Coté https://cote.io/ en Fri, 15 Mar 2024 15:52:39 -0800 What junior/senior developers and CTOs need to know about internal developer platforms https://cote.io/2024/03/15/what-juniorsenior-developers.html Fri, 15 Mar 2024 15:52:39 -0800 http://cote.micro.blog/2024/03/15/what-juniorsenior-developers.html <p><a href="https://shiftmag.dev/internal-developer-platform-engineer-explains-2945/">This is from last Fall</a> at the SHIFT conference, but it still holds up:</p><div id="youtube2-Rxi3fHEY48c" class="youtube-wrap" data-attrs="{"videoId":"Rxi3fHEY48c","startTime":null,"endTime":null}" data-component-name="Youtube2ToDOM"><div class="youtube-inner"><iframe src="https://www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/Rxi3fHEY48c?rel=0&autoplay=0&showinfo=0&enablejsapi=0" frameborder="0" loading="lazy" gesture="media" allow="autoplay; fullscreen" allowautoplay="true" allowfullscreen="true" width="728" height="409"></iframe></div></div><h1>Relative to your interests</h1><ul><li><p><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2024/03/03/magazine/big-pants-style.html?unlocked_article_code=1.bU0.Kaoa.99reQPua7UnS&smid=url-share&utm_source=substack&utm_medium=email">Why Are Pants So Big (Again)?</a> - tl;dr: you can wear comfortable jeans again. // “There’s constancy, I thought, and then there’s becoming a relic of yourself” And: “If you zoom out far enough, all the paroxysms around self-presentation arrange themselves into an orderly, eminently predictable swing between big and small – you could call it the pants pendulum.”</p></li><li><p><a href="https://martinfowler.com/articles/rotate-pairs-experiment.html">What if we rotate pairs every day?</a> - “A few months after the experiment, one team gave us some interesting feedback: They found that when a problem came up in production, they didn’t need to depend on just one person to look into and fix it. The team could assign anyone to troubleshoot the issue. In addition, another feedback mentioned an incoming pair rotation brought new context that changed implementation direction and helped resolve a problem in the early stages of the feature’s development, thus saving the team lots of time and rework. These highlight the benefits of having knowledge spread among the team.”</p></li><li><p><a href="https://www.theregister.com/2024/03/15/sanders_four_day_week/">Sanders pitches 4-day workweek bill in US Senate • The Register</a> - Works are the last to get worker productivity benefits - AMIRIGHT! “Today, American workers are over 400 percent more productive than they were in the 1940s. And yet, millions of Americans are working longer hours for lower wages than they were decades ago.”</p></li><li><p><a href="https://www.bettyjunod.com/blog/understanding-product-marketing-and-go-to-markets">Understanding product marketing and go-to-markets</a> - Good stuff.</p></li><li><p><a href="https://www.ciodive.com/news/biden-administration-secure-software/710384/">White House adds teeth to secure software development requirements</a> - ’“Attestation is now a hard requirement that will be enforced during the procurement or renewal process"…. Among the secure practices included in the guidelines, they include separation of production and development environments, use of multifactor authentication, regular logging and monitoring and other factors’</p></li><li><p><a href="https://www.thestack.technology/bias-biometrics-and-black-boxes-europes-ai-act-what-you-need-to-know/">Europe’s AI Act demands extensive “logs” of users</a> - This probably isn’t the kind of AI “safety” the nerds want, but the goals seems like what normies would want.</p></li><li><p><a href="https://kellblog.com/2024/03/09/great-marketing-machines-are-like-costco/">Great Marketing Machines Are Like Costco</a> - Marketing (operations) is about doing a lot of things that lead to one pretty slide to the BoD. // “Great marketing machines are like Costco. There is no magic wand. There is no secret lever. It’s about 50 little things, all working together. And that’s one reason why people have trouble understanding them. This may be obvious, but I’d never previously seen it so clearly. CMOs show the funnel slide in board meetings with stages and conversion rates. But no one really understands the machine. They ask a few random questions, usually about channels. The inevitable attribution conversation follows. You can almost feel them searching for the one thing. But in this case, there isn’t one.”</p></li><li><p><a href="https://arstechnica.com/?p=2000224">Study finds that once people use cargo bikes, they like their cars much less</a> - “A new study out of Germany suggests that once you let people try them, they tend to have a real impact on car use, and even car ownership.” // Electric <a href="https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/bakfiets">bakfiets</a>, as the Dutch call them, are awesome. It takes a few weeks of nerve control to cycle around Amsterdam with its narrow streets and along side other bikes, but then it is really close to having a car</p></li></ul><h1>Software Defined Talk Podcast</h1><p><a href="https://www.softwaredefinedtalk.com/458">This week’s episode</a>:</p><blockquote><p>we discuss Coté's O'Reilly video series where he offers up some tips on how to survive and thrive in the workplace. Plus, some ideas on how to reinvent the virtual town hall.</p></blockquote><p>This week’s episode is all about <a href="https://learning.oreilly.com/course/how-to-survive/0790145433268/">my surviving and thriving in large organization videos</a>. Oh, you haven’t heard of that yet? Well, it’s a video series in O’Reilly. <a href="https://learning.oreilly.com/course/how-to-survive/0790145433268/">You should go watch it</a>!</p><h1>Wastebook</h1><ul><li><p>“I know the automation will happen anyway, I know those jobs will go anyway. But I’d rather not be the one to build that.” <a href="https://x.com/lbacaj/status/1767599955131109672?s=12">Here</a>.</p></li><li><p>“I believe in <em>laissez-faire</em> for names, but if you are going to ban anything, surely ‘Elmer’ is worth some consideration?” <a href="https://marginalrevolution.com/marginalrevolution/2024/03/sunday-assorted-links-459.html">Tyler</a>.</p></li><li><p>“I don’t care! I like <em>lots</em> of things.”</p></li><li><p>“He moved to Chicago, married his college sweetheart, and found a job in a screw factory.” <a href="https://andertoons.com/our-story/">Here</a>.</p></li><li><p>“This is an explanation, not an excuse.”</p></li><li><p>“Feel free to move fast and break it, and also feel free to pay billions of euros in penalties as a sort-of-tax for that privilege.” <a href="https://toshareproject.it/artmakerblog/artificial-intelligence-act-in-the-eu/">bruces</a>.</p></li><li><p>“Seagulls' impact on local wildlife can be significant and surprising.” <a href="https://softwaredefinedtalk.slack.com/archives/C04GSN7U5S9/p1710415696249019?thread_ts=1710172370.434749&cid=C04GSN7U5S9">Here</a>.</p></li></ul><div><hr></div><div class="captioned-image-container"><figure><a class="image-link image2" target="_blank" href="https://www.fig-street.com/041124-tanzu-redefined/?utm_source=cote&utm_campaign=devrel&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_content=newsletterUpcoming" data-component-name="Image2ToDOM"><div class="image2-inset"><picture><source type="image/webp" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_424,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fe6763e54-8aa0-4c87-a8fa-ce25baf86a4d_1920x1080.jpeg 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_848,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fe6763e54-8aa0-4c87-a8fa-ce25baf86a4d_1920x1080.jpeg 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1272,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fe6763e54-8aa0-4c87-a8fa-ce25baf86a4d_1920x1080.jpeg 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fe6763e54-8aa0-4c87-a8fa-ce25baf86a4d_1920x1080.jpeg 1456w" sizes="100vw"><img src="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fe6763e54-8aa0-4c87-a8fa-ce25baf86a4d_1920x1080.jpeg" width="1456" height="819" data-attrs="{"src":"https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/e6763e54-8aa0-4c87-a8fa-ce25baf86a4d_1920x1080.jpeg","srcNoWatermark":null,"fullscreen":null,"imageSize":null,"height":819,"width":1456,"resizeWidth":null,"bytes":169390,"alt":"","title":null,"type":"image/jpeg","href":"https://www.fig-street.com/041124-tanzu-redefined/?utm_source=cote&utm_campaign=devrel&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_content=newsletterUpcoming","belowTheFold":true,"topImage":false,"internalRedirect":null}" class="sizing-normal" alt="" title="" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_424,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fe6763e54-8aa0-4c87-a8fa-ce25baf86a4d_1920x1080.jpeg 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_848,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fe6763e54-8aa0-4c87-a8fa-ce25baf86a4d_1920x1080.jpeg 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1272,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fe6763e54-8aa0-4c87-a8fa-ce25baf86a4d_1920x1080.jpeg 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fe6763e54-8aa0-4c87-a8fa-ce25baf86a4d_1920x1080.jpeg 1456w" sizes="100vw" loading="lazy"></picture><div></div></div></a></figure></div><p>If you want to know what’s up with Tanzu now-a-days, you should <a href="https://www.fig-street.com/041124-tanzu-redefined/?utm_source=cote&utm_campaign=devrel&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_content=newsletterUpcoming">come to the above event and find out</a>. It’s “invite only,” which means it’s for “executives” that we’re interested in talking with. If you’re at a large organization and you’re involved in app development or cloud strategy, you’re probably the type of person we want there. <a href="https://www.fig-street.com/041124-tanzu-redefined/?utm_source=cote&utm_campaign=devrel&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_content=newsletterUpcoming">Check it out, and register for it</a>. (And if paying for the travel is a problem, register anyway and maybe we can help out with that.)</p><p> 🌐 <a href="https://www.fig-street.com/041124-tanzu-redefined/?utm_source=cote&utm_campaign=devrel&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_content=newsletterUpcoming">Register now</a>.</p><div><hr></div><h1>Conferences, Events, etc.</h1><p><em><a href="https://cote.io/speaking/">Talks</a> I’m giving, places I’ll be, and other plans.</em></p><p><strong><a href="https://www.fig-street.com/041124-tanzu-redefined/?utm_source=cote&utm_campaign=devrel&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_content=newsletterUpcoming">Tanzu (Re)defined</a></strong>, April 11th, Palo Alto. <strong><a href="https://devopsdays.org/events/2024-amsterdam/welcome/">DevOpsDays Amsterdam</a></strong>, June 20th, speaking. <strong><a href="https://ndcoslo.com/">NDC Oslo</a></strong>, <a href="https://ndcoslo.com/agenda/developer-productivity-is-waste-09qh/06a815usc80">speaking</a>, June 12th.</p><p>I can’t make it to KubeCon EU this year, but if you’re going: come to our little <strong>party at KubeCon EU</strong>, it’s Thursday night. <a href="https://connect.tanzu.vmware.com/KubeCon-EMEA-2024.html?utm_source=cote&utm_campaign=devrel&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_content=newsletter20240222">Register for free here</a>! And, if you’re going to <strong>KubeCon EU</strong> and haven’t registered yet, you can get <strong>20% off with the code KCEU24VMWBC20.</strong></p><h1>Logoff</h1><p>I had a long week in the States - arriving in Palo Alto on Saturday for a fun work thing, then to <a href="https://ismg.events/roundtable-event/dallas-robust-security-java-applications/?utm_source=cote&utm_campaign=devrel&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_content=newsletterUpcoming">Dallas for an executive dinner Wednesday night</a>, and then to Pasadena to give the opening keynote at <a href="https://devopsdays.org/events/2024-los-angeles/welcome/">DevOpsDays LA</a>. While a week is too long for me to travel now-a-days, each of the events was great, and it’s been nice to meetup with people.</p> Good strategy https://cote.io/2024/03/10/good-strategy.html Sun, 10 Mar 2024 04:11:55 -0800 http://cote.micro.blog/2024/03/10/good-strategy.html <div class="captioned-image-container"><figure><a class="image-link is-viewable-img image2" target="_blank" href="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F1870f86f-c5ab-45e2-97c8-2aa627580438_5712x3213.jpeg" data-component-name="Image2ToDOM"><div class="image2-inset"><picture><source type="image/webp" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_424,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F1870f86f-c5ab-45e2-97c8-2aa627580438_5712x3213.jpeg 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_848,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F1870f86f-c5ab-45e2-97c8-2aa627580438_5712x3213.jpeg 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1272,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F1870f86f-c5ab-45e2-97c8-2aa627580438_5712x3213.jpeg 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F1870f86f-c5ab-45e2-97c8-2aa627580438_5712x3213.jpeg 1456w" sizes="100vw"><img src="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F1870f86f-c5ab-45e2-97c8-2aa627580438_5712x3213.jpeg" width="1456" height="819" data-attrs="{"src":"https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/1870f86f-c5ab-45e2-97c8-2aa627580438_5712x3213.jpeg","srcNoWatermark":null,"fullscreen":null,"imageSize":null,"height":819,"width":1456,"resizeWidth":null,"bytes":2088758,"alt":null,"title":null,"type":"image/jpeg","href":null,"belowTheFold":false,"topImage":true,"internalRedirect":null}" class="sizing-normal" alt="" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_424,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F1870f86f-c5ab-45e2-97c8-2aa627580438_5712x3213.jpeg 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_848,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F1870f86f-c5ab-45e2-97c8-2aa627580438_5712x3213.jpeg 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1272,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F1870f86f-c5ab-45e2-97c8-2aa627580438_5712x3213.jpeg 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F1870f86f-c5ab-45e2-97c8-2aa627580438_5712x3213.jpeg 1456w" sizes="100vw" fetchpriority="high"></picture><div class="image-link-expand"><svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="16" height="16" viewBox="0 0 24 24" fill="none" stroke="#FFFFFF" stroke-width="2" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" class="lucide lucide-maximize2 "><polyline points="15 3 21 3 21 9"></polyline><polyline points="9 21 3 21 3 15"></polyline><line x1="21" x2="14" y1="3" y2="10"></line><line x1="3" x2="10" y1="21" y2="14"></line></svg></div></div></a></figure></div><h1>Re: “Bad” Strategy</h1><p>Strategy is people, and in a corporate setting, all the wonky parts of people are amplified. In the places I’ve worked, the lower down you go in the organization, the less relevant strategy is. What’s relevant is the actions you can take, not the outcomes the executes are going for with their strategy, let alone anything resembling a classic big-S Strategy. </p><p>Besides, unless you have a huge chunk of equity, you get paid the same no matter the outcome. Long-term you’ll suffer if the company goes out of business, sure, but short and medium term, you’ll just keep chugging along. Thus, for most workers, if the stated strategy doesn’t direct what actions to take (and not take!), it’s not very useful.