25 Apr 2025
Django community aggregator: Community blog posts
Django News - Revamp Your Django Admin and Supercharge Search - Apr 25th 2025
News
See you at PyCon US in Pittsburgh!
Django invites community members to visit and volunteer at its PyCon US 2025 booth in Pittsburgh for stickers and project engagement.
2025 PSF Board Election Schedule Change
Starting in 2025, PSF will move board election timelines to August and September to relieve PyCon US planning pressures and give candidates more campaign time.
Django Software Foundation
Django Admin Theme Roundup 2025
Explore a curated roundup of customizable Django Admin themes like Dracula, Jazzmin, Unfold, Simple UI and others for refreshed backend UIs.
Wagtail CMS
Check yourself before you wreck yourself with vibe coding
AI-powered vibe coding accelerates app development but demands rigorous security practices like secret management, input validation, and leveraging frameworks such as Django for safer production deployments.
Hot takes are making the planet hotter (and we can do something about it) 🌍
Wagtail-driven Django sites can cut carbon footprints by adopting WebP/AVIF images, greener hosts, responsible AI, dark mode, and cleaning up old content.
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The #1 Django Podcast
Since 2019, Django Chat is a biweekly podcast covering the people and news behind Django. Hosted by former Django Fellow Carlton Gibson and LearnDjango founder Will Vincent.
Articles
14 Advanced Python Features
Explore fourteen advanced Python features: typing overloads and generics, context managers, metaclasses, and other tools to boost code safety, performance, and readability.
Python's new t-strings
Python 3.14 will introduce template strings (t-strings) that produce Template objects enabling safe, flexible string interpolation to prevent injection issues.
You don't need CompositePrimaryKeys
Django 5.2 adds CompositePrimaryKey support for legacy or sharded databases, but new models should avoid composite keys in favor of surrogate keys and unique constraints.
Quick Mastodon toot templates for event hashtags
Prepopulate Mastodon toots with event hashtags by creating share URLs and saving a GitHub Gist shortcut to your mobile home screen.
Grab a Pint With Django-MongoDB-Backend, Voyage AI, and LangChain
A very detailed overview of building a Dublin City Center Pub Finder app built using MongoDB's new Django Backend Python package, Voyage AI embeddings to best understand the queries, and LangChain to power the natural-language interface.
Tutorials
Running Background Tasks from Django Admin with Celery
A tutorial looking at how to run background tasks directly from Django admin. It uses Celery, but similar concepts apply to any other task queues, such as Django-RQ, Django Q, or Huey.
How to Add Blazing Fast Search to Your Django Site with Meilisearch
Integrate Meilisearch into Django to implement blazing fast, typo-tolerant search with unified schemas, Pydantic validation, automatic indexing mixins, and management commands.
Videos
How to Identify Unused Images in Wagtail CMS
Use Wagtail's built in image usage metrics to pinpoint and purge unused images from your CMS library, keeping the file store lean and current.
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Projects
bahdotsh/wrkflw
Validate and execute GitHub Actions workflows locally.
radiac/django-style
Basic tasteful designs for your Django project.
Sponsorship
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25 Apr 2025 3:00pm GMT
Chicago Like a Local: Part 2
Chicago Like a Local: Hidden Gems & Unique Experiences (Part 2)
DjangoCon US 2025 is getting closer, and while we've covered some classic must-see spots in Part 1, there's so much more to explore beyond the typical tourist attractions. If you're looking for unique experiences, quirky hidden gems, and places where locals actually hang out, this guide is for you.
Unique Eats & Unexpected Foodie Finds
Chicago's food scene goes beyond deep-dish pizza and hot dogs. Here are some lesser-known but absolutely amazing spots to check out:
International Flavors
- Demera Ethiopian Restaurant - Located in Uptown, Demera is the go-to spot for flavorful, communal Ethiopian dining. Try the messob platter for an authentic experience.
- Korean Chicken at Crisp - Forget traditional fried chicken-Crisp in Lakeview serves up perfectly crispy, saucy, and flavorful Korean-style wings that will change your life.
