Side Hustles for Developers: Level Up Beyond the 9–5 - Brent Stewart

Side Hustles for Developers: Level Up Beyond the 9–5
Many developers get stuck in the routines of their day job—writing code that works but rarely excites, exploring only the technologies their job demands, and losing touch with what first drew them to software. A side hustle can change that. It’s a space to experiment, try new tools, explore personal interests, and reignite the joy of development—all on your own terms and at your own pace.

In this talk, we’ll explore the value of a developer side hustle, whether it’s for learning, creative freedom, skill growth, or even extra income. You’ll see how side projects can provide experiences your day job might not, broaden your skill set, and help you reconnect with what makes coding fun. We’ll also cover some of the tools, platforms, and services available to help you get started with a project and make it easier to bring your ideas to life. If you’ve ever wanted to try something new, break out of routine, or simply rediscover what you love about development, this session will give you practical ideas and inspiration to get started.

Brent Stewart
As a professional software developer with over two decades of experience, Brent has seen many development trends come and go and learned that there is not a shortcut to being a great developer. He enjoys teaching others what he has learned and tries to mentor others whenever he can. He is a co-organizer of the Kansas City .NET User Group and loves speaking at conferences.

He is a creator at heart and has started multiple businesses over the years in a variety of industries. His latest venture is Alien Arc Technologies which allows him to take his ideas and give them form. He loves quality in all things and he always tries to provide the best quality in everything he does. If it is worth doing, then it is worth doing right

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Dependency Injection in .NET: Why It Matters - Duane Newman
Tired of juggling dependencies, tangled constructors, and hard-to-test code? Dependency Injection (DI) is more than a buzzword—it’s a key ingredient of clean, maintainable .NET applications. In this fast-paced session, we’ll demystify DI by explaining what it is, why it matters, and how the built-in .NET container makes it effortless to implement. You’ll see practical examples of registering and resolving dependencies, understand the different lifetimes (transient, scoped, singleton), and learn how DI supports clean architecture by keeping your code loosely coupled and testable. Whether you’re new to DI or just want a refresher on the modern .NET approach, you’ll leave ready to put it into practice.

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