</p><p>This also applies to OKRs. What’s missing from OKRs are the actions it takes to get from the O to the KR. This annoys me to no end. And, yeah, I read that OKR book a few years ago. You can’t set an objective and a <em>realistic</em> key result if you haven’t imagined the actions you’ll take to get there. Executives build the system that everyone works on, and just like an enterprise architect that no longer codes, if the executive has no idea, or even second hand experience of how the work is done, it’s hard to imagine what needs to be done to reach the KR. This means the KR is what they hope will happen, not what’s happen-able. To hedge: sure, I bet there’s just fine OKRs, but it’s too easy for people to mess them up.</p><p>Doing strategy in large companies is very difficult. One of the huge advantages of startups is that they can do MVP/lean strategy, if any at all. Big organizations often don’t - can’t - test and validate strategy content and adjust it every quarter or two to match what customers actually want.</p><p>Anyway, this is why the context and thinking around strategy is more important then the 25 to 30 words of the actual strategy. Fitting corporate strategy on a slide is a good start, but then outlining how it’ll be done is what really matters.</p><p><em>(Provoked from <a href="https://cutlefish.substack.com/p/tbm-275-bad-strategy-why">this good piece</a>.)</em></p><div class="captioned-image-container"><figure><a class="image-link image2" target="_blank" href="https://learning.oreilly.com/course/how-to-survive/0790145433268/" data-component-name="Image2ToDOM"><div class="image2-inset"><picture><source type="image/webp" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_424,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F2dd088c9-8d3e-4ea7-bb05-faca327178ac.heic 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_848,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F2dd088c9-8d3e-4ea7-bb05-faca327178ac.heic 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1272,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F2dd088c9-8d3e-4ea7-bb05-faca327178ac.heic 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F2dd088c9-8d3e-4ea7-bb05-faca327178ac.heic 1456w" sizes="100vw"><img src="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F2dd088c9-8d3e-4ea7-bb05-faca327178ac.heic" width="1080" height="1080" data-attrs="{"src":"https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/2dd088c9-8d3e-4ea7-bb05-faca327178ac.heic","srcNoWatermark":null,"fullscreen":null,"imageSize":null,"height":1080,"width":1080,"resizeWidth":null,"bytes":223046,"alt":null,"title":null,"type":"image/heic","href":"https://learning.oreilly.com/course/how-to-survive/0790145433268/","belowTheFold":false,"topImage":false,"internalRedirect":null}" class="sizing-normal" alt="" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_424,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F2dd088c9-8d3e-4ea7-bb05-faca327178ac.heic 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_848,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F2dd088c9-8d3e-4ea7-bb05-faca327178ac.heic 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1272,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F2dd088c9-8d3e-4ea7-bb05-faca327178ac.heic 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F2dd088c9-8d3e-4ea7-bb05-faca327178ac.heic 1456w" sizes="100vw"></picture><div></div></div></a><figcaption class="image-caption">Check it out <a href="https://learning.oreilly.com/course/how-to-survive/0790145433268/">here</a>.</figcaption></figure></div><h1>Relevant to your interests</h1><ul><li><p><a href="https://www.enterpriseai.news/2024/03/06/cognizant-predicts-genai-will-inject-1-trillion-into-the-u-s-economy/">Cognizant Predicts GenAI Will Inject $1 Trillion Into the U.S. Economy</a> - Seems like a lot of money.</p></li><li><p><a href="http://nicolagriffith.com/2024/03/06/corn/">Corn</a> - “I've just had what feels like the hundred billionth reader inform me that, with all due respect, Hild is quite wrong to talk about corn in 7th-century Britain. And for the hundred billionth time I've politely responded that, actually, no, there's no mistake. To Hild, corn is wheat, not maize.”</p></li><li><p><a href="https://www.computerweekly.com/news/366572281/IT-leaders-dial-back-cloud-first-strategies-as-hybrid-IT-becomes-more-of-an-investment-priority">IT leaders dial back cloud-first strategies as hybrid IT becomes more of an investment priority</a> - People interested in lowering costs, on-premises and public cloud. I mean, who’s ever like “nope, I’m fine spending more when I could be spending less.” // “over a third of the study’s EMEA participants (36%) are taking a cloud-first approach to new application deployments, which is slightly down on a similar study carried out by TechTarget in 2023. Back then, around half of the participants indicated that their organisation was favouring a cloud-first approach when choosing the best environment to deploy new applications and workloads.”</p></li><li><p>Oh hey, check this out: With Tanzu CloudHealth, “[b]y enabling the [<a href="https://tanzu.vmware.com/customers/discovery">South African FSI Discover</a>] to streamline its expenses and resources, the solution helped Discovery realize a 40 percent reduction in costs in less than a year’s time.”</p></li><li><p><a href="https://longform.asmartbear.com/ai-startups/">AI startups require new strategies: This time it’s actually different</a> - Good stuff.</p></li><li><p><a href="https://www.simplermachines.com/mr-reciprocity/">Pairing and interviewing at Pivotal</a> - People seemed to like this. Of course, there was survived bias: the only people who talked about it had gotten the job. Still!</p></li><li><p><a href="https://thenewstack.io/codefresh-and-octopus-gitops-k8s-and-vms-under-one-roof/">Codefresh and Octopus: GitOps, K8s and VMs Under One Roof</a> - The “greenfield aasumption”…I like that! // ‘“The ‘greenfield assumption’ has broken and is still breaking a lot of advanced DevOps software implementations by failing to accommodate the complexities of real-life environments,” <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/torstenvolk">Torsten Volk</a>, an analyst for<a href="https://www.enterprisemanagement.com/"> Enterprise Management Associates (EMA)</a>, told The New Stack. “The vast majority of enterprises still have, and will have for many years, messy and heterogeneous environments that somehow need to be made part of CI/CD and GitOps.”’</p></li><li><p>Speaking of, <a href="https://tanzu.vmware.com/customers/sparkassen">an example of the greenfield assumption anti-pattern in action</a>: “A widespread local presence and deep roots in the community have given Germany’s savings banks a high standing since they were founded around 200 years ago: Tradition breeds trust. However, traditional financial institutions today find themselves confronted by growing competition – not to mention the need to design more customer-oriented offerings. FinTechs, for example, start ‘from the green field,’ do not bring legacy mountains of data with them and offer customer-oriented services quickly and efficiently.”</p></li><li><p><a href="https://devinterrupted.substack.com/p/4-engineering-slides-ceos-love-that">4 Engineering Slides CEOs Love</a> - There’s a good mix of “business value” and inward facing technical activities and health-checks.</p></li><li><p><a href="https://www.google.com/search?client=safari&sca_esv=7477cf2eeab98e7f&rls=en&sxsrf=ACQVn0_Oey0DM_gNLTHuDNpMMnb8XdYEQw:1710072392033&q=Michael+Joseph+Lost+and+Found&tbm=isch&source=lnms&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwj9kt6L1OmEAxXID1kFHf47D7EQ0pQJegQIDxAB&biw=1512&bih=841&dpr=2">Michael Joseph Lost and Found</a> - Modern day hitchhikers and train hoppers.</p></li><li><p><a href="https://hbr.org/2024/01/is-genais-impact-on-productivity-overblown?utm_medium=email&utm_source=newsletter_weekly&utm_campaign=insider_Active&deliveryName=NL_Insider_20240112">Is GenAI’s Impact on Productivity Overblown?</a> - Generative AI hasn’t been around long enough to figure out what to do with it, especially in enterprises. Before you spin up too many projects and budget, you need to experiment with and validate how you apply it. After around a year of using ChatGPT, I suspect it’s a lot like email, intranets and intranet search, CRM, etc.: it’s not good enough to replace knowledge work, but it’s a better tool than what we have. Also, in the article, the point that productivity is nice, but accuracy is better: “while changes in task completion speed are easy to measure, changes in accuracy are less detectable. If an employee completes a report in five minutes instead of 10, but it’s less accurate than before, how would we know, and how long will it take to recognize this inaccuracy?”</p></li><li><p><a href="https://www.baldurbjarnason.com/2024/facing-reality-in-the-eu-and-tech/">Facing reality, whether it’s about Apple or the EU, is a core requirement for good management</a> - Understanding the EU’s position and motivation for the recent nerd/regulators fight.</p></li><li><p><a href="https://cloud.google.com/blog/products/serverless/how-dz-bank-uses-a-cloud-run-first-approach-to-unlock-big-savings">How DZ BANK uses a Cloud Run-first approach to unlock big savings, with Google Cloud</a> - “We are now three years into our modernization journey with Google Cloud, and we’ve seen significant benefits. Running containers on Cloud Run instead of on-prem VMs eliminates OS and infrastructure maintenance, delivering a 70% toil reduction. In addition, the pay-per-use pricing model has reduced our infrastructure costs by 90%.”</p></li></ul><div class="captioned-image-container"><figure><a class="image-link image2" target="_blank" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/brucesterling/53573620035" data-component-name="Image2ToDOM"><div class="image2-inset"><picture><source type="image/webp" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_424,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F788efea6-983b-498d-bb81-aeb5cd22613b_900x649.jpeg 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_848,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F788efea6-983b-498d-bb81-aeb5cd22613b_900x649.jpeg 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1272,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F788efea6-983b-498d-bb81-aeb5cd22613b_900x649.jpeg 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F788efea6-983b-498d-bb81-aeb5cd22613b_900x649.jpeg 1456w" sizes="100vw"><img src="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F788efea6-983b-498d-bb81-aeb5cd22613b_900x649.jpeg" width="900" height="649" data-attrs="{"src":"https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/788efea6-983b-498d-bb81-aeb5cd22613b_900x649.jpeg","srcNoWatermark":null,"fullscreen":null,"imageSize":null,"height":649,"width":900,"resizeWidth":null,"bytes":106105,"alt":null,"title":null,"type":"image/jpeg","href":"https://www.flickr.com/photos/brucesterling/53573620035","belowTheFold":true,"topImage":false,"internalRedirect":null}" class="sizing-normal" alt="" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_424,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F788efea6-983b-498d-bb81-aeb5cd22613b_900x649.jpeg 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_848,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F788efea6-983b-498d-bb81-aeb5cd22613b_900x649.jpeg 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1272,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F788efea6-983b-498d-bb81-aeb5cd22613b_900x649.jpeg 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F788efea6-983b-498d-bb81-aeb5cd22613b_900x649.jpeg 1456w" sizes="100vw" loading="lazy"></picture><div></div></div></a></figure></div><h1>Wastebook</h1><ul><li><p>“Unlimited Netflixing in Your Mind.”</p></li><li><p>A lot of <a href="https://youtube.com/shorts/JjrO1p4uCaI?si=iMAiYGrdtETtfnTy">executizing</a> is removing context from your write-up. Background, explanation, proof, discussion - context. Most (American-style) executives wants to know the outcome, the conclusion, the decision to make, the next steps. Once they’ve decided they like the conclusion then they might be interested in understanding why it’s a good conclusion.</p></li><li><p>“Things are the way they are because they got that way.” <a href="https://www.simplermachines.com/mr-reciprocity/">Here</a>.</p></li><li><p>“Revolutionizing Printing in the Modern Workplace” Sure to be a real heart-racer.</p></li><li><p>“Font security ‘still a Helvetica of a problem’” <a href="https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2024/03/08/canva_font_security/">Here</a>.</p></li><li><p>“The lunacy comes from a place of joy.” Sharp Tech, March 7th, 2024.</p></li><li><p>“Bring 2–3 wardrobe options, pressed and ready to go.”</p></li><li><p>“Some days you wake up and realise that you’re waiting on other people to do so many things that you yourself have become somewhat paralysed by the waiting.” <a href="https://orbitaloperations.beehiiv.com/p/passage-spheres">Here</a>.