When I first started scripting, my development flow went something like this: Create a script and save it as a file. Make some adjustments I want to test and save it in a new file. Make more adjustments and save it as a new file. Rinse, repeat. I would end up with a folder full of different file versions with different names that all were effectively the same script.

If you’re doing things this way then STOP. Watch the video above and save yourself. After learning to use git I was vastly more effective in terms of speed and organization of my code.

When I started learning Powershell web technologies were mostly a mystery for me. I was a simple systems admin trying to make my life easier by automating things. Sure, I knew how to create a basic HTML site with some CSS, but even javascript was well beyond my understanding. Though over time I developed an interest in developing for the web, which spurred me to learn how Powershell can interact with things beyond my computer or local network.

How can I scrape a website with Powershell? How can I access an API? How can I send data from my computer to services on the web? I had so many questions for a long time.

One of my favorite ways of saving time as a systems administrator was automating the installation of printers. You don’t need Powershell for it. I often times did with simple batch scripts. PowerShell is all the rage in the world of Windows these days, so that’s why the video examples use it.

Learning how to automate printer installations really saved me a lot of time in previous jobs, but it wasn’t always easy changing a culture of manual effort. Sometimes you have to wait for the right opportunity.

I made a video about continuous integration and continuous delivery. Also known as CI/CD. The cool way to do DevOps! Are you not practicing this yet? I bet you’re still writing checks. You probably still think dippin’ dots are the future of ice cream. At least the future of software development is here, so dive in old timer. We write tests now and YOLO every commit out to production faster than anyone has time to review them.

The writing tests part is optional for maximum YOLO. You won’t see this being taught in school, but I also like to dab at my desk every time I push a commit. Let all the haters (colleagues) know that I’m making some changes around here.

I made this video about sending an email from Powershell about five years ago. I didn’t think much of it at the time, but I used my actual email address in the example of the video. This resulted in people copy/pasting the example including my email and sending me all of their test emails. I’ve really loved it!

The script below will show how to use send-mailmessage with Gmail to send emails from Powershell.