Software Architect specializing in AI/LLM engineering, Java, and Python. Creator, tinkerer, and Boise native.https://sosoka.io/https://sosoka.io/blog/agent-building-blocks/https://sosoka.io/blog/agent-building-blocks/An introduction to building Agents and Agentic workflows in Java with LangChain4J, covering the fundamental building blocks for creating these thinking machines.Thu, 23 May 2024 00:00:00 GMThttps://sosoka.io/blog/ai-3d-printer-factory/https://sosoka.io/blog/ai-3d-printer-factory/Building a multi-agent system for 3D model creation using AI, Python macros, and FreeCAD. Learn how to overcome context limitations and create custom 3D prints without CAD experience.Thu, 26 Dec 2024 00:00:00 GMThttps://sosoka.io/blog/behavior-steering-middleware/https://sosoka.io/blog/behavior-steering-middleware/Introducing behavior steering middleware — a pattern for shaping AI agent conduct through layered, composable directives.Sun, 22 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMThttps://sosoka.io/blog/contact-form-enhancements/https://sosoka.io/blog/contact-form-enhancements/Improving the contact form UX with jQuery AJAX and refactoring the backend Lambda service to handle JSON payloads, preparing for future spam filtering capabilities.Tue, 15 Feb 2022 00:00:00 GMThttps://sosoka.io/blog/contact-form-services/https://sosoka.io/blog/contact-form-services/Creating a serverless contact form backend using AWS Lambda, API Gateway, SNS, and Terraform to handle form submissions without exposing email addresses.Fri, 24 Dec 2021 00:00:00 GMThttps://sosoka.io/blog/context-gardener/https://sosoka.io/blog/context-gardener/Are software engineers now gardeners, tending to a garden of LLM context?Thu, 29 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMThttps://sosoka.io/blog/custom-gpt-data/https://sosoka.io/blog/custom-gpt-data/Learn how to use custom data with ChatGPT without libraries like LangChain or LlamaIndex - exploring vector embeddings, FAISS, and similarity search from first principles.Wed, 12 Jul 2023 00:00:00 GMThttps://sosoka.io/blog/custom-langchain-tools/https://sosoka.io/blog/custom-langchain-tools/Build custom tools for LLMs using LangChain to create a themed Spotify playlist generator powered by AITue, 08 Aug 2023 00:00:00 GMThttps://sosoka.io/blog/dawn-commerce-agents/https://sosoka.io/blog/dawn-commerce-agents/Exploring the future of AI agents in e-commerce - understanding what they are, how they might be used, and strategies for implementation.Wed, 06 Mar 2024 00:00:00 GMThttps://sosoka.io/blog/deterministic-quoting/https://sosoka.io/blog/deterministic-quoting/Mitigate hallucination, improve performance, and reduce cost with solid engineering patternsTue, 03 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMThttps://sosoka.io/blog/diy-dynamic-dns/https://sosoka.io/blog/diy-dynamic-dns/Building a dynamic DNS system for homelab services using AWS Lambda, API Gateway, Route53, and Jenkins - exposing a Minecraft server with automatic IP updates.Sun, 02 Mar 2025 00:00:00 GMThttps://sosoka.io/blog/estimate-padding/https://sosoka.io/blog/estimate-padding/Exploring the practice of estimate padding in software development, the challenges it poses, and a better alternative using specific contingency tasks.Sat, 28 Jan 2023 00:00:00 GMThttps://sosoka.io/blog/extend-llm-memory/https://sosoka.io/blog/extend-llm-memory/Adding memory to chatbots using persistent storage and retrieval augmented generationMon, 19 Feb 2024 00:00:00 