</p></li></ul><div class="captioned-image-container"><figure><a class="image-link image2" target="_blank" href="https://www.fig-street.com/041124-tanzu-redefined/?utm_source=cote&utm_campaign=devrel&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_content=newsletterUpcoming" data-component-name="Image2ToDOM"><div class="image2-inset"><picture><source type="image/webp" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_424,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fe6763e54-8aa0-4c87-a8fa-ce25baf86a4d_1920x1080.jpeg 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_848,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fe6763e54-8aa0-4c87-a8fa-ce25baf86a4d_1920x1080.jpeg 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1272,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fe6763e54-8aa0-4c87-a8fa-ce25baf86a4d_1920x1080.jpeg 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fe6763e54-8aa0-4c87-a8fa-ce25baf86a4d_1920x1080.jpeg 1456w" sizes="100vw"><img src="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fe6763e54-8aa0-4c87-a8fa-ce25baf86a4d_1920x1080.jpeg" width="1456" height="819" data-attrs="{"src":"https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/e6763e54-8aa0-4c87-a8fa-ce25baf86a4d_1920x1080.jpeg","srcNoWatermark":null,"fullscreen":null,"imageSize":null,"height":819,"width":1456,"resizeWidth":null,"bytes":169390,"alt":null,"title":null,"type":"image/jpeg","href":"https://www.fig-street.com/041124-tanzu-redefined/?utm_source=cote&utm_campaign=devrel&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_content=newsletterUpcoming","belowTheFold":true,"topImage":false,"internalRedirect":null}" class="sizing-normal" alt="" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_424,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fe6763e54-8aa0-4c87-a8fa-ce25baf86a4d_1920x1080.jpeg 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_848,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fe6763e54-8aa0-4c87-a8fa-ce25baf86a4d_1920x1080.jpeg 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1272,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fe6763e54-8aa0-4c87-a8fa-ce25baf86a4d_1920x1080.jpeg 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fe6763e54-8aa0-4c87-a8fa-ce25baf86a4d_1920x1080.jpeg 1456w" sizes="100vw" loading="lazy"></picture><div></div></div></a></figure></div><p>We’ve got <a href="https://www.fig-street.com/041124-tanzu-redefined/?utm_source=cote&utm_campaign=devrel&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_content=newsletterUpcoming">a little event coming up next month, Tanzu (Re)defined</a>. Unlock the secrets of expert app development and delivery at VMware Tanzu's exclusive event. Dive into Tanzu Application Platform, Tanzu Application Service, and the Spring Framework. Discover optimization strategies for cost, performance, and security. Gain insights from Tanzu Labs' 30 years of app experience. Meet Tanzu's Executive Team and industry peers for practical strategies.<br>&nbsp;<br>🌐 <a href="https://www.fig-street.com/041124-tanzu-redefined/?utm_source=cote&utm_campaign=devrel&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_content=newsletterUpcoming">Register now</a>.</p><h1>Conferences, Events, etc.</h1><p><em><a href="https://cote.io/speaking/">Talks</a> I’m giving, places I’ll be, and other plans.</em></p><p><strong><a href="https://ismg.events/roundtable-event/dallas-robust-security-java-applications/?utm_source=cote&utm_campaign=devrel&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_content=newsletterUpcoming">Executive dinner on Java Security</a></strong>, March 13th, Dallas; <strong><a href="https://devopsdays.org/events/2024-los-angeles/welcome/">DevOpsDays LA</a></strong>, speaking, March 15th, Pasadena “We Fear Change” talk; <strong><a href="https://events.linuxfoundation.org/kubecon-cloudnativecon-europe/co-located-events/platform-engineering-day/">KubeCon EU</a></strong>, March 19th, Paris; <strong><a href="https://www.fig-street.com/041124-tanzu-redefined/?utm_source=cote&utm_campaign=devrel&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_content=newsletterUpcoming">Tanzu (Re)defined</a></strong>, April 11th, Palo Alto. <strong><a href="https://devopsdays.org/events/2024-amsterdam/welcome/">DevOpsDays Amsterdam</a></strong>, June 20th, speaking. <strong><a href="https://ndcoslo.com/">NDC Oslo</a></strong>, <a href="https://ndcoslo.com/agenda/developer-productivity-is-waste-09qh/06a815usc80">speaking</a>, June 12th.</p><p>Come to our little <strong>party at KubeCon EU</strong>, it’s Thursday night. <a href="https://connect.tanzu.vmware.com/KubeCon-EMEA-2024.html?utm_source=cote&utm_campaign=devrel&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_content=newsletter20240222">Register for free here</a>! And, if you’re going to <strong>KubeCon EU</strong> and haven’t registered yet, you can get <strong>20% off with the code KCEU24VMWBC20.</strong></p><h1>Logoff</h1><p>Every now and then I like to try to slip something fun into the corporate world. I came up with that event name, <a href="https://www.fig-street.com/041124-tanzu-redefined/?utm_source=cote&utm_campaign=devrel&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_content=newsletterUpcoming">“Tanzu (Re)defined”</a> and thought, surely, someone is going to say this is silly. But, people liked it.</p><p>//</p><p>Also, hey, if you like my stuff about work-life, you’ll really like <a href="https://learning.oreilly.com/course/how-to-survive/0790145433268/">my new video series over at O’Reilly</a>. If you work at a big company, you might already have access to it. You should <a href="https://learning.oreilly.com/course/how-to-survive/0790145433268/">check it out</a>!</p><p>//</p><p>I’m on a weeklong tour of the States this week. As I’ve said before, I’m more or less over business travel. I’ve done it for 19 years now, and with three kids, a wife, a dog, two snakes, and turtle at home…but these long trips are really too much now. </p><p>Many of the people I grew up with in business travel don’t seem to travel much anymore either. However, business travel is a huge part of my job - it just is. And it’s hard to envision what else I’d do that’d have as much value and, despite what I’m saying, fulfillment. </p><p>But, you know: also I can’t go around harrumph-y about it, I’m sure there’s people who’d gladly switch places. Must be nice!</p> https://cote.io/2024/03/08/i-did-a.html Fri, 08 Mar 2024 01:06:36 -0800 http://cote.micro.blog/2024/03/08/i-did-a.html <p>I did <a href="https://learning.oreilly.com/course/how-to-survive/0790145433268/">a video series</a> with O&rsquo;Reilly going over my advice for surviving and thriving (&ldquo;working,&rdquo; I guess) in a big company. &ldquo;You should <a href="https://learning.oreilly.com/course/how-to-survive/0790145433268/">watch it, it&rsquo;s really good</a>,&rdquo; raves the man who made it.</p> <p>So, you should <a href="https://learning.oreilly.com/course/how-to-survive/0790145433268/">check it out</a>.</p> <img src="https://cdn.uploads.micro.blog/3446/2024/bigco-banner-02.png" width="600" height="600" alt=""> “Little surprises around every corner, but nothing dangerous.” https://cote.io/2024/03/05/little-surprises-around.html Tue, 05 Mar 2024 13:23:05 -0800 http://cote.micro.blog/2024/03/05/little-surprises-around.html <p><em>Just links today.</em></p><h1>Relevant to your interests</h1><ul><li><p><a href="https://vmblog.com/archive/2024/03/04/two-methods-for-designing-better-more-developer-friendly-platforms.aspx">Two methods for designing better, more developer friendly platforms</a> - Two ways to make good platform product management decisions: go to where the developers are, ask the developers // a little article by me.</p></li><li><p><a href="https://www.syntasso.io/post/platform-engineering-orchestrating-applications-platforms-and-infrastructure">Platform Engineering: Orchestrating Applications, Platforms, and Infrastructure</a> - A big overview of platform engineering. Also: Syntasso gettin' into the devrel game!</p></li><li><p><a href="https://www.computerweekly.com/feature/Forrester-Tips-for-assessing-hybrid-cloud-management">Forrester: Tips for assessing hybrid cloud management</a> - All these years later, enterprise workloads are still running on all the clouds, public and private. // “87% of global cloud decision-makers say their organisations deploy enterprise IT workloads on public cloud, private cloud and in datacentre hosting facilities.”</p></li><li><p><a href="https://www.thestack.technology/dell-ai-opportunity-earnings/">Dell COO: AI will move to the data</a> - (Enterprise) AI will go to where its cheapest to run, by whatever factors.</p></li><li><p><a href="https://matduggan.com/why-kubernetes-needs-an-lts/">Why Kubernetes needs an LTS</a> - Currently, you can patches for the kubernetes version you’re running for supported for 14 months (12 months of support and 2 months of upgrade period)," a year and two months. He wants to make it 2 years: “I would propose an LTS release with a 24 months of support from GA and an understanding that the Kubernetes team can’t offer an upgrade to the next LTS. The proposed workflow for operations teams would be clusters that live for 24 months and then organizations need to migrate off of them and create a new cluster.” // LTS-talk makes my head hurt, but I think the charts in here are OK. // Also, vendors love LTS as an enterprise feature, and it usually is worth paying for. But, it’s also a trap if you let yourself get locked-in to older versions.</p></li><li><p><a href="https://www.infoq.com/news/2024/03/cncf-finops-kubernetes-overspend/">CNCF Survey: Half of Organizations Spend More with Kubernetes, Mostly Due to Overprovisioning</a> - “The survey participants shared their views on why running Kubernetes can get quite expensive. The main reason for overspending was overprovisioning (70%), accompanied by the sprawl of resources not being deactivated after use (43%). The second cluster of responses was related to the lack of visibility and insight into consumption and spending (40%) and the lack of awareness and responsibility at the individual and team levels (45%). Technical debt related to not re-architecting workloads migrated into the cloud environment for scalability accounted for 43% of the overspending. Further down, the respondents pointed to resource-hungry workloads (25%), fluctuating consumption demands (23%), and poor planning/prediction of cloud consumption.”</p></li></ul><div class="captioned-image-container"><figure><a class="image-link image2" target="_blank" href="https://learning.oreilly.com/course/how-to-survive/0790145433268/" data-component-name="Image2ToDOM"><div class="image2-inset"><picture><source type="image/webp" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_424,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F835d4445-f530-4def-ba71-f9c5c7ebeb96_1280x720.png 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_848,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F835d4445-f530-4def-ba71-f9c5c7ebeb96_1280x720.png 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1272,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F835d4445-f530-4def-ba71-f9c5c7ebeb96_1280x720.png 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F835d4445-f530-4def-ba71-f9c5c7ebeb96_1280x720.png 1456w" sizes="100vw"><img src="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F835d4445-f530-4def-ba71-f9c5c7ebeb96_1280x720.png" width="1280" height="720" data-attrs="{"src":"https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/835d4445-f530-4def-ba71-f9c5c7ebeb96_1280x720.png","srcNoWatermark":null,"fullscreen":null,"imageSize":null,"height":720,"width":1280,"resizeWidth":null,"bytes":661778,"alt":null,"title":null,"type":"image/png","href":"https://learning.oreilly.com/course/how-to-survive/0790145433268/","belowTheFold":false,"topImage":true,"internalRedirect":null}" class="sizing-normal" alt="" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_424,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F835d4445-f530-4def-ba71-f9c5c7ebeb96_1280x720.png 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_848,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F835d4445-f530-4def-ba71-f9c5c7ebeb96_1280x720.png 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1272,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F835d4445-f530-4def-ba71-f9c5c7ebeb96_1280x720.png 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F835d4445-f530-4def-ba71-f9c5c7ebeb96_1280x720.png 1456w" sizes="100vw" fetchpriority="high"></picture><div></div></div></a><figcaption class="image-caption"><a href="https://learning.oreilly.com/course/how-to-survive/0790145433268/">Click it to get your learn on</a>.</figcaption></figure></div><h1><strong>Wastebook</strong></h1><ul><li><p>“Little surprises around every corner, but nothing dangerous.” Willy Wonka.</p></li><li><p>“The person continues to operate out of the old attitudes and strategies, but they are no longer effective.” <a href="https://www.themarginalian.org/2024/03/03/the-middle-passage-john-hollis/">Some Jungian shit</a>.</p></li><li><p>“When all else fails, wear a mustache so everyone sees you as more man-like.” <a href="https://medium.com/conquering-corporate-america/9-non-threatening-leadership-strategies-for-women-fe5fd48e658e">Here</a>.</p></li><li><p>“Like, why would I want to look snappy in the office?” <a href="https://youtube.com/watch?v=AIxY_Y9TGWI&si=qHjQZVriD26j3ryQ">Here</a>.</p></li></ul><h1>Conferences, Events, etc.</h1><p><em><a href="https://cote.io/speaking/">Talks</a> I’m giving, places I’ll be, and other plans.</em></p><p><strong><a href="https://ismg.events/roundtable-event/dallas-robust-security-java-applications/?utm_source=cote&utm_campaign=devrel&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_content=newsletterUpcoming">Executive dinner on Java Security</a></strong>, March 13th, Dallas; <strong><a href="https://devopsdays.org/events/2024-los-angeles/welcome/">DevOpsDays LA</a></strong>, speaking, March 15th, Pasadena “We Fear Change” talk; <strong><a href="https://events.linuxfoundation.org/kubecon-cloudnativecon-europe/co-located-events/platform-engineering-day/">KubeCon EU</a></strong>, March 19th, Paris; <strong><a href="https://www.fig-street.com/041124-tanzu-redefined/?utm_source=cote&utm_campaign=devrel&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_content=newsletterUpcoming">Tanzu (Re)defined</a></strong>, April 11th, Palo Alto. <strong><a href="https://ndcoslo.com/">NDC Oslo</a></strong>, <a href="https://ndcoslo.com/agenda/developer-productivity-is-waste-09qh/06a815usc80">speaking</a>, June 12th.