDK and plenty of documentation. If you need any help during the weekend, you can ping Rod or Tim on IRC (rockerston, timanglade in #nodeknockout on Freenode), GTalk (rsimpson@apigee.com, tanglade@apigee.com), email (rsimpson@apigee.com, tanglade@apigee.com) or Skype (rockerston, timanglade).

Ratchet.io

Ratchet.io is real-time execption tracking on steroids. It has the basics covered—de-duplication, alerts, context, graphs, a solid backend—and adds a dashboard, search, replays, Github integration, an API, and more. Set it up in 5 minutes.

Sign in for the super-secret free signup link.

Teleportd

Teleportd provides an API for accessing mobile photos that are publicly shared online. It aggregates photos from Twitter, Instagram and a dozen other social networks, seeing an average of 100 photos/s. Geolocation and keyword tags are associated with the photos, opening up a wide range of use cases.

Sign in to see how to get free access to Teleportd's unlimited api during Node Knockout.

Impact.js

Impact is a JavaScript Game Engine that allows you to develop HTML5 Games for desktop and mobile browsers. It has recently been called "the first truly professional-grade JavaScript game engine to hit the market" in a review by the Game Developer Magazine. Impact comes with a versatile Level Editor that helps you create your game worlds with ease - whether it's for an arcade game, a side-scrolling Jump'n'Run or a top-down RPG.

Email dominic.szablewski@gmail.com if you want to use Impact for your Knockout project.

Pusher

Looking to build realtime awesomeness with WebSockets at Node Knockout? Want to have scalable connection handling sorted out without any server configuration? Want to get things like PubSub message filtering, authentication, and presence for free? You should try out Pusher.

Sign in for a coupon to get one month of the 500 connection Startup plan for free.

Amazon S3

You can use your own Amazon S3 account during the competition for files. If you'd like to use a Knockout provided account, please contact all@nodeknockout.com.

Monitaur

Monitaur is instant server monitoring. Set it up in 30 seconds (seriously, it's really easy). Record and view your system stats in real time. Try it out!

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