Category: Archive

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  • Introducing a Blog Series: Transform Your Sitecore Search Experience with AI

    Introducing a Blog Series: Transform Your Sitecore Search Experience with AI

    Introduction

    Are you a Sitecore developer or an AI enthusiast itching to bring a whole new level of intelligence to search experiences? Do you ever wonder how conversational interfaces and smarter search could be harmoniously integrated into your Sitecore platform?

    If so, you’ve landed in the right place! Welcome to the kickoff of an exciting blog series designed to take you through the journey of implementing Retrieval Augmented Generation (RAG) into Sitecore Search.

    We’re not just scratching the surface here; we’re diving deep. By the end of this series, you won’t just understand what RAG is and why it’s a game-changer for Sitecore Search. You’ll also have actionable insights, code snippets, and the know-how to implement these advanced features into your own projects.

    Why This Series Matters

    In a time where AI became the new normal, and an era where machine learning and natural language processing are altering the fabric of digital interactions, simply having a functional search feature is no longer enough. Users are beginning to expect smarter, more contextual, and conversational experiences that understand not just what they’re saying, but what they’re trying to achieve. This is where the combination of Retrieval Augmented Generation (RAG) and Sitecore Search comes in—offering a capability that can make search experiences more intelligent and user-centric.

    As we look towards the future, the role of search in content management systems like Sitecore will only become more critical and complex. This series is not just about meeting the status quo; it’s about preparing for the future. RAG is a cutting-edge technology that is gaining traction for its capabilities in information retrieval and conversational agents. By integrating this with Sitecore Search, we’re setting the stage for a paradigm shift in how search functionalities can be designed and delivered.

    Whether you’re a Sitecore developer looking to implement the latest advancements in search capabilities, a UX/UI designer aiming to create more intuitive and meaningful user journeys, or a product manager focused on adding value to your platform—this series has something for you. We’ll provide both the theoretical background and the practical guidelines needed to make these advanced concepts a reality in your projects.

    We won’t just talk theory; we’ll walk you through real-world applications and case studies where the integration of RAG with Sitecore Search has made a tangible difference. These insights will not only validate the concepts but also provide you with actionable strategies to implement them.

    What Will You Learn?

    Understanding the basics of Retrieval Augmented Generation (RAG) is key to unlocking its full potential. We’ll dissect this advanced natural language processing technology, explaining its components, its architecture, and how it functions. This foundational knowledge will set the stage for deeper explorations and implementations.

    Sitecore Search is a powerful tool that can do much more than you might think. We’ll give you an in-depth look at its capabilities, going beyond the basics to show you how you can customize and extend it to meet specific needs or solve complex challenges.

    Combining RAG with Sitecore Search may sound daunting, but we’ll make it straightforward. Through step-by-step guides, code snippets, and troubleshooting tips, you’ll learn how to integrate these technologies seamlessly. You’ll also gain insights into optimizing the performance and usability of your new, intelligent search feature.

    Ever wondered how to create a conversational interface that can interact with your Sitecore data? We’ll walk you through the process, showing you how RAG can turn your Sitecore Search into a conversational agent that understands and responds to user queries in a more natural and intuitive manner.

    To bring all these concepts to life, we’ll showcase real-world examples and case studies that demonstrate the power and potential of integrating RAG with Sitecore Search. These tangible insights will not only add credibility to the concepts but also offer you a blueprint for your own implementations.

    Series Overview

    • Blog Post 1: Retrieval Augmented Generation (RAG) and the Future of Sitecore Search
    • Blog Post 2: How to “Chat with Your Own Data” using Retrieval Augmented Generation
    • Blog Post 3: Implementing “Chat with Your Own Data” in Sitecore Search
    • Blog Post 4: Full Demo: Retrieval Augmented Generation Transforms Sitecore Search

    Summary

    We are on the point of a technological revolution that promises to redefine the way we think about search experiences in Sitecore. By merging cutting-edge technologies like Retrieval Augmented Generation with robust platforms like Sitecore Search, we’re stepping into a new era of user interaction and engagement. This series aims to be your comprehensive guide through this transformative journey, equipping you with both the theoretical knowledge and practical skills needed to be at the forefront of this evolution.