</p><p>Come to our little <strong>party at KubeCon EU</strong>, it’s Thursday night. <a href="https://connect.tanzu.vmware.com/KubeCon-EMEA-2024.html?utm_source=cote&utm_campaign=devrel&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_content=newsletter20240222">Register for free here</a>! And, if you’re going to <strong>KubeCon EU</strong> and haven’t registered yet, you can get <strong>20% off with the code KCEU24VMWBC20.</strong></p><h1>Logoff</h1><p>See you next time!</p> How to avoid working too much https://cote.io/2024/03/01/how-to-avoid.html Fri, 01 Mar 2024 07:59:03 -0800 http://cote.micro.blog/2024/03/01/how-to-avoid.html <h1>Surviving and Thriving in a BigCo</h1><div id="youtube2--w4mUgclha4" class="youtube-wrap" data-attrs="{"videoId":"-w4mUgclha4","startTime":null,"endTime":null}" data-component-name="Youtube2ToDOM"><div class="youtube-inner"><iframe src="https://www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/-w4mUgclha4?rel=0&autoplay=0&showinfo=0&enablejsapi=0" frameborder="0" loading="lazy" gesture="media" allow="autoplay; fullscreen" allowautoplay="true" allowfullscreen="true" width="728" height="409"></iframe></div></div><p>If you work in a large organization, you’ll like <a href="https://learning.oreilly.com/course/how-to-survive/0790145433268/">this new video series I did with O’Reilly</a>. Check out the intro above, and here’s the topics covered:</p><ol><li><p>Cultivate your Style and Character.</p></li><li><p>How does a BigCo Work?</p></li><li><p>Mentors are Nice, Champions are Better.</p></li><li><p>Asking Questions Leads to Homework for You.</p></li><li><p>Assign Homework to Filter out Vampires.</p></li><li><p>To Innovate, Hide Out.</p></li><li><p>Slides are Docs.</p></li><li><p>Always Have an Ask Ready to Go.</p></li><li><p>Embrace Work/Life Imbalance.</p></li></ol><p>If you have access to O’Reilly, <a href="https://learning.oreilly.com/course/how-to-survive/0790145433268/">you should check out the videos</a>. If you work at a large organization, especially in a technical role, you should watch them all! You can get some kind of certification if you take the quizzes (a sort of hilarious thing for this type of content, but whatever).</p><p><a href="https://learning.oreilly.com/course/how-to-survive/0790145433268/">These are good videos</a>, if I don’t say so myself. If you like my style of stuff, <a href="https://learning.oreilly.com/course/how-to-survive/0790145433268/">you’ll like these</a>. Tell me what you think!</p><h1>Microservices Modernization Missteps: Four Anti-Patterns of Rebuilding Apps - and how to avoid them</h1><p>One of my colleagues has a post out going over <a href="https://tanzu.vmware.com/content/blog/microservices-modernization-missteps-four-anti-patterns-of-rebuilding-apps?utm_source=cote&utm_campaign=devrel&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_content=newsletter20240228">four anti-patterns when you're modernizing to microservices</a>: (1) Relying only on code and documentation for business context; (2) Unvalidated architecture; (3) Insufficient test automation; (4) Big bang releases.</p><p>I helped put it together, so, you know, I think it’s pretty useful stuff. <a href="https://tanzu.vmware.com/content/blog/microservices-modernization-missteps-four-anti-patterns-of-rebuilding-apps?utm_source=cote&utm_campaign=devrel&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_content=newsletter20240228">Check it out</a>!</p><h1>Software Defined Talk podcast #456</h1><p><a href="https://www.softwaredefinedtalk.com/456">This week</a>, we second guess recent decisions made by Google and Apple. Plus, what social media sites is everyone actually using these days?</p><p>Take a <a href="https://www.softwaredefinedtalk.com/456">listen</a>! Check out <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dKPcTxTejYM">the unedited livestream video</a> if you’re really a super-fan.</p><h1>Relative to your interests</h1><ul><li><p><a href="https://thenewstack.io/we-can-have-nice-things-upgrading-to-java-21-is-worth-it/">We CAN Have Nice Things: Upgrading to Java 21 Is Worth It</a> - “It’s (Jave 21) also morally superior. You won’t like the look of shame and sadness in your children’s eyes when they find out that you’re using Java 8 in production.”</p></li><li><p><a href="https://www.thestack.technology/gee-thanks-oracle-java-licence-squeeze-puts-a-rocket-under-azul/">Thanks Oracle! Java licence squeeze puts a rocket under Azul</a> - “Oracle, by developer use, was probably 60 to 70% market share according to Gartner. This year, that’s down to 30%.&nbsp;” // Meanwhile, since Jan 2023: “The Oracle Java Licensing change made organisations purchase a licence for their <em>entire</em> employee population if even a single employee or server has installed a_ licensable_ version of Java – which is widespread, often without organisations realising this. And Oracle, notorious for its ferocious audits over the years, is stepping up audits of Java users.”</p></li></ul><h1>Wastebook</h1><ul><li><p>“Every idea is a story of someone trying to solve a problem.” <a href="https://www.bettyjunod.com/">Here</a>.</p></li><li><p>“Boy, are you going to be glad you opened this newsletter. Because you are about to learn about the lone banana problem.”</p></li><li><p>“A primer on space mining — and its impact on the IT sector.” From a 451 report.</p></li></ul><h1>Conferences, Events, etc.</h1><p><em><a href="https://cote.io/speaking/">Talks</a> I’m giving, places I’ll be, and other plans.</em></p><p><strong><a href="https://ismg.events/roundtable-event/dallas-robust-security-java-applications/?utm_source=cote&utm_campaign=devrel&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_content=newsletterUpcoming">Executive dinner on Java Security</a></strong>, March 13th, Dallas; <strong><a href="https://devopsdays.org/events/2024-los-angeles/welcome/">DevOpsDays LA</a></strong>, speaking, March 15th, Pasadena “We Fear Change” talk; <strong><a href="https://events.linuxfoundation.org/kubecon-cloudnativecon-europe/co-located-events/platform-engineering-day/">KubeCon EU</a></strong>, March 19th, Paris; <strong><a href="https://www.fig-street.com/041124-tanzu-redefined/?utm_source=cote&utm_campaign=devrel&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_content=newsletterUpcoming">Tanzu (Re)defined</a></strong>, April 11th, Palo Alto. <strong><a href="https://ndcoslo.com/">NDC Oslo</a></strong>, <a href="https://ndcoslo.com/agenda/developer-productivity-is-waste-09qh/06a815usc80">speaking</a>, June 12th.</p><p>Come to our little <strong>party at KubeCon EU</strong>, it’s Thursday night. <a href="https://connect.tanzu.vmware.com/KubeCon-EMEA-2024.html?utm_source=cote&utm_campaign=devrel&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_content=newsletter20240222">Register for free here</a>! And, if you’re going to <strong>KubeCon EU</strong> and haven’t registered yet, you can get <strong>20% off with the code KCEU24VMWBC20.</strong></p><div class="captioned-image-container"><figure><a class="image-link is-viewable-img image2" target="_blank" href="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fac9327cb-1e52-4be2-93ea-63158f00ef6b_4032x2268.jpeg" data-component-name="Image2ToDOM"><div class="image2-inset"><picture><source type="image/webp" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_424,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fac9327cb-1e52-4be2-93ea-63158f00ef6b_4032x2268.jpeg 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_848,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fac9327cb-1e52-4be2-93ea-63158f00ef6b_4032x2268.jpeg 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1272,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fac9327cb-1e52-4be2-93ea-63158f00ef6b_4032x2268.jpeg 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fac9327cb-1e52-4be2-93ea-63158f00ef6b_4032x2268.jpeg 1456w" sizes="100vw"><img src="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fac9327cb-1e52-4be2-93ea-63158f00ef6b_4032x2268.jpeg" width="1456" height="819" data-attrs="{"src":"https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/ac9327cb-1e52-4be2-93ea-63158f00ef6b_4032x2268.jpeg","srcNoWatermark":null,"fullscreen":null,"imageSize":null,"height":819,"width":1456,"resizeWidth":null,"bytes":1487845,"alt":null,"title":null,"type":"image/jpeg","href":null,"belowTheFold":true,"topImage":false,"internalRedirect":null}" class="sizing-normal" alt="" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_424,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fac9327cb-1e52-4be2-93ea-63158f00ef6b_4032x2268.jpeg 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_848,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fac9327cb-1e52-4be2-93ea-63158f00ef6b_4032x2268.jpeg 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1272,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fac9327cb-1e52-4be2-93ea-63158f00ef6b_4032x2268.jpeg 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fac9327cb-1e52-4be2-93ea-63158f00ef6b_4032x2268.jpeg 1456w" sizes="100vw" loading="lazy"></picture><div class="image-link-expand"><svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="16" height="16" viewBox="0 0 24 24" fill="none" stroke="#FFFFFF" stroke-width="2" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" class="lucide lucide-maximize2 "><polyline points="15 3 21 3 21 9"></polyline><polyline points="9 21 3 21 3 15"></polyline><line x1="21" x2="14" y1="3" y2="10"></line><line x1="3" x2="10" y1="21" y2="14"></line></svg></div></div></a><figcaption class="image-caption">Rare ceiling fan spotting in the Netherlands, at <a href="https://www.indewildeman.nl">In De Wildeman</a>, Amsterdam.</figcaption></figure></div><h1>Logoff</h1><p>After a week of pissing rain, it’s sunny hear in Amsterdam. We’ll see how the weekend goes. </p><p>//</p><p>I finally got my 2FA login for <a href="https://twitter.com/cote">my Twitter account fixed</a>. I’d been ignoring it since the Fall, just posting my content, and then got locked out sometime in December or January. There’s still so many people in my tech world there. It’s kind of weird, weren’t they all supposed to abandon it out of Elon-hate, or something? I feel like I chose the wrong path during all that nerd-wailing. I’ve got a large enough following in Mastodon, but there’s just not as much engagement as I’m used to (there are a handful of people there that I write back and forth with that are great, though). And since I missed out on the initial tech-invasion of Threads (since I live in the EU), there’s not much there. This stuff always comes down to years of curation and activity, which is hard to build back up. </p><p>I don’t think that federated dream (where Threads, Mastodon, and Bluesky all interior) is ever going to come true: that was clearly just some hopeful-nerd talk last year. (And now that you an pay Twitter to remove all ads, what they <em>should</em> do is open up third party APIs for the Premium+ customers - they’re not missing out on ads anyhow - but, whatever). It’d be great to have an <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adium">Adium</a>-like app for all that shit. Dreams! Anyhow, speaking of quality content (or lack thereof!) I have<a href="https://www.youtube.com/@thecote/shorts"> a backlog of lots of my silly videos</a> to post in Twitter.</p> devPRops - better put PR in your backlog https://cote.io/2024/02/27/devprops-better-put.html Tue, 27 Feb 2024 07:05:20 -0800 http://cote.micro.blog/2024/02/27/devprops-better-put.html <h1><strong>Better put PR on the backlog</strong></h1><blockquote><p>Art for no one, by no one. Art whose only audience is the collective pathos. Incredible. [<a href="https://marginalrevolution.com/marginalrevolution/2024/02/grimes-on-gemini-images.html?utm_source=rss&amp;utm_medium=rss&amp;utm_campaign=grimes-on-gemini-images">AI culture problems as art</a>]</p></blockquote><p><a href="https://stratechery.com/2024/gemini-and-googles-culture/">The Gemini thing</a>: the conversation around AI technology is now based on how it can navigate social and cultural issues, less if it &#8220;works.&#8221; These social and cultural issues eventually wear out - people forget - so you have to just stay alive and hold it back. Also, with AI (as with most technologies), you can fix the features/bugs that provoked the social and culture issues. In one way, the negative feedback is just &#8220;feedback&#8221; that you&#8217;d expect in the lean product methodology. However, with social and cultural issues, it&#8217;s difficult to accept failure as learning (product management feedback).</p><p>Social and cultural issues are usually negative, rarely positive. </p><p>Facebook means you can keep up with family and friends, previously we had letters and expensive long-distance phone calls. Now we bemoan screen time instead of saying &#8220;holy fuck, never mind a 1,000 songs in my pocket - now I have the Internet in my pocket!&#8221; I&#8217;d have to trust schools to adapt to my kid&#8217;s learning styles, pay a lot of time and money for private tutors, now they can ask ChatGPT to explain concepts to them in the style that works for them.</p><p>Also, with (business) software, the benefits are mostly boring: making it cheaper to run computers and software, speeding up or removing shitty office work (who wants summarize meetings that you didn&#8217;t want to be at in the first place?), removing the friction and bottlenecks of reaching new customers and interacting with newer ones (online bill pay instead of mailing checks; automating inventory instead of walking around with a clipboard and pencil). &#8220;People have forgotten, I think, just how big a deal having a common interface to all the storage arrays was with VMware like before,&#8221; <a href="https://packetpushers.net/podcasts/day-two-cloud/d2c234-what-to-do-about-vmware/">Justin</a>. When transferring money in the US is finally fixed (like it is in Europe), few people are going to writing and podcasting about that for months on end: &#8220;regional credit unions enable easy money transferring, yay!