Open Source: The Naive "Good Ol' Days" are Gone

It used to be that open source was generally trusted because it was assumed peer-review would catch stuff like this. Welcome to the World of Today; not any more!  

Spring Boot gets Big Props

Spring Boot, the open source Java application framework, got big props this week with Netflix's announcement that it will migrate its Java production environment from its custom-made application infrastructure to Spring Boot! 😮

Cory Doctorow explains why FLOSS matters

A worthwhile video presentation by Cory Doctorow about why Free/Libre and Open Source Software (FLOSS) matters, "How you got here". Thanks to O'Reilly for making this OSCON presentation available online.

Don't get upset about CPython concurrency - just get Grumpy!

Here's a short recommended read that was brought to my attention by a teammate. If you've grumbled about poor concurrency support in conventional Python, Grumpy looks like it's coming to the rescue.

I suspect this break-through reflects the benefits of new concurrency approaches, as reflected in recent packages (like Akka) and languages (Go).

It's a fundamental shift, since Go extensions will be supported over C extensions. I assume that means Grumpy and CPython will co-exist for some time, unless most existing C extensions get re-coded in Go? It will be interesting to see how this unfolds!

Integrated or Independent QA?

A friend at work forwarded this article to me after a lunch time discussion about QA testing, and whether it should be integrated within the development team activities or operate as an independent effort.

The author's viewpoint is that there is value in a separate team and effort.

I think there’s a parallel to scientific method, too, which makes QA as a separate process valuable. Review by a different team, that corroborates readiness through their own effort, is important for overall confidence, too. Not to say that’s infallible, but it demonstrates an important watermark.

David Chappell

If you ever get a chance to hear David Chappell speak, Go!

David has the uncanny ability to dissect complex technologies to their core capabilities, compare and contrast them effectively, and inject humor and effective conclusions along the way.

He's strongest with Windows based technologies, however he's sufficiently curious to turn his eyes and analysis upon all comers.

One of the most informing, entertaining, and knowledgeable technology analysts I've come across.