Reading Notes #701

Modern infrastructure and AI agent development move fast, requiring a sharp eye on both backend stability and frontend polish. This week’s curated notes highlight critical shifts in observability, security best practices for autonomous agents, and practical updates for .NET MAUI apps. Check out these essential reads to stay ahead of the curve.

AI

• Build 2026: From observability to ROI for AI agents on any framework | Microsoft Foundry Blog (Sebastian Kohlmeier) - Foundry offers observability features and has many other whistles. There were a few sessions about that during Build. This post provides an overview and session names for demos.

Programming

• Give Your .NET MAUI Android Apps a Material 3 Makeover - .NET Blog ( Gerald Versluis) - So simple that it's hard not to try it

DevOps

• Why Choose Pulumi Over Terraform? (Pablo Seibelt) - I have never tried Pulumi or terraform, but they look great, and after reading this post, I'm very interested in learning more about ballooning

Data

• AI observability vs monitoring: What's the difference? (Jesse Sumrak) - Do you know the difference? You understand both, but where one ends and the other starts? Good post to clarify that.

MS Build

• How to Secure AI Agents: A Practical Overview (Srini Sekaran) - This post suggests grounded practices and explains the reasons behind them.

• Microsoft Agent Framework at BUILD 2026 | Microsoft Agent Framework (Shawn Henry) - List of Microsoft Build event sessions about the Agent framework.

~frank

Reading Notes #700

Seven hundred weeks.

When I started taking notes about the articles I was reading, I never imagined I would still be doing it 700 weeks later.

Back then, my notes lived on a USB key. I carried a small personal wiki with me and used it to save interesting articles, ideas, and discoveries. It was a simple way to build my own searchable knowledge base so I could find things again when I needed them.

In 2011, I started sharing those notes publicly on my blog, Franky's Notes. A few months later, I made another important change: I switched from writing in French to writing in English. At the time, I wasn't fluent, but I wanted to improve. "Notes de lecture" became "Reading Notes", and every week became an opportunity to learn something new while practicing a language that would eventually become a big part of my career.

Over the years, the format evolved. Articles were joined by podcasts, books, videos, and whatever else helped me learn and stay curious. Technology changes constantly, and one of the things I enjoy most about working in this industry is that there is always something new to discover.

What never changed was the habit itself.

Most mornings start the same way: a coffee, my e-reader, and a few articles. Throughout the week, I collect the things that made me think, taught me something, or simply felt worth sharing. Then, every Monday, I publish a new edition.

Seven hundred weeks later, these reading notes have become much more than a list of links. They are a record of what caught my attention, what I was learning, and how both technology and I have changed over the years.

If you've been reading along for a while, thank you. If you're new here, I hope you discover something interesting in the links below.

Suggestion of the week

• Harness, Scaffold, and the AI Agent Terms Worth Getting Right (Sergio Paniego, Aritra Roy Gosthipaty) - This post shares a list of definitions. If you feel like there are some terms used in the "AI world" that you are not sure what they mean, this post is for you.

AI

• Building an On-Device Voice Assistant with Microsoft Foundry Local | Microsoft Community Hub (Lee Stott) - Cool project! Really need to look into the local Foundry.

• Building Fluent Icon Finder with the WinUI Copilot Skill (TheJoeFin) - I like the idea of these vibe-coded tools, as I often spend a lot of time searching for the right icon.

• The Untrusted Autonomous Workload and AI Sandboxes (Vladimir Mikhalev) - Very nice post that shares how Docker sandboxes could help us do our work safely.

• 9 Things People Get Wrong With /grill-me and /grill-with-docs (Matt Pocock) - These are excellent tips to use with this skill, but they are also true in many other circumstances.

• Meet Gordon: AI Agent for Container Workflows | Docker (Nuno Coracao, Deanna Sparks) - Gordon looks like the specialized agent we are all looking for. Looking to see if it delivers as advertised.

Programming

• aspire init is no longer one-size-fits-all. The aspireify skill and your coding agent tailor the AppHost to your repo. (Erik Lieben) - I would say an interesting twist in this new version. A smart upgrade (pun intended)

Miscellaneous

• An important update: Transitioning Gemini CLI to Antigravity CLI - I migrated this week to Antigravity IDE 2.0, and it works great. I had an intense coding session with the CLI (thanks to the crappy weather), and it just worked! No issues, no adaptation, no conversion. 5/5

~frank

Reading Notes #699

This week's reading notes bring you the latest insights into AI, .NET, open-source development, and even a few social hacks! From exploring background tasks in Blazor to the fascinating debate on Markdown vs. HTML for AI output, this roundup has something for everyone.

Let me know if you find anything particularly interesting; I'd love to hear your thoughts!

Programming

• Running background tasks in Blazor with Web Workers: Exploring the .NET 11 preview - Part 1 (Andrew Lock) - This web worker role looks promising. This post explains the what, why, and how.

• NuGet Package Pruning: Cleaner Dependencies and Actionable Vulnerability Reports - .NET Blog (Nikolche Kolev) - This post explains one feature that is now turned on by default in .NET that will improve our dependency graph.

AI

• Anthropic Engineer Debates Use of Markdown vs. HTML in AI Agent Output (Paul Thurrott) - Interesting debate. Initially, I was hell no! But the more I think about it, the less certain I am. But we can always ask to generate HTML, so I guess it's okay to keep it lighter and more minimalist by default.

• Using Azure Local Foundry CLI with PowerShell (Olivier Miossec) - A nice short tutorial to get local AI.

Open Source

• GitHub for Beginners: Getting started with OSS contributions (Kedasha Kerr) - Short tutorial that provides tips to find a project and start your first contribution

Podcasts

• 513: Agents Over Chat: The Future of Developer Workflows (Merge Conflict) - James and Frank discuss token optimization, model choices, and the workflow; do you make one master big plan or do you do multiple passes...

• How to Stop Being Socially Awkward (According to Science) with Behavioral Scientist Vanessa Van Edwards (A Bit of Optimism) - I really appreciated this episode, and I wish many others would find it. It's packed with little gems that will make you feel better.

Miscellaneous

• If You Didn't Capture It, Did It Really Happen? (Golnaz Alibeigi) - Will people attend an in-person event if it's available online? That's what this post answers.

Sharing my Reading Notes is a habit I started a long time ago, where I share a list of all the articles, blog posts, and books that catch my interest during the week. 

 ~frank