&#8221;</p><p>My point here is not to bemoan this - it is what it is! - but to be prepared for it, to weave it into your operational strategy, your product management. Put PR in the backlog, call up your marketing and comms people, and have them take a seat at your daily stand-up meeting. You&#8217;ll need them and their contribution will be as valuable as any technical thing. devPRops. </p><h1>&#8220;Rude&#8221; is culturally relative</h1><p>I&#8217;ve lived in the Netherlands for almost six year, and as a Texan, this is still a daily struggle:</p><div class="captioned-image-container"><figure><a class="image-link image2" target="_blank" href="https://erinmeyer.com/books/the-culture-map/" data-component-name="Image2ToDOM"><div class="image2-inset"><picture><source type="image/webp" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_424,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fd6266d60-2288-482a-a809-9e9ac0796899_852x822.png 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_848,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fd6266d60-2288-482a-a809-9e9ac0796899_852x822.png 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1272,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fd6266d60-2288-482a-a809-9e9ac0796899_852x822.png 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fd6266d60-2288-482a-a809-9e9ac0796899_852x822.png 1456w" sizes="100vw"><img src="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fd6266d60-2288-482a-a809-9e9ac0796899_852x822.png" width="852" height="822" data-attrs="{&quot;src&quot;:&quot;https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/d6266d60-2288-482a-a809-9e9ac0796899_852x822.png&quot;,&quot;srcNoWatermark&quot;:null,&quot;fullscreen&quot;:null,&quot;imageSize&quot;:null,&quot;height&quot;:822,&quot;width&quot;:852,&quot;resizeWidth&quot;:null,&quot;bytes&quot;:null,&quot;alt&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:null,&quot;type&quot;:null,&quot;href&quot;:&quot;https://erinmeyer.com/books/the-culture-map/&quot;,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:true,&quot;topImage&quot;:false,&quot;internalRedirect&quot;:null}" class="sizing-normal" alt="" title="" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_424,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fd6266d60-2288-482a-a809-9e9ac0796899_852x822.png 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_848,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fd6266d60-2288-482a-a809-9e9ac0796899_852x822.png 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1272,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fd6266d60-2288-482a-a809-9e9ac0796899_852x822.png 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fd6266d60-2288-482a-a809-9e9ac0796899_852x822.png 1456w" sizes="100vw" loading="lazy"></picture><div></div></div></a><figcaption class="image-caption">From the most excellent <em><a href="https://erinmeyer.com/books/the-culture-map/">The Culture Map</a></em>.</figcaption></figure></div><h1>Dreams of Having it Both Ways</h1><p>Phase 01: There is too much vendor lock-in and there are only, like, two viable options for anything. Why don't these people innovate anymore?</p><p>Phase 02: Oh my God! Have you seen how many choices there for everything?! &lt;insert <a href="https://landscape.cncf.io">CNCF Landscape</a> lulz here&gt;.</p><p>Phase 03: GOTO Phase 01.</p><h1><strong>Relative to your interests</strong></h1><ul><li><p><a href="https://thenewstack.io/3-ways-to-help-struggling-open-source-communities/https://www.fig-street.com/041124-tanzu-redefined/?utm_source=cote&amp;utm_campaign=devrel&amp;utm_medium=newsletter&amp;utm_content=newsletter20240227">3 Ways to Help Struggling Open Source Communities</a> - By supporting local meetup groups and sharing your time with organizers, you can help sustain our vital tech communities.</p></li><li><p><a href="https://arstechnica.com/science/2024/02/rto-doesnt-improve-company-value-but-does-make-employees-miserable-study/">RTO doesn&#8217;t improve company value, but does make employees miserable: Study</a> - &#8216;"Results of our determinant analyses are consistent with managers using RTO mandates to reassert control over employees and blame employees as a scapegoat for bad firm performance," the researchers concluded.&#8217;</p></li><li><p><a href="https://longform.asmartbear.com/startup-beats-incumbent/">How startups beat incumbents</a> - &#8220;big companies don&#8217;t like to take big risks even when the outcome might be large. The fear of failure is an order of magnitude more motivating than the desire to innovate or even the greed of success.&#8221;</p></li><li><p><a href="https://www.datacenterdynamics.com/en/news/sabre-completes-migration-to-google-cloud-closes-17-data-centers/">Sabre completes migration to Google Cloud, closes 17 data centers</a> - Starting in 2020, now in 2024: &#8220;Over the course of this effort, we&#8217;ve closed 17 data centers and moved more than 40,000 servers, 400,000 CPUs, and 50 petabytes of storage into the cloud.&#8221; Congrats!</p></li><li><p><a href="https://scholars-stage.org/public-intellectuals-have-short-shelf-lives-but-why/">Public Intellectuals Have Short Shelf Lives&#8211;But Why?</a> - Keeping thought-leader&#8217;ing fresh is difficult. // &#8220;why are so many public intellectuals capable of generating insight, originality, or brilliance at the beginning of their careers, but are utterly incapable of fresh thinking a decade later?&#8221; // &#8220;Old attitudes die because generations that hold them _literally _die off. Such is the stuff of progress and disaster. Such is also the problem of the public intellectual. A public intellectual&#8217;s formative insights were developed to explain the world he or she encountered during a specific era. Eras pass away; times change. It is difficult for the brain to keep up with the changes.&#8221;</p></li><li><p><a href="https://softwaredefinedtalk.slack.com/archives/C6CDLDCVB/p1709015519966129?thread_ts=1708703151.646559&amp;channel=C6CDLDCVB&amp;message_ts=1709015519.966129">Me</a>: &#8220;I want to start seeing (only?) more analyst estimates of kubernetes usage by app/workload (not just if people are using it). Not out of some desire to see it be small and poke fun at it, but just as with public cloud in the 2010&#8217;s to just know what&#8217;s actually happening. We need that annual (quarterly would be better) thing like the storage growth/data explosion thing IDC and EMC used to do.<a class="footnote-anchor" data-component-name="FootnoteAnchorToDOM" id="footnote-anchor-1" href="#footnote-1" target="_self">1</a> That&#8217;d be great for the CNCF to start estimating. All opinions about how hard it is are besides the point now: adoption and migration of workloads (and also new workloads) to it are the only thing that matters and is interesting).&#8221;</p></li><li><p><a href="https://sapegin.me/blog/adhd-focus/?ref=labnotes.org">How I stay (more) focused with ADHD</a> - &#8220;I&nbsp;often go&nbsp;to&nbsp;a&nbsp;caf&#233; to&nbsp;write, and&nbsp;it&nbsp;helps me&nbsp;a&nbsp;lot to&nbsp;focus on&nbsp;writing. As&nbsp;much as&nbsp;I&nbsp;loathe noise and&nbsp;distractions, the&nbsp;caf&#233; noise and&nbsp;presence of&nbsp;other people (known as&nbsp;body&nbsp;doubling, see below) help me&nbsp;to&nbsp;focus on&nbsp;writing. Unless, of&nbsp;course, I&nbsp;can hear and&nbsp;understand what people are talking about&#8239;&#8212;&#8239;in&nbsp;this case, I&nbsp;must hear the&nbsp;gossip.&#8221;</p></li><li><p><a href="https://www.ggd.world/p/why-do-east-asian-firms-value-drinking?utm_source=post-email-title&amp;publication_id=1385611&amp;post_id=141992378&amp;utm_campaign=email-post-title&amp;isFreemail=false&amp;r=zccyx&amp;open=false&amp;utm_medium=email">Why Do East Asian Firms Value Drinking?</a> - Also, a lot of charts and ideas from The Culture Map, a great book for understanding differences in business communications across the globe.</p></li><li><p><a href="https://www.garbageday.email/p/tiktok-millennials-turns?utm_source=www.garbageday.email&amp;utm_medium=newsletter&amp;utm_campaign=tiktok-is-for-millennials-it-turns-out">TikTok Is For Millennials, It Turns Out</a> - Everyone gets old. // &#8220;it&#8217;s probably smart to not assume that the kids are the ones responsible for whatever new weird thing is on your FYP. Those videos are probably being made by weird adults.&#8221;</p></li><li><p><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2024/02/25/magazine/patric-gagne-interview.html">What It&#8217;s Like to Be a Sociopath</a> - &#8220;Yes, [as a journalist conducting an interview] you are manipulating people to a certain extent &#8212; to your point &#8212; in the way that I might manipulate somebody in therapy, but I would never feel the need to justify it, and your justification came so quickly. That&#8217;s why I was like, Hey, what&#8217;s happening that you felt the need to defend your answer?&#8221;</p></li><li><p><a href="https://www.forrester.com/blogs/gemini-for-google-workspace-plays-the-long-game/">Gemini For Google Workspace Plays The Long Game Gemini for Google Workspace Plays The Long GameAI Insights artificial intelligence</a> - Office workers are the new kingmakers. // &#8220;If you don&#8217;t give them something sanctioned, they&#8217;ll use bring-your-own AI tools such as ChatGPT on the web, opening your organization up to security and privacy risks and rendering their activities unmonitored by your IT team.&#8221;</p></li><li><p><a href="https://idratherbewriting.com/blog/all-the-ways-im-using-ai-tools-in-everyday-life">30+ ways I&#8217;m using AI in everyday writing life as a technical writer, blogger, and curious human</a> - Whole lot of prompts, many related to writing, but plenty of everyday things.</p></li><li><p><a href="https://fortune.com/2024/01/22/legendary-ceo-james-keyes-7-eleven-blockbuster/">Legendary CEO James Keyes: Here&#8217;s how I saved 7-Eleven&#8211;and why I couldn&#8217;t save Blockbuster</a> - Lesson learned: avoid being $1bn in debt during a financial crisis.</p></li></ul><div class="captioned-image-container"><figure><a class="image-link image2" target="_blank" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/cote/52261104417/" data-component-name="Image2ToDOM"><div class="image2-inset"><picture><source type="image/webp" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_424,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F75a64126-a54b-4f6d-98d6-db6541f54f0f_2048x1536.jpeg 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_848,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F75a64126-a54b-4f6d-98d6-db6541f54f0f_2048x1536.jpeg 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1272,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F75a64126-a54b-4f6d-98d6-db6541f54f0f_2048x1536.jpeg 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F75a64126-a54b-4f6d-98d6-db6541f54f0f_2048x1536.jpeg 1456w" sizes="100vw"><img src="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F75a64126-a54b-4f6d-98d6-db6541f54f0f_2048x1536.jpeg" width="1456" height="1092" data-attrs="{&quot;src&quot;:&quot;https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/75a64126-a54b-4f6d-98d6-db6541f54f0f_2048x1536.jpeg&quot;,&quot;srcNoWatermark&quot;:null,&quot;fullscreen&quot;:null,&quot;imageSize&quot;:null,&quot;height&quot;:1092,&quot;width&quot;:1456,&quot;resizeWidth&quot;:null,&quot;bytes&quot;:625894,&quot;alt&quot;:null,&quot;title&quot;:null,&quot;type&quot;:&quot;image/jpeg&quot;,&quot;href&quot;:&quot;https://www.flickr.com/photos/cote/52261104417/&quot;,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:true,&quot;topImage&quot;:false,&quot;internalRedirect&quot;:null}" class="sizing-normal" alt="" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_424,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F75a64126-a54b-4f6d-98d6-db6541f54f0f_2048x1536.jpeg 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_848,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F75a64126-a54b-4f6d-98d6-db6541f54f0f_2048x1536.jpeg 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1272,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F75a64126-a54b-4f6d-98d6-db6541f54f0f_2048x1536.jpeg 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F75a64126-a54b-4f6d-98d6-db6541f54f0f_2048x1536.jpeg 1456w" sizes="100vw" loading="lazy"></picture><div></div></div></a></figure></div><h1><strong>Wastebook</strong></h1><ul><li><p>&#8220;It makes a sound like mixin' macaroni and cheese.&#8221; <a href="https://overcast.fm/+93nzyyYM">Here</a>.</p></li><li><p>&#8220;parameters and pushback&#8221;</p></li><li><p>&#8220;Sam Altman tech CEO speedrun.&#8221; <a href="https://open.substack.com/pub/chrisbakke/p/2023-tech-recap-and-onto-2024?r=2d4o&amp;utm_medium=ios&amp;utm_campaign=post">Here</a>.</p></li></ul><h1>Conferences, Events, etc.</h1><p><em><a href="https://cote.io/speaking/">Talks</a> I&#8217;m giving, places I&#8217;ll be, and other plans.</em></p><p><strong><a href="https://ismg.events/roundtable-event/dallas-robust-security-java-applications/?utm_source=cote&amp;utm_campaign=devrel&amp;utm_medium=newsletter&amp;utm_content=newsletterUpcoming">Executive dinner on Java Security</a></strong>, March 13th, Dallas; <strong><a href="https://devopsdays.org/events/2024-los-angeles/welcome/">DevOpsDays LA</a></strong>, March 15th, Pasadena &#8220;We Fear Change&#8221; talk; <strong><a href="https://events.linuxfoundation.org/kubecon-cloudnativecon-europe/co-located-events/platform-engineering-day/">KubeCon EU</a></strong>, March 19th, Paris; <strong><a href="https://www.fig-street.com/041124-tanzu-redefined/?utm_source=cote&amp;utm_campaign=devrel&amp;utm_medium=newsletter&amp;utm_content=newsletterUpcoming">Tanzu (Re)defined</a></strong>, April 11th, Palo Alto.</p><p>Come to our little <strong>party at KubeCon EU</strong>, it&#8217;s Thursday night. <a href="https://connect.tanzu.vmware.com/KubeCon-EMEA-2024.html?utm_source=cote&amp;utm_campaign=devrel&amp;utm_medium=newsletter&amp;utm_content=newsletter20240222">Register for free here</a>! And, if you&#8217;re going to <strong>KubeCon EU</strong> and haven&#8217;t registered yet, you can get <strong>20% off with the code KCEU24VMWBC20.</strong></p><h1>Logoff</h1><p>I&#8217;m home for a few weeks, then traveling for two weeks: to the US for a three city tour (including DevOpsDays LA and that executive table above); the next week in Paris for KubeCon. I need to get on submitting talks to more conferences. I don&#8217;t know, man. <a href="https://www.youtube.com/shorts/2IGX3VG7TKM">Is there anything left to talk about</a>?</p><div class="footnote" data-component-name="FootnoteToDOM"><a id="footnote-1" href="#footnote-anchor-1" class="footnote-number" contenteditable="false" target="_self">1</a><div class="footnote-content"><p>It&#8217;s <a href="https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/worlds-data-more-than-doubling-every-two-years---driving-big-data-opportunity-new-it-roles-124640433.html">hilariously hard to find a link to these studies/PDFs some ~13 years late</a>. But I assure you, they were a big fucking deal! It goes to show you how transient and, you know, PR-driven this stuff is. Also, the value analyst shops put on their work: only fresh for a year or two? Seems silly to me!