GMThttps://sosoka.io/blog/first-post/https://sosoka.io/blog/first-post/how exciting.Mon, 20 Apr 2020 00:00:00 GMThttps://sosoka.io/blog/fumbling-aop-python/https://sosoka.io/blog/fumbling-aop-python/Lot's of mistakes & a hack.Sun, 29 Aug 2021 00:00:00 GMThttps://sosoka.io/blog/github-actions-s3/https://sosoka.io/blog/github-actions-s3/Set up a CI/CD pipeline with GitHub Actions to automatically deploy a static website to AWS S3 and invalidate CloudFront cachesSun, 16 Jul 2023 00:00:00 GMThttps://sosoka.io/blog/happy-new-year-2025/https://sosoka.io/blog/happy-new-year-2025/Reflecting on 2024, a transformative year for AI, agents, and personal growth in LLM development and multi-actor systems. Looking forward to an exciting 2025.Sat, 04 Jan 2025 00:00:00 GMThttps://sosoka.io/blog/jekyll-ga-gdpr/https://sosoka.io/blog/jekyll-ga-gdpr/Integrating the official Jekyll cookie-consent solution with a 3rd party theme's OOTB Google Analytics implementation.Sun, 26 Apr 2020 00:00:00 GMThttps://sosoka.io/blog/llm-app-patterns/https://sosoka.io/blog/llm-app-patterns/Exploring prompting strategies and structured responses for building LLM applications with LangChain4J and JavaTue, 31 Oct 2023 00:00:00 GMThttps://sosoka.io/blog/llms-and-hidden-data/https://sosoka.io/blog/llms-and-hidden-data/Implementing custom LangChain middleware to mask sensitive PII before LLM inference, enabling AI agents to work with data they never actually see.Sat, 29 Nov 2025 00:00:00 GMThttps://sosoka.io/blog/model-mapper-lib/https://sosoka.io/blog/model-mapper-lib/Simplifying object mapping in Java with the ModelMapper library for common patterns like DTO to entity transformations.Thu, 28 Oct 2021 00:00:00 GMThttps://sosoka.io/blog/moved-cross-country/https://sosoka.io/blog/moved-cross-country/Taking a moment to capture the move.Sat, 21 Aug 2021 00:00:00 GMThttps://sosoka.io/blog/my-ai-setup/https://sosoka.io/blog/my-ai-setup/An overview of my personal AI tooling, agent configurations, and development workflow.Sun, 17 May 2026 00:00:00 GMThttps://sosoka.io/blog/recursive-acronym-tips/https://sosoka.io/blog/recursive-acronym-tips/A casual analysis of recursive acronyms with strategies, patterns, and cheat sheets to help you craft your own self-referential acronym.Sun, 16 Jan 2022 00:00:00 GMThttps://sosoka.io/blog/self-discover-langgraph/https://sosoka.io/blog/self-discover-langgraph/Google's DeepMind SELF-DISCOVER paper proposes a framework for LLMs to self-compose reasoning structures to tackle complex reasoning problems. Learn how to implement it with LangChain4J.Sat, 10 Feb 2024 00:00:00 GMThttps://sosoka.io/blog/spring-ai-hotel-booking/https://sosoka.io/blog/spring-ai-hotel-booking/Build a hotel booking agent using Spring AI, demonstrating function calling and conversation management patternsSun, 24 Mar 2024 00:00:00 GMThttps://sosoka.io/blog/terraform-blog-infra/https://sosoka.io/blog/terraform-blog-infra/Building infrastructure for a personal site reproducibly & on the cheap.Mon, 20 Sep 2021 00:00:00 GMThttps://sosoka.io/blog/unit-testing-llms/https://sosoka.io/blog/unit-testing-llms/Learn strategies for unit testing Large Language Models with LLMs using LangChain4J, from simple evaluations to multi-phase test agents that plan, execute, and evaluate.Sun, 21 Jul 2024 00:00:00 GMThttps://sosoka.io/blog/usb-foot-pedals/https://sosoka.io/blog/usb-foot-pedals/Exploring USB foot pedals as an alternative computer input method to alleviate arm strain and create ergonomic workflows.Sat, 01 Jan 2022 00:00:00 GMT