We are at the time of the year where we reflect on the past 12 months and look forward to the new year. 2024 was a year full of surprises, challenges, and achievements. It was a year where I had the opportunity to work on some exciting projects, meet new people, learn new things, and most importantly, focus on some personal cycling goals. In this post, I want to take a look back at some of the highlights of the year and share some of the numbers that made it special.
Highlights of 2024
Here are some of my highlights:
- Conquered “La Cannibale”: Completed the grueling 194 km cycling challenge with 4600 meters of climbing, including two ascents of the legendary Mont Ventoux.
- Best cycling year yet: Surpassed 12,000 km cycled, marking my best year on the bike.
- Awards and recognition: Celebrated my 10th Microsoft MVP award, 3rd GitHub Star recognition, and 2nd Google Developer Expert title.
- Speaking engagements: Delivered talks at conferences and meetups, sharing knowledge and connecting with amazing communities.
- Presentation innovation: Leveraged Demo Time and Slidev to elevate my presentation style.
- Blogging: Published 34 articles, most of which focused on Playwright and GitHub Actions.
- Front Matter CMS milestone: Featured on the Visual Studio Code marketplace with over 50,000 installations and 2000 GitHub stars.
- Demo Time recognition: Demo Time was also featured on the Visual Studio Code marketplace and received positive feedback from other speakers.
- Visitor Badge success: My Visitor Badge project generated over 60 million badges in 2024, surpassing a total of 70 million.
- New packages and growth on NPM: Published and maintained several NPM packages that gained traction throughout the year.
Conquering “La Cannibale”
One of the most physically challenging experiences of the year was completing the “La Cannibale” cycling challenge. This 194 km ride, featuring 4600 meters of climbing, was a true endurance test. As it was my first time participating, I was both excited and nervous. I kept reminding myself to pace properly to ensure I’d finish strong. The highlight of the ride was undoubtedly the double ascent of Mont Ventoux.
Surprisingly, the next day I felt fantastic and climbs faster than during the event itself. It turns out I had paced myself too cautiously! Nonetheless, the experience was unforgettable.
My best cycling year
As “La Cannibale” was a good motivation to ride more, I managed to make 2024 my best cycling year yet. Logging over 12,000 km, I’ve explored new routes, improved my endurance, and embraced the joy of being on the road “again”.
For those who remember, in 2021, I had an accident and broke a vertebra. Last year, cycling wasn’t much of a focus since every intense ride resulted in back pain. At the start of this year, when I committed to riding “La Cannibale,” I felt a significant improvement and could push myself again.
This year also marked my participation in my first cycling race in town, called “Meilsen Koers.” It was a fun experience and a fantastic way to test my limits in a competitive setting.
Recognition and Awards
Being recognized as a Microsoft MVP for the 10th consecutive year, a GitHub Star for the 3rd time, and a Google Developer Expert for the 2nd time has been incredibly fulfilling. These recognitions serve as a reminder of the importance of giving back and inspiring others.
Sharing and learning through speaking
This year, I had the privilege of delivering talks at various conferences and meetups. In total, I spoke at 9 events, and these opportunities allowed me to share insights, learn from others, and engage with vibrant communities. I’m grateful for every chance to connect with people who share the same passion for technology and innovation.
To make it complete, my session on test automation with GitHub Actions and Playwright for Microsoft 365 solutions at ESPC received fantastic feedback, scoring 9.43 out of 10. It’s incredibly motivating to see my work resonate so well with attendees.
Meeting with the old Valo team members again at ESPC was especially lovely. It was a great reunion and a reminder of the fantastic time we had working together.
Blogging
This year, I published 34 blog articles, most of which centered around Playwright and GitHub Actions. Blogging has always been a way for me to share knowledge, document my journey, and give back to the community.
These were the top 5 articles of the year:
- Automating Microsoft 365 login with multi-factor authentication in Playwright tests
- Fix admin consent for SharePoint token retrieval flows in your SPFx solution
- #DevHack: Running a background service on GitHub Actions
- Help my browser keeps refreshing my SharePoint page
- Running .NET Azure Functions on macOS and Visual Studio Code
Milestones for Front Matter CMS and Demo Time
It’s been a breakthrough year for two projects.
Front Matter CMS reached a major milestone with over 50,000 installations and 2000 GitHub stars. Seeing it featured on the Visual Studio Code marketplace was a proud moment.
Demo Time also gained recognition, further motivating me to continue innovating and improving these tools. What started as a personal project has now become a valuable resource for many speakers. Seeing it being used at conferences like Microsoft Ignite, OpenAI DevDays, ESPC and probably more, makes me incredibly happy.
infoDemo Time allows you to script your coding demos to perfection with this Visual Studio Code extension - no typos, no missteps, just flawless, stress-free presentations every time. Execute each demo step seamlessly, just like advancing through a presentation!
Visitor Badge’s phenomenal growth
One of the most unexpected yet exciting achievements was the success of my Visitor Badge project. With over 60 million badges generated in 2024 alone, the total count has now exceeded 70 million. It’s incredible to see how this project has resonated with users worldwide.
Stats for Visitor Badge:
- 2022 - 4M badges generated (first year)
- 2023 - 11M badges generated
- 2024 - >60M badges generated
The service runs on Cloudflare CDN and Azure Functions. Each day there were on average 300k Azure Functions invocations (as each badge generates two function calls: one to get the visitor count and one for updating the statistics).
In total, the service costs around €90 per month to run. If you are interested in sponsoring the service, you can do so via GitHub Sponsors.
New packages and growth on NPM
As helping other developers is one of my passions, I published some new NPM packages this year. Some of them gained a lot of traction, and I’m excited to see how they evolve in the future.
- playwright-m365-helpers: Launched in October 2024 and steadily growing.
- playwright-mail-reporter: Reached 3,155 downloads since its release in July 2024.
- playwright-msteams-reporter: Achieved an impressive 80,000 downloads since July 2024.
- vscrui: Garnered 1,500 downloads since August 2024.
- @estruyf/github-actions-reporter: Surpassed 1.6 million downloads since its release in December 2023, with substantial updates in 2024.
As I look ahead to 2025, I’m filled with anticipation and excitement for what’s to come. Reflecting on this year’s achievements reminds me of the importance of setting goals, embracing challenges, and staying connected to the communities that inspire us. Here’s to another year of growth, innovation, and adventure!
If you need help with your project, testing, or any other consultancy services, I’d love to assist you in achieving your goals. Reach out to me via Struyf Consulting and let’s make your next project a success together!
As we wrap up 2024, I want to take a moment to wish everyone a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! May your holidays be filled with joy, love, and laughter. Here’s to a fantastic 2025, full of new opportunities, adventures, and success! 🎇
Warm wishes, Elio