</p></div></div> Potato chips that taste like Thanksgiving stuffing - what could go wrong? https://cote.io/2024/02/22/potato-chips-that.html Thu, 22 Feb 2024 01:39:30 -0800 http://cote.micro.blog/2024/02/22/potato-chips-that.html <div id="youtube2-qb_C_svzCTk" class="youtube-wrap" data-attrs="{"videoId":"qb_C_svzCTk","startTime":null,"endTime":null}" data-component-name="Youtube2ToDOM"><div class="youtube-inner"><iframe src="https://www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/qb_C_svzCTk?rel=0&autoplay=0&showinfo=0&enablejsapi=0" frameborder="0" loading="lazy" gesture="media" allow="autoplay; fullscreen" allowautoplay="true" allowfullscreen="true" width="728" height="409"></iframe></div></div><h1><strong>Relative to your interests</strong></h1><ul><li><p><a href="https://doc.searls.com/2024/02/16/cluetrain-at-25/">Cluetrain at 25</a> - This was an important book to me when it came out. It probably had a huge influence on my professional life. All these years later, I think it was right. The biggest evolution, unexpected, was that the Big Bad Corporate Octopus took it seriously and figured out how to monetize the shit out the Cluetrain. Toot! Toot!</p></li><li><p><a href="https://hbr.org/2024/02/how-to-stay-grounded-through-organizational-chaos">How to Stay Grounded Through Organizational Chaos</a> - There’s a lot of good advice here, but the most important is here: “If your organization’s approach raises concerns or if you find yourself constantly questioning its strategies, it’s worth considering whether you’re in the right place. While “pretending that certainty exists is delusional,” it’s possible to find an organization that’s more aligned with your values, and where work feels less like a constant whiplash.” // The toolkit to examine if your company has a good strategy, operations/execution, and the stability needed to function…that toolkit is hard to assemble, use, and trust. // Also, I’ve become leery of the “the only thing you can control is yourself.” This is an easy mindset for a Roman emperor to have, and equally easy if you live in a big-ass clay jar with no other responsibilities or possession in life. But in the middle of those polls, the problem starts to be more than just your mental vibes, and getting to inward looking detracts from fixing the overall system.</p></li><li><p><a href="https://blog.google/technology/ai/long-context-window-ai-models/">What is a long context window? Google DeepMind engineers explain</a> - “Previously, Gemini could process up to 32,000 tokens at once, but 1.5 Pro — the first 1.5 model we’re releasing for early testing — has a context window of up to 1 million tokens — the longest context window of any large-scale foundation model to date. In fact, we’ve even successfully tested up to 10 million tokens in our research. And the longer the context window, the more text, images, audio, code or video a model can take in and process.” // Once they allow uploading multiple files (in the EU, where I live), that will be something. There’s only so many tokens you can cut and last into a web browser field (literally, they cut it off!).</p></li><li><p><a href="https://tanzu.vmware.com/content/blog/tanzu-spring-runtime-empowering-developers-for-tomorrows-challenges?utm_source=cote&utm_campaign=devrel&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_content=newsletter20240222">Tanzu Spring Runtime: Empowering Developers for Tomorrow’s Challenges</a> - If you’re using Java apps to run your business, you should get this integrated stack instead of worrying about doing all the DIY work to take care of and update and secure that stack itself. Also, it means you’ll have support and training.</p></li><li><p><a href="https://www.cio.com/article/1306898/addressing-cloud-waste-4-steps-to-cloud-computing-cost-optimization.html">Addressing cloud waste: 4 steps to cloud computing cost optimization</a> - “Organizations with little or no cloud cost optimization plans rush into cloud technology investments,” according to Gartner. “They end up overspending on cloud services by up to 70 percent without deriving the expected value from it.”</p></li><li><p><a href="https://buffer.com/resources/threads-algorithm/">9 Things You Need to Know About the Threads Algorithm</a> - Getting the juice. As ever, fucking around in the comments seems to help.</p></li><li><p><a href="https://futurism.com/the-byte/ai-companies-lose-190-billion-dismal-google-report">AI Companies Lose $190 Billion After Dismal Financial Reports</a> - When share prices drop that much, it means that money was never there in the first place and was just made up fantasy-land shit. Nothing was lost if nothing was there.p</p></li><li><p><a href="https://seroter.com/2024/02/21/how-id-use-generative-ai-to-modernize-an-app/">How I’d use generative AI to modernize an app</a> - As it says</p></li><li><p><a href="https://archive.org/details/KmartOctober1989?webamp=default">Kmart October 1989 : Tape-A-Thon</a> - A pile of tapes of the in-store music is available. Amazing! Here’s <a href="https://vapor95.com/blogs/darknet/resurrecting-nostalgia-the-remarkable-story-of-the-found-kmart-cassette-tapes">an overview of it</a>.</p></li><li><p><a href="https://www.cartoongravity.com/giving-fifty-percent/">Giving Fifty Percent</a> - “perhaps a lot of the extra effort we thing we’re putting into a task is actually comprised of anxiety and stress and maybe we could just relax and get the same thing done to the same level in roughly the same time, and be happier about it.” // This is one - accurate! - way of looking at the mysterious part of the creative process, whether programming, writing, whatever. The actual activity - typing, painting, cooking - is a small part of the overall, uh, “value stream” needed to create. When you ignore the value of all that other stuff, you damage the whole process. We’re just starting to understand this in enterprise software development: you have to pay attention to the entire span of time between an idea and a person using your app. It’s even more so in non-programming creativity. Taking a walk and seeming to “do nothing” is literally part of the process and if you remove it, you degrade the “business value” of the “business outcome.” There’s some more musing on this in this week’s <a href="https://www.softwaredefinedtalk.com/">Software Defined Talk</a> - subscribe, mofos!</p></li><li><p><a href="https://tomcritchlow.com/2024/02/16/narrative-strategy/">Quick Riff on Narrative Strategy</a> - “Narratives as worlds. Consultant as world-runner.” // There’s something important here for marketing people: a lot of marketing work is actually the company figuring out it’s own narrative, studying what products it does, what customers it has, those customer’s jobs to be done, even how sales is done. “Strategy” is supposed to do a lot of that, as is product management. But at most tech companies I’ve worked at, marketing ends up being where that all comes together and becomes…legible? This can be very good, but it can also be very dangerous. Customers don’t really care shout your inner looking narrative; they don’t want to read summaries of your therapy sessions. They just want to know why they would give you money, how and why your product/service will solve their problem without costing more that it should. Investors want to read the <em>transcripts</em> of your therapy sessions, sure, but “the market does not.” If your find that your marketing is spending a lot of time on story telling, and not much on product, you should be very careful.</p></li><li><p>Related: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dxC5T8JwdcY&list=PLk_5VqpWEtiVufMVsfp_VaqLccFlcaHvb&index=3">in tech marketing, customers don’t care how hard it was for you to make the product</a>. Just tell them how it’ll solve their program and that the pricing isn’t a rip-off or enterprise-gouging.</p></li><li><p><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/return-to-office-mandates-employees-managers-fight-messy-remote-work-2023-11?r=US&IR=T">Fight Between Employees, Managers Over Return-to-Office Is Getting Messy</a> - He’s not a fan of remote work. And, really, what worker is?</p></li></ul><div class="captioned-image-container"><figure><a class="image-link is-viewable-img image2" target="_blank" href="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F21f56224-c82e-48b5-ab6f-e30ab5096f5c_2508x2508.jpeg" data-component-name="Image2ToDOM"><div class="image2-inset"><picture><source type="image/webp" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_424,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F21f56224-c82e-48b5-ab6f-e30ab5096f5c_2508x2508.jpeg 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_848,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F21f56224-c82e-48b5-ab6f-e30ab5096f5c_2508x2508.jpeg 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1272,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F21f56224-c82e-48b5-ab6f-e30ab5096f5c_2508x2508.jpeg 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F21f56224-c82e-48b5-ab6f-e30ab5096f5c_2508x2508.jpeg 1456w" sizes="100vw"><img src="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F21f56224-c82e-48b5-ab6f-e30ab5096f5c_2508x2508.jpeg" width="1456" height="1456" data-attrs="{"src":"https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/21f56224-c82e-48b5-ab6f-e30ab5096f5c_2508x2508.jpeg","srcNoWatermark":null,"fullscreen":null,"imageSize":null,"height":1456,"width":1456,"resizeWidth":null,"bytes":1778010,"alt":null,"title":null,"type":"image/jpeg","href":null,"belowTheFold":false,"topImage":true,"internalRedirect":null}" class="sizing-normal" alt="" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_424,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F21f56224-c82e-48b5-ab6f-e30ab5096f5c_2508x2508.jpeg 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_848,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F21f56224-c82e-48b5-ab6f-e30ab5096f5c_2508x2508.jpeg 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1272,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F21f56224-c82e-48b5-ab6f-e30ab5096f5c_2508x2508.jpeg 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F21f56224-c82e-48b5-ab6f-e30ab5096f5c_2508x2508.jpeg 1456w" sizes="100vw" fetchpriority="high"></picture><div class="image-link-expand"><svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="16" height="16" viewBox="0 0 24 24" fill="none" stroke="#FFFFFF" stroke-width="2" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" class="lucide lucide-maximize2 "><polyline points="15 3 21 3 21 9"></polyline><polyline points="9 21 3 21 3 15"></polyline><line x1="21" x2="14" y1="3" y2="10"></line><line x1="3" x2="10" y1="21" y2="14"></line></svg></div></div></a><figcaption class="image-caption">America in Zurich.</figcaption></figure></div><h1><strong>Wastebook</strong></h1><ul><li><p>“sales inflictment.” <a href="https://www.forrester.com/blogs/sales-enabler-sales-inflictor/">Here</a>.</p></li><li><p>“Hastily made hobo-porn.” <a href="https://overcast.fm/+93nj-s-I">Here</a>.</p></li><li><p>“Woke up very confused at how my brain functions, but very excited for dream Margot Robbie’s financial future.” <a href="https://www.threads.net/@stevekamb/post/C3TehSjA6pH/">Here</a>.</p></li><li><p>Move “having made something” to “making something.” - finishing something is just part of the larger joy of making something. It’s in the cycle of creation, feedback, and improvement that you find the real work. Savor the meal, but remember, the best part is knowing you’ll get to cook again soon.</p></li><li><p>“I now understand that tote bags are bumper stickers for pedestrians” <a href="https://disquiet.com/2024/02/17/scratch-pad-questions-urls-milestone/">Here</a>.</p></li></ul><h1>Conferences, Events, etc.</h1><p><em><a href="https://cote.io/speaking/">Talks</a> I’m giving, places I’ll be, and other plans.</em></p><p><strong><a href="https://ismg.events/roundtable-event/dallas-robust-security-java-applications/?utm_source=cote&utm_campaign=devrel&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_content=newsletterUpcoming">Executive dinner on Java Security</a></strong>, March 13th, Dallas; <strong><a href="https://devopsdays.org/events/2024-los-angeles/welcome/">DevOpsDays LA</a></strong>, March 15th, Pasadena “We Fear Change” talk; <strong><a href="https://events.linuxfoundation.org/kubecon-cloudnativecon-europe/co-located-events/platform-engineering-day/">KubeCon EU</a></strong>, March 19th, Paris; <strong><a href="https://www.fig-street.com/041124-tanzu-redefined/?utm_source=cote&utm_campaign=devrel&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_content=newsletterUpcoming">Tanzu (Re)defined</a></strong>, April 11th, Palo Alto.</p><p>Come to our little <strong>party at KubeCon EU</strong>, it’s Thursday night. <a href="https://connect.tanzu.vmware.com/KubeCon-EMEA-2024.html?utm_source=cote&utm_campaign=devrel&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_content=newsletter20240222">Register for free here</a>! And, if you’re going to <strong>KubeCon EU</strong> and haven’t registered yet, you can get <strong>20% off with the code KCEU24VMWBC20.</strong></p><h1>Logoff</h1><p>I forget if I’ve actually written this, or wrote it and deleted it from here… I’ve been thinking much recently about what exactly it is I do: do I still enjoy it? Is it still relevant? To put in a dangerous way: do I like my job?</p><p>My focus for almost ten years has been “how large companies get better and building and running software” (hence my easy alignment to <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pivotal_Software">Pivotal - “transforming how the world builds software”</a> and then getting all <a href="https://newsletter.cote.io/p/kubernetes-is-great-but-its-been">butt-hurt about Kubernetes destroying all of that</a>). And what are the results? It’s easy to say not much, but I think I just get used to the new normal. I talked with a gaggle of C-types this week on <a href="https://speakerdeck.com/cote/culture2024">the getting better at software topic</a> and it was both well received and fun for me. There is still a tremendous amount of interest in the topic…because large organizations have a lot of “transformation” ahead of them still.