Speakeasies & Hidden Bars
Looking for a more intimate, unique nightlife experience? Check out these hidden gems:
- The Violet Hour - Tucked behind an unmarked door in Wicker Park, this James Beard award-winning cocktail lounge is a must for craft cocktail lovers.
- The Drifter - Hidden beneath the Green Door Tavern, this speakeasy features a rotating menu of cocktails presented on tarot cards, plus nightly performances.
- Three Dots and a Dash - A tropical tiki bar with some of the most creative (and strong) rum-based drinks in the city.
Offbeat Museums & Quirky Attractions
Tired of traditional museums? Here are some alternative spots that make for a memorable experience:
- The International Museum of Surgical Science - A fascinating collection of medical oddities, historic surgical tools, and exhibits on the evolution of medicine.
- Woolly Mammoth Antiques & Oddities - Part antique shop, part museum, this Andersonville store is packed with bizarre taxidermy, old medical instruments, and all things weird.
- Money Museum at the Federal Reserve Bank - Ever wanted to hold a $1 million stack of cash? This free museum in the Loop offers a deep dive into currency history.
Outdoor & Nature Escapes
Need a break from the urban hustle? These spots offer a little oasis within the city:
- Garfield Park Conservatory - A stunning indoor botanical garden that feels like a tropical escape, no matter the season.
- The Magic Hedge at Montrose Point - A hidden birdwatching paradise along the lakefront, perfect for a peaceful nature walk.
- Promontory Point - Located in Hyde Park, this lakefront retreat offers incredible skyline views and a quiet spot to relax away from the crowds.
Local Shopping & Indie Markets
If you're looking for cool souvenirs or unique finds, skip the Magnificent Mile and check out these local shopping spots:
- The Bongo Room - A boutique brunch spot in Wicker Park known for creative pancakes and a cozy neighborhood vibe.
- Andersonville Galleria - A collective space featuring local artisans selling handmade jewelry, home décor, and Chicago-themed gifts.
- Rotofugi Designer Toy Store & Gallery - A paradise for lovers of art toys, quirky collectibles, and vinyl figurines.
Final Tips for Exploring Hidden Chicago
- Use the CTA - The 'L' train and buses can take you to almost any neighborhood for just a few dollars. Ride like a local!
- Ask Around - Chicagoans love sharing their favorite secret spots-don't be afraid to strike up a conversation with a bartender or barista.
- Be Adventurous - Some of the best experiences come from wandering around and stumbling upon unexpected places.
Exploring beyond the tourist spots will give you a true taste of Chicago's character. Stay tuned for Part 3, where we'll dive into Chicago's music scene, live performances, and where to catch the best shows!
Have a favorite hidden gem in Chicago? Drop it in the comments and share your local tips!
25 Apr 2025 4:54am GMT
Pycon.de: streamlit app optimization in AWS - Darya Petrashka
(One of my summaries of the 2025 pycon.de conference in Darmstadt, DE).
Full title: you don't think about your streamlit app optimization until you try to deploy it to AWS
Streamlit is a quick way to show your models/data to stakeholders.
She once made a streamlit app to exercise writing Japanese characters. It used some character recognition model. But... the way streamlit works, it normally downloads the model every single time. For some local testing, it is probably OK, but if you put it in production... In production, network traffic might cost money.
Solution? You can cache it with streamlit, but you can also download it when building the docker image and store it inside the image and load it from there.
On to authentication. You can handle everything yourself as data scientist: login widget, auth logic, user privs, etc. You can also use an external provider like Amazon Cognito. Then you only have to hook up cognito in your code, but the OPS engineer has to set up cognito for you.
On to security. For all of them you'll need the OPS engineer, probably.
- Set up https with Route 53 and TLS certificates.
- Configure CloudFront to protect against DDoS attacks and improve performance.
- Use AWS web application firewall to block malicious traffic.
On to credential storage. You can use AWS secret manager instead of putting API_KEY = "1234abcd" right in your code. Using the secret manager is much more secure and that will make your OPS engineer happy.
Photo explanation: random picture from Darmstadt (DE)
25 Apr 2025 4:00am GMT