This book will help prepare you for the Microsoft DP-420 exam. Whether you are new to Azure Cosmos DB or have experience working with the platform, Designing and Implementing Cloud-Native Applications Using Microsoft Azure Cosmos DB is organized to address the specific skills measured in the DP-420 exam. The topics covered include NoSQL models, code, and real-world scenarios aimed at helping you to understand and solve the case studies included in the exam.    Beyond the exam, this book will assist you in your journey to adopt Microsoft Azure Cosmos DB for your own projects. You’ll learn what makes Azure Cosmos DB such a robust NoSQL service, as well as how NoSQL approaches help enable modern applications. You’ll also get practical guidance for your own implementations. The topics covered in this book are essential to knowing how to leverage the Cosmos DB service and provide best practices that will guide you to success both on the exam and in your career.   What You Will Learn Understand and hone the skills needed to pass the DP-420 exam Gain insight into the test-taking experience, whether at a testing center or virtually Evaluate and understand features of Azure Cosmos DB using real-world use cases and code samples Learn from case studies in the book that will help you to correctly address case studies in the exam Build a foundation that goes beyond the exam and gives you the confidence to implement Azure Cosmos DB in your own projects Determine the trade-offs between different configurations, whether your implementation is small and local or large and requires global scale   Who This Book Is For Anyone planning to take the DP-420 exam, as well as developers, engineers, and architects seeking a better understanding of Azure Cosmos DB and how it is used in developing modern applications using a NoSQL approach.

Few states have as colorful a political history as Alabama, especially in the post-World War II era. During the past six decades, the state played a central role in the civil rights movement, largely moved away from its earlier farm-based economy and culture, and transitioned from a relatively moderate-progressive Democratic Party politics to today's hard-core conservative Republican Party domination. Moving onto and off Alabama's electoral stage during all these transformations have been some of the most interesting figures in 20th-century American government and politics. Swirling around these elected officials in the Heart of Dixie are stories, legends, and jokes that are told and retold by political insiders, journalists, and scholars who follow the goings-on in Washington and Montgomery. In Alabama, it seems, politics is not only a blood sport but high entertainment. There could be no better guide to this colorful history than political columnist and commentator Steve Flowers.

Discover how mindfulness and self-compassion can free you from the thoughts and beliefs that create feelings of inadequacy and learn to open your heart to the loving kindness within you and in the world around you. Based in Western psychotherapy and Buddhist psychological principles, this book guides you past painful and self-limiting beliefs about yourself and toward a new perspective of nonjudgmental awareness and acceptance of who you are, just as you are. You'll receive gentle guidance in mindfulness and compassion practices that will lead you away from unproductive, self-critical thoughts and help you live more freely and fearlessly, with your heart wide open.