</p><p>Still, what am I doing here? I want desperately to avoid being that old thought-leader that just says the same old thing over and over, for years. After awhile, it causes <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=goPbF8V7m9k&t=75s">a “no thoughts found” Ker-chunking in my brain</a>. Also, it’s <em>so</em> boring.</p><div class="captioned-image-container"><figure><a class="image-link is-viewable-img image2" target="_blank" href="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F6c509f76-e6ea-4f65-a9e8-5c7eba91fa9e_4032x3024.jpeg" data-component-name="Image2ToDOM"><div class="image2-inset"><picture><source type="image/webp" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_424,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F6c509f76-e6ea-4f65-a9e8-5c7eba91fa9e_4032x3024.jpeg 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_848,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F6c509f76-e6ea-4f65-a9e8-5c7eba91fa9e_4032x3024.jpeg 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1272,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F6c509f76-e6ea-4f65-a9e8-5c7eba91fa9e_4032x3024.jpeg 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F6c509f76-e6ea-4f65-a9e8-5c7eba91fa9e_4032x3024.jpeg 1456w" sizes="100vw"><img src="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F6c509f76-e6ea-4f65-a9e8-5c7eba91fa9e_4032x3024.jpeg" width="1456" height="1092" data-attrs="{"src":"https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/6c509f76-e6ea-4f65-a9e8-5c7eba91fa9e_4032x3024.jpeg","srcNoWatermark":null,"fullscreen":null,"imageSize":null,"height":1092,"width":1456,"resizeWidth":null,"bytes":2806583,"alt":null,"title":null,"type":"image/jpeg","href":null,"belowTheFold":true,"topImage":false,"internalRedirect":null}" class="sizing-normal" alt="" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_424,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F6c509f76-e6ea-4f65-a9e8-5c7eba91fa9e_4032x3024.jpeg 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_848,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F6c509f76-e6ea-4f65-a9e8-5c7eba91fa9e_4032x3024.jpeg 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1272,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F6c509f76-e6ea-4f65-a9e8-5c7eba91fa9e_4032x3024.jpeg 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F6c509f76-e6ea-4f65-a9e8-5c7eba91fa9e_4032x3024.jpeg 1456w" sizes="100vw" loading="lazy"></picture><div class="image-link-expand"><svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="16" height="16" viewBox="0 0 24 24" fill="none" stroke="#FFFFFF" stroke-width="2" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" class="lucide lucide-maximize2 "><polyline points="15 3 21 3 21 9"></polyline><polyline points="9 21 3 21 3 15"></polyline><line x1="21" x2="14" y1="3" y2="10"></line><line x1="3" x2="10" y1="21" y2="14"></line></svg></div></div></a><figcaption class="image-caption">View from The Tate Modern, London.</figcaption></figure></div><p>It’s easy to say (to myself, as I often do) that what I should do is re-learn Java and Spring and go down the stack some. There’d be so much interesting to learn and talk with people about when it comes to using AI in big companies. All of that “secure software supply chain” thinking and stuff applies to AI - it’s just more apps, tons of regulated data flying around…but it’s actually very close to “the business.” Talking about AI is a bigger, even more important field than talking about (or caring about!) Kubernetes, Cloud Foundry, even Java itself.</p><p>There’s also been a severe reduction in the amount of business travel I do. Obviously since COVID, but also because of the more cost conscience state of my work and strategy fluidity over the past few years. It’s made me realize how many of my friends are road-friends. I don’t mean this in that “self-care” way of being dismissive about friends you make at work. I think that’s utter bullshit: friends are friends.</p><p>So, you know: what am I doing here?</p> I only give one talk a year, but I give it many times https://cote.io/2024/02/16/i-only-give.html Fri, 16 Feb 2024 08:59:33 -0800 http://cote.micro.blog/2024/02/16/i-only-give.html <div id="youtube2-2IGX3VG7TKM" class="youtube-wrap" data-attrs="{"videoId":"2IGX3VG7TKM","startTime":null,"endTime":null}" data-component-name="Youtube2ToDOM"><div class="youtube-inner"><iframe src="https://www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/2IGX3VG7TKM?rel=0&autoplay=0&showinfo=0&enablejsapi=0" frameborder="0" loading="lazy" gesture="media" allow="autoplay; fullscreen" allowautoplay="true" allowfullscreen="true" width="728" height="409"></iframe></div></div><h1><strong>Relative to your interests</strong></h1><ul><li><p><a href="https://www.horsesforsources.com/transactional-workforce_021324/">Can we reenergize the transactional workforce?</a> - Hmm.</p></li><li><p><a href="https://bravenewgeek.com/cloud-without-kubernetes/">Cloud without Kubernetes</a> - Start by hiding Kubernetes, only touch it as needed. There’s enough work to do already.</p></li></ul><h1><strong>Wastebook</strong></h1><ul><li><p>“Unhappiness with air travel took a new turn when maggots rained down on passengers on a Delta flight from Amsterdam to Detroit, Michigan, on Tuesday.” <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/feb/15/delta-flight-maggots">Here</a>.</p></li><li><p>The only reason I get away with all this shit is that I just started trying to get away with it.</p></li><li><p>I’m not procrastinating, I’m thinking.</p></li><li><p>“<a href="https://www.gq.com/story/ben-mendelsohn-interview-the-new-look-apple-tv">[</a><em><a href="https://www.gq.com/story/ben-mendelsohn-interview-the-new-look-apple-tv">jerkoff motion</a></em><a href="https://www.gq.com/story/ben-mendelsohn-interview-the-new-look-apple-tv">]</a>”</p></li><li><p>“FUD-pedition”</p></li><li><p>“Goblins: The Unsung Heroes of Humanity’s Defense Against Sentient Toasters.” Gemini.</p></li><li><p>I don’t anything about this topic, but I’m a professional public speaker, so I’m happy to talk about it for 45 minutes.</p></li></ul><h1>Speaking of Goblins</h1><p>I’ve been working on a conference talk that pulls together D&D, generative AI (whatever you want to call it - can we just start saying “AIs” without having to expend the energy to roll our eyes at the nerds who correct us?), and boring ass enterprise software shit. Here is the talk I just submitted to DevOpsDays London and will start submitted elsewhere.</p><h2>Are goblins the only thing holding back the AI Takeover? Benchmarking generative AI with Dungeons & Dragons</h2><p>They say AIs will wreak havoc on human lives, from jobs to s<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gNJ4Q9jqL8A">apping and impurifying all of our precious bodily fluids</a><a class="footnote-anchor" data-component-name="FootnoteAnchorToDOM" id="footnote-anchor-1" href="#footnote-1" target="_self">1</a> to feed its insatiable need for energy. But is AI really a substitute for humans? What better way to answer that question than having <a href="https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLk_5VqpWEtiWbS-AHbk6WxgMfnpYaIx3g">the AIs play a Dungeons & Dragons dungeon master</a>? D&D follows an intricate, yet ambiguous set of rules, requires constant creativity and unexpected imagination, empathy, and playfulness. Being a good DM requires skill at almost all the parts of being human. I’ve developed a sort of Turing test that uses a handful of D&D scenarios to test AIs: how it DMs a goblin ambush, role plays generic tavern encounters, and creates interesting open-ended adventures and world-building. More than benchmarking, this is an excellent way to learn how to create prompts, to understand what AIs are, and pretend like you’re working which you’re having fun playing games. This talk will cover my method, the results, and observations. (This talk proposal was NOT written by an AI…yet.)</p><p>//</p><p>Every time I pitch this idea to someone you can see their interest slowly light up. At first they’re like, “yeah, yeah, D&D - since I know what you’re talking about, thanks for reminding me how much of a nerd I am. I finally got mainstream society to accept me.” And then I go over it more, they’e very silent. Then they say, “holy shit!” and we talk for an hour more.</p><p>It’s not that far from playing D&D with an AI to figuring out customer service chatbots, think through brainstorming with an AI to figure out supply chain issues, or the “game” of ISO 9001 certification (you know, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iX3kxAA2L4Q">9001, 9002, whatever it takes</a>).</p><div class="captioned-image-container"><figure><a class="image-link is-viewable-img image2" target="_blank" href="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fdfc29850-fda0-4938-b7d2-61d3431632b4.heic" data-component-name="Image2ToDOM"><div class="image2-inset"><picture><source type="image/webp" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_424,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fdfc29850-fda0-4938-b7d2-61d3431632b4.heic 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_848,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fdfc29850-fda0-4938-b7d2-61d3431632b4.heic 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1272,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fdfc29850-fda0-4938-b7d2-61d3431632b4.heic 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fdfc29850-fda0-4938-b7d2-61d3431632b4.heic 1456w" sizes="100vw"><img src="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fdfc29850-fda0-4938-b7d2-61d3431632b4.heic" width="640" height="360" data-attrs="{"src":"https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/dfc29850-fda0-4938-b7d2-61d3431632b4.heic","srcNoWatermark":null,"fullscreen":null,"imageSize":null,"height":360,"width":640,"resizeWidth":null,"bytes":35185,"alt":null,"title":null,"type":"image/heic","href":null,"belowTheFold":true,"topImage":false,"internalRedirect":null}" class="sizing-normal" alt="" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_424,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fdfc29850-fda0-4938-b7d2-61d3431632b4.heic 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_848,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fdfc29850-fda0-4938-b7d2-61d3431632b4.heic 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1272,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fdfc29850-fda0-4938-b7d2-61d3431632b4.heic 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fdfc29850-fda0-4938-b7d2-61d3431632b4.heic 1456w" sizes="100vw" loading="lazy"></picture><div class="image-link-expand"><svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="16" height="16" viewBox="0 0 24 24" fill="none" stroke="#FFFFFF" stroke-width="2" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" class="lucide lucide-maximize2 "><polyline points="15 3 21 3 21 9"></polyline><polyline points="9 21 3 21 3 15"></polyline><line x1="21" x2="14" y1="3" y2="10"></line><line x1="3" x2="10" y1="21" y2="14"></line></svg></div></div></a><figcaption class="image-caption">Really try'n' feel that cool linoleum vibe around here. I mean: but, they have stars on them, you know?</figcaption></figure></div><h1>Conferences, Events, etc.</h1><p><em><a href="https://cote.io/speaking/">Talks</a> I’m giving, places I’ll be, and other plans.</em></p><p><strong><a href="https://ismg.events/roundtable-event/dallas-robust-security-java-applications/?utm_source=cote&utm_campaign=devrel&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_content=newsletterUpcoming">Executive dinner on Java Security</a></strong>, March 13th, Dallas; <strong><a href="https://devopsdays.org/events/2024-los-angeles/welcome/">DevOpsDays LA</a></strong>, March 15th, Pasadena “We Fear Change” talk; <strong><a href="https://events.linuxfoundation.org/kubecon-cloudnativecon-europe/co-located-events/platform-engineering-day/">KubeCon EU</a></strong>, March 19th, Paris; <strong><a href="https://www.fig-street.com/041124-tanzu-redefined/?utm_source=cote&utm_campaign=devrel&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_content=newsletterUpcoming">Tanzu (Re)defined</a></strong>, April 11th, Palo Alto.</p><p>If you’re going to KubeCon EU and haven’t registered yet, you can get 20% off with the code KCEU24VMWBC20<strong>.</strong></p><h1>Logoff</h1><p>I struggle to get the “software is what runs your business, not some enterprise side-hustle you keep reducing the budget for” idea across, and I really like <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DPhlesGgZyc">this</a> phrasing:</p><blockquote><p>digital native business often sees technology as a central part to their business strategy, not just an enabler of strategy. They don't really separate business strategy from technology strategy. They look at technology investments different.</p></blockquote><p>Good toast.</p><div class="footnote" data-component-name="FootnoteToDOM"><a id="footnote-1" href="#footnote-anchor-1" class="footnote-number" contenteditable="false" target="_self">1</a><div class="footnote-content"><p>Wow, everything about that clip is perfect. The lighting. The angle. The wardrobe. And most of all, the acting. That film is amazing, I need to watch it again soon.</p></div></div> This apple has a butt https://cote.io/2024/02/15/this-apple-has.html Thu, 15 Feb 2024 02:17:33 -0800 http://cote.micro.blog/2024/02/15/this-apple-has.html <h1>Never use slide notes</h1><div id="youtube2-Yx8y9ADhmT0" class="youtube-wrap" data-attrs="{"videoId":"Yx8y9ADhmT0","startTime":null,"endTime":null}" data-component-name="Youtube2ToDOM"><div class="youtube-inner"><iframe src="https://www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/Yx8y9ADhmT0?rel=0&autoplay=0&showinfo=0&enablejsapi=0" frameborder="0" loading="lazy" gesture="media" allow="autoplay; fullscreen" allowautoplay="true" allowfullscreen="true" width="728" height="409"></iframe></div></div><h1><strong>Relative to your interests</strong></h1><ul><li><p><a href="https://hbr.org/2023/05/organize-your-change-initiative-around-purpose-and-benefits">Organize Your Change Initiative Around Purpose and Benefits</a> - ‘An easy method of finding a change project’s purpose is to continuously ask, “Why are we doing the project?” Usually, you need to ask this question three to four times to get to the core purpose.’ // Does anyone actually have this level of clarity? When would executives have/make the time to do this work?