Code Apps (Power Platform)

Code Apps (Power Platform) look to be gaining momentum. I think they will work for corporate app development as they offer governance and ALM as part of the Power Platform.   I saw this summary and thought it was a great overview.

AI infiltrates Development Segments so quickly

A decade ago, the companies that used Agile processes along these lines built the best software using CI/CD, and Automated Testing were the big winners. 

5 Years ago, low-code and platforms provided governance and faster ways to build apps.

We are seeing AI coming into all 6 steps, and low code is optional; it still offers good governance for businesses.

Test
Was: Unit Tests, Postman, Spec Flow, Selenium 
Becoming: Postman, MCP, Unit test generation

Deploy
Was: Scripts, PowerShell, TeamCity, Ansible, ARM, Portal UIs, TFS, Git, Terraform, Pulumi
Becoming: BICEP, MCP, VS Code/IDEs, GitHub, Claude CLI, GitHub Copilot

Code
Was: Java, C#, NodeJS, SDKs, RUST, GO APIs, Low-code/No-code
Becoming: Python, TypeScript, Power Platform, Agents

Key Anthropic terminology for Ai (and Claude)

Overview: I have found that many people don't understand what Anthropic and Claude do, how they relate to each other, or how they fit into the AI industry.

The key takeaway is that Claude has two main parts: Tooling (e.g., Claude AI chat, Claude code, and Claude Cowork), and models for AI. The main product lines for these LLMs are Opus, Sonnet, and Haiku.

VSCode with Claude Code or GitHup Copilot

Overview: I have seen people really struggling with understanding that Claude is not GitHub Copilot (GHCP).  And GitHub Copilot is not an LLM. 

Terminology: 

Claude by Anthropic is made up of various parts, and it helps to be more specific.  Calusde is amazing at providing great Large Language Models (LLMs).  There are Claude Opus (for programming the lastest us 4.7), Claud Sonnet, and Claude Haiku.  GPT-5.4 is OpenAI's current flagship LLM.  Gemini 3.1 Pro is known for UI-focused coding. I found Gemini 3.0 good, but I don't use it that often.   

Claude also offers other services beyond supplying LLMs like Claude Code and Claude CLI.  These are the key ones for me:

Claude in Chrome — a browsing agent

Cowork — a desktop tool for non-developers to automate file and task management, rival to Microsoft 365 Copilot.

GitHub Copilot for VS Code is the equivalent of Claude Code for VS Code

Developing in VS Code:

In the screen below, I am using both Claude Code and GitHub Copilot in the VS Code IDE.

Here I have some C# code that creates and deploys an Azure Function. I can use either option until I run out of credits with my monthly (GHCP) or hourly (Claude) subscription allowance.  When I go over my GHCP allowance, I have it set up to use my Azure Credits.

Copilot Studio Custom Agent SharePoint Channel unexpected behaviour

Overview: I have been using Copilot Studio for production solutions for a few weeks now, and I am impressed.  I pushed my fist Copilot Studio custom agent from using ALM into QA and Production, where I finished the iteration a week ago.  My boss was looking at the Agent in SharePoint and identified a bug with uploading files and using them.

Anyway, I tested the scenario in other channels and in the Test area without issue.  In SharePoint, a Custom Copilot Agent can't upload a file to work with OOTB.

Chess, I mean IT for beginners

Medium- and large-sized IT projects often run into trouble at various points.  This analogy has helped me keep projects online and delivered, so I thought I'd share.

Firstly, for those who don't know in depth about chess strategy, it generally goes something like this: 

Opening, Middle and Endgame is how to break down a chess game.

Chess Cheat Sheet for Beginners

Opening Principles

• Control the center: Aim for squares e4, d4, e5, d5.
• Develop pieces early: Knights and bishops out before moving the same piece twice.
• Don’t bring your queen out too soon: Avoid early queen moves.
• Castle early: Protect your king and connect rooks.

---

Middle Game Tips

• Coordinate pieces: Make them work together.
• Avoid unnecessary pawn moves: Pawns can’t move back.
• Look for tactics: Pins, forks, skewers, discovered attacks.

---

Endgame Basics

• Activate your king: It becomes powerful in endgames.
• Push passed pawns: They’re your winning ticket.
• Rooks behind passed pawns: Classic endgame rule.

---

General Rules

• Every move should have a purpose.
• Don’t sacrifice without clear compensation.
• The threat can be more serious than the execution.

As an Analogy, I find this extremely useful for getting all stakeholders working together and understanding how to do so.

MVP cost balloons when “nice‑to‑haves” silently become “required”.  Not relatable to chess, except it is key, what are we doing in the Min viable Prod and why?  Think of it more like recon for the battle, learn, don't try to win it.

Azure Networking Basics

 Here is an Overview of Azure Networking:

Only some services offer private endpoints - I think private endpoints are basically NICs.  The DNS directs traffic to the private endpoint, which connects to the service (e.g., Key Vault).