    Next Steps

    The stage is set, and the players are ready. All that’s missing is you! Are you prepared to embark on this enlightening journey to revolutionize Sitecore Search and, by extension, the way users interact with your platform?

    • Subscribe Now: Don’t miss out on any installments of this series. Subscribe to our blog to get notifications straight to your inbox.
    • Share: If you find this series to be of value, please don’t hesitate to share it within your professional network. The more people we can educate on these advancements, the more robust and user-friendly our future platforms will become.
    • Engage: We value your insights and questions. Feel free to leave comments on the blog posts or engage with us on social media. Your interaction enriches the community dialogue and may even influence the focus of future posts in the series.
  • Sitecore Identity – 3 – Adding mobile native clients

    Sitecore Identity – 3 – Adding mobile native clients

    In the last two parts of the Sitecore Identity series, I described the basics and an understanding of the architecture and how IdentityServer4 is embedded and used in Sitecore 9.1+, the second part was a demo for adding a web client that authenticates itself against the Sitecore Identity (meaning that a custom web application uses Sitecore as the login method think like Login using Facebook or any other Identity Provider).

    The third post of the series is a bit new, as there aren’t any samples (that I could find). I will show how to add a native mobile app client (iOS for this post but Android works the exact same).
    This will enable you first to authenticate against the Sitecore Identity, then secondly (later posts coming) consume protected APIs (whether Sitecore native or custom ones).

    (more…)
  • Sitecore Identity – 2 – Adding web clients

    Sitecore Identity – 2 – Adding web clients

    In the first part of the series I tried to explain and give a very small introduction to what is Sitecore Identity and the basic implementation that comes out of the box with Sitecore 9.1 +

    In this part I will show some coding and how to build an external web application that uses the Sitecore Identity server to authenticate users, and to connect to the Sitecore instance APIs.

    (more…)
  • Sitecore Identity – 1 – Understanding the basics

    Introduction

    One of the major updates that came in Sitecore 9.1 is Sitecore Identity, this blog post will introduce a basic understanding for how it works.

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  • Microsoft Certified: Azure AI Engineer Associate

    Since the beginning of this year, I have been shifting the focus towards AI and ML, and their applications in business and real world. One step towards achieving the technical capability check was this certification. Happy to announce that I completed the Microsoft Certified: Azure AI Engineer Associate certification. Looking forward for the next ones.

    Certification
  • Understanding jss create for Sitecore JSS

    One thing I love about Sitecore is the ability to extend and customize almost anything. And that also goes with the newly released Sitecore JSS.

    In the previous posts, I gave a very brief introduction and getting started with Sitecore JSS, and then I tried to recreate a very minimal JSS app without using any out of the box client tools.

    In this post I will show how to use the Sitecore JSS tools to reuse your own template.

    (more…)
  • Bare bones Sitecore JSS react application

    In the last post of getting started with Sitecore JSS, I  worte a brief introduction on what is actually Sitecore JSS, decribed the server and client components and finally showed how to run the out of box react template. I also described briefly what comes with the default template in terms of folder but didn’t get into details of that.

    In this post, I will build the simplest ever jss application without using the default template, and deploying it to Sitecore with the bare minimum, this will help to understand all the moving parts under the hood.

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  • Getting started with Sitecore JSS

    Getting started with Sitecore JSS

    I have been working on a mega project using Sitecore JSS, it even got pushed to production since TP4.

    Having said, I decided to start blogging about this awesome technology hopefully to give back to the community and to learn more through the process.

    So let’s begin. (more…)

  • ASP.NET Core in Visual Studio for Mac

    ASP.NET Core in Visual Studio for Mac

    So you all heard the news in #Build 2017, Visual Studio on Mac has been fully released and is General Available. To celebrate this release I will write few posts on building some different .net apps on my Mac.

    As you already expect from the title, this article will be on ASP.NET Core I will make it short and simple. (more…)

  • Azure Media Services – Media Indexer

    One of the powerful offerings Microsoft Azure has is the “Azure Media Services”.

    Azure Media Services spans lots of capabilities, and I am sure the very first thing you think about is video publishing and streaming, but it is way more than just that. Encoding, live and on-demand streaming, content protection, analytics and even client players.

    In this post, I will focus on the Media Analytics services, and explore them with a sample demo or more.

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