I am grateful to the editorial team at Packt – Theresa, Mary, Yashodhan, Azhar in particular – for helping with the production of this book. Their advice and guidance has been critical in getting it published. I would also like to thank the technical reviewers – Mark Chapman, Olivier Carbone, and Philip Yurchuk for their feedback. My friend and colleague, Dean Taylor, provided the book’s cover photograph. Nice one Dean!

I have had two significant lucky breaks in my technical career: firstly, when I joined STS Systems, a retail systems vendor (thanks Peter!) and secondly, when I joined Fresca, a UK e-commerce platform provider (thanks Sarah, Gavin, and Justin!). Both experiences had a huge impact on me and greatly influenced my career path and technology skills. This book is, in large part, the result of those influences. I’ve also been fortunate to work with many fantastic people over the years that have contributed to my technical education in one way or another. A big thanks to you all!

I’d like to thank my parents and family for their support and encouragement, not just while writing this book, but since day one!

Finally, this book is dedicated to the three most important people in my life – Tanya, William, and Rose.