</p></li><li><p><a href="https://thenewstack.io/the-wrong-way-to-use-dora-metrics/">The Wrong Way to Use DORA Metrics</a> - Metrics used to figure out how to fire people are a bummer.</p></li><li><p><a href="https://clients.451research.com/reportaction/203711/Toc?ref=PCN%20email">Majority of applications will use cloud-native technologies in two years</a> - ‘Respondents expect the majority of applications to incorporate cloud-native technologies within two years. Currently, 41% of organizations are using cloud-native techniques for more than half of their applications, but this figure is expected to rise to 61% within two years, reflecting an acceleration in the use of cloud-native application architectures. In addition, prior surveys have found cloud-native adoption to be strongest at organizations with more than $1 billion in revenue and among digital transformation leaders. This survey finds the use of cloud-native application architectures to be strong across organizations of all sizes, industries and digital maturity, confirming that cloud “nativity” is the default platform for software deployment.’</p></li><li><p><a href="https://jjasghar.github.io/blog/2024/02/13/three-personas-of-the-ai-ecosystem/">three personas of the ai ecosystem</a> - JJ goes over three roles/people you’ll encounter in AIrel.</p></li><li><p><a href="https://thenewstack.io/idps-give-developers-more-freedom-to-write-code/">IDPs Give Developers More Freedom to Write Code</a> - We’re merging the functionality of automation (usually Kubernetes automation) too much into the concept of IDPs. Automation stands on its own, and when we talk about it as just a feature of IDPs, things get too confusing. It’s tone for IDPs to be a MoM. Historically, a unified suite of ops functionality is hard to sell: people always want to swap in their own components, and the coders have to prioritize across too many different features. And now, we’d also throwing in developer collaboration sites and tools. Imagine if you combined Atlassian, CI/CD, Chef, and your entire developer tools and portal stacks into one product. It’s better that we keep these things as separate concepts that, sure, can be pre-integrated together. But automation is its own thing. I mean, do you like big suites of tools? They are always confusing and you often don’t want to switch over to using all of those pre-integrated tools.</p></li><li><p><a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/danhon/albums/72177720314761105">These are really great</a>. I feel like it’s the last thing that ever needs to be said on social media, it finishes all that “is this good/bad, etc.” talk that’s constantly going on, and also is instruction for how to be a human on social media, or in meatspace. The <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/danhon/albums/72177720304622143">other project over there is fun</a>. And, you know: man, I still love flickr even though <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/cote/">I’ve largely abandoned it a year ago</a>.</p></li></ul><div id="youtube2-Ugv9KwdshTE" class="youtube-wrap" data-attrs="{"videoId":"Ugv9KwdshTE","startTime":null,"endTime":null}" data-component-name="Youtube2ToDOM"><div class="youtube-inner"><iframe src="https://www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/Ugv9KwdshTE?rel=0&autoplay=0&showinfo=0&enablejsapi=0" frameborder="0" loading="lazy" gesture="media" allow="autoplay; fullscreen" allowautoplay="true" allowfullscreen="true" width="728" height="409"></iframe></div></div><h1><strong>Wastebook</strong></h1><ul><li><p>“…because we’re running a business here, not a shit-show.”</p></li><li><p><a href="https://spyglass.org/its-not-tv-its-apple-tv-plus/">“Apple TV+ has become HBO.”</a></p></li><li><p>“Malibu Country Mart.”</p></li><li><p>“Ridiculous, but dry.”</p></li><li><p>Be your own best friend. Listening, supporting, validating, cheering up, accepting.</p></li><li><p>“Almost weekend!”</p></li><li><p>“Man Survives Steve Ballmer’s Flying Chair To Build ‘21st Century Linux.’” <a href="https://archive.is/OoEVP#selection-483.0-483.71">2011</a>.</p></li><li><p><a href="https://www.gq.com/story/ben-mendelsohn-interview-the-new-look-apple-tv">“[</a><em><a href="https://www.gq.com/story/ben-mendelsohn-interview-the-new-look-apple-tv">Waves egg sandwich around.</a></em><a href="https://www.gq.com/story/ben-mendelsohn-interview-the-new-look-apple-tv">]”</a></p></li><li><p><a href="https://spyglass.org/uber-schadenfreude/">“And on and on…”</a></p></li></ul><h1>Conferences, Events, etc.</h1><p><em><a href="https://cote.io/speaking/">Talks</a> I’m giving, places I’ll be, and other plans.</em></p><p><strong><a href="https://ismg.events/roundtable-event/dallas-robust-security-java-applications/?utm_source=cote&utm_campaign=devrel&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_content=newsletterUpcoming">Executive dinner on Java Security</a></strong>, March 13th, Dallas; <strong><a href="https://devopsdays.org/events/2024-los-angeles/welcome/">DevOpsDays LA</a></strong>, March 15th, Pasadena “We Fear Change” talk; <strong><a href="https://events.linuxfoundation.org/kubecon-cloudnativecon-europe/co-located-events/platform-engineering-day/">KubeCon EU</a></strong>, March 19th, Paris; <strong><a href="https://www.fig-street.com/041124-tanzu-redefined/?utm_source=cote&utm_campaign=devrel&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_content=newsletterUpcoming">Tanzu (Re)defined</a></strong>, April 11th, Palo Alto.</p><p>If you’re going to KubeCon EU and haven’t registered yet, you can get 20% off with the code KCEU24VMWBC20<strong>.</strong></p><h1>Logoff</h1><p><a href="https://cabel.com/2024/02/13/firehouse-five-and-the-cinderella-surprise/">This story</a> is a good reminder of what “fun” looks like.</p><p>Speaking of, we found an apple that has a butt:</p><div class="captioned-image-container"><figure><a class="image-link is-viewable-img image2" target="_blank" href="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fae7662b6-0e8b-4a62-9c27-dd0f7b8ad7c4_720x1038.png" data-component-name="Image2ToDOM"><div class="image2-inset"><picture><source type="image/webp" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_424,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fae7662b6-0e8b-4a62-9c27-dd0f7b8ad7c4_720x1038.png 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_848,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fae7662b6-0e8b-4a62-9c27-dd0f7b8ad7c4_720x1038.png 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1272,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fae7662b6-0e8b-4a62-9c27-dd0f7b8ad7c4_720x1038.png 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fae7662b6-0e8b-4a62-9c27-dd0f7b8ad7c4_720x1038.png 1456w" sizes="100vw"><img src="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fae7662b6-0e8b-4a62-9c27-dd0f7b8ad7c4_720x1038.png" width="720" height="1038" data-attrs="{"src":"https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/ae7662b6-0e8b-4a62-9c27-dd0f7b8ad7c4_720x1038.png","srcNoWatermark":null,"fullscreen":null,"imageSize":null,"height":1038,"width":720,"resizeWidth":null,"bytes":619484,"alt":null,"title":null,"type":"image/png","href":null,"belowTheFold":true,"topImage":false,"internalRedirect":null}" class="sizing-normal" alt="" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_424,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fae7662b6-0e8b-4a62-9c27-dd0f7b8ad7c4_720x1038.png 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_848,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fae7662b6-0e8b-4a62-9c27-dd0f7b8ad7c4_720x1038.png 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1272,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fae7662b6-0e8b-4a62-9c27-dd0f7b8ad7c4_720x1038.png 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fae7662b6-0e8b-4a62-9c27-dd0f7b8ad7c4_720x1038.png 1456w" sizes="100vw" loading="lazy"></picture><div class="image-link-expand"><svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="16" height="16" viewBox="0 0 24 24" fill="none" stroke="#FFFFFF" stroke-width="2" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" class="lucide lucide-maximize2 "><polyline points="15 3 21 3 21 9"></polyline><polyline points="9 21 3 21 3 15"></polyline><line x1="21" x2="14" y1="3" y2="10"></line><line x1="3" x2="10" y1="21" y2="14"></line></svg></div></div></a></figure></div><p>//</p><p>If you’re an “executive” and you’re curious what’s up with Tanzu now, we’re hosting <a href="https://www.fig-street.com/041124-tanzu-redefined/?utm_source=cote&utm_campaign=devrel&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_content=newsletterUpcoming">an in-person conference in April</a> on just that topic. It’s sort of like a multi-party EBC - if that makes sense to you, it’s something you might just like. We used my suggestion for a name: <a href="https://www.fig-street.com/041124-tanzu-redefined/?utm_source=cote&utm_campaign=devrel&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_content=newsletterUpcoming">Tanzu (Re)defined</a>.</p> The easiest presentation format that works https://cote.io/2024/02/13/the-easiest-presentation.html Tue, 13 Feb 2024 08:59:09 -0800 http://cote.micro.blog/2024/02/13/the-easiest-presentation.html <div id="youtube2-uVg3-Ahe-DE" class="youtube-wrap" data-attrs="{"videoId":"uVg3-Ahe-DE","startTime":null,"endTime":null}" data-component-name="Youtube2ToDOM"><div class="youtube-inner"><iframe src="https://www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/uVg3-Ahe-DE?rel=0&autoplay=0&showinfo=0&enablejsapi=0" frameborder="0" loading="lazy" gesture="media" allow="autoplay; fullscreen" allowautoplay="true" allowfullscreen="true" width="728" height="409"></iframe></div></div><h1>Why did Kubernetes Win the Kontainer Wars?*</h1><p><a href="https://www.softwaredefinedtalk.com/453">John Willis finally explains</a> why the underpowered, not fully ready, overly complex container orchestrator from Google became the cloud native juggxrnaught.</p><p>Also, there’s much whole lot more DevOps and Demming talk in <a href="https://www.softwaredefinedtalk.com/453">the interview I did with him last week</a>.</p><p>*Also, sure: I know that the victors never like the “war” framing. Yup.</p><h1><strong>Wastebook</strong></h1><ul><li><p>“Well, we lost a lot of material things, but the great thing is, we’re all still alive, and Mom only broke one hand, and now Dad can buy a new toupee, and that will look lots better!” <a href="https://people.well.com/conf/inkwell.vue/topics/540/Bruce-Sterling-and-Jon-Lebkowsky-page02.html">Bruce Sterling</a>.</p></li><li><p>“Superior And Relentless Alignment.” <a href="https://www.forrester.com/blogs/high-performance-it-demands-superior-and-relentless-alignment-between-business-and-it/">Here</a>.</p></li><li><p>“an army of fleece-clad adult toddlers” <a href="https://nymag.com/intelligencer/article/kara-swisher-burn-book-excerpt-silicon-valley-media.html">Kara Swisher</a>.</p></li><li><p>The customer is always right, except when it comes to pricing.</p></li></ul><h1>Conferences, Events, etc.</h1><p><em><a href="https://cote.io/speaking/">Talks</a> I’m giving, places I’ll be, and other plans.</em></p><p><strong><a href="https://devopsdays.org/events/2024-los-angeles/welcome/">DevOpsDays LA</a></strong>, March 15th, “We Fear Change” talk; <strong><a href="https://events.linuxfoundation.org/kubecon-cloudnativecon-europe/co-located-events/platform-engineering-day/">KubeCon EU</a></strong>, March 19th. <strong><a href="https://ismg.events/roundtable-event/dallas-robust-security-java-applications/?utm_source=cote&utm_campaign=devrel&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_content=newsletterUpcoming">Executive dinner in Dallas</a></strong>, March 31st.</p><p>If you’re going to KubeCon EU and haven’t registered yet, you can get 20% of with the code KCEU24VMWBC20<strong>.</strong></p><h1>Logoff</h1><p>I have some links laying around here somewhere, but I seem to have misplaced them.</p><p>////</p><p>I could totally do <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r55w6BEjIyI">this</a>, except it’d be PowerPoints instead of music…? I guess I’d need some music in the background, sure.</p><p>Also, if I shoot the video in my entire house, does that mean I can write off my entire house as my home office?</p><p></p> ChatGPT can't take over the world until it can play D&D https://cote.io/2024/02/08/chatgpt-cant-take.html Thu, 08 Feb 2024 09:06:21 -0800 http://cote.micro.blog/2024/02/08/chatgpt-cant-take.html <div id="youtube2-eTzFh1yEn-s" class="youtube-wrap" data-attrs="{"videoId":"eTzFh1yEn-s","startTime":null,"endTime":null}" data-component-name="Youtube2ToDOM"><div class="youtube-inner"><iframe src="https://www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/eTzFh1yEn-s?rel=0&autoplay=0&showinfo=0&enablejsapi=0" frameborder="0" loading="lazy" gesture="media" allow="autoplay; fullscreen" allowautoplay="true" allowfullscreen="true" width="728" height="409"></iframe></div></div><p>What I’m doing here is trying to figure out some benchmarking tests to rate all the AI systems out there. The “application” I’m using is Dungeons & Dragons, in particular, having it be a Dungeon Master. Today, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eTzFh1yEn-s&list=PLk_5VqpWEtiWbS-AHbk6WxgMfnpYaIx3g&index=6">I tested out one of the more difficult parts of D&D, combat</a>. There’s a stack of rules, and then crossed with different monsters, player abilities, terrain, etc., there’s a ton of combinations and possibilities.</p><p>In the video today, I wanted to test out how it handles combat. I used a road ambush scenario (perhaps the most popular scenario in D&D) from <em><a href="https://www.dndbeyond.com/sources/lmop">The Lost Mines of Phandelver</a></em> to test out the ChatDM.</p><p>It went really well, actually!</p><p>I’ll do another ~5 minute post-game analysis of what I learned and next steps soon. In the meantime:</p><ul><li><p>ChatGPT 4 has improved <em>a lot</em> at combat since I tried it last. I think its ability to write and run code helps. It also can track hit points and ongoing status of the players and monsters.</p></li><li><p>It was pretty impressive at remembering the spatial nature of things: where the goblins were, my players, and what that meant for attacks.</p></li><li><p>There’s some minor, but important tuning to do. For example, if the players are walking into an ambush, don’t tell them they’re walking into an ambush.</p></li><li><p>It wasn’t great at interesting and clever tactics. But with some coaching it did what you’d expect goblins to do.</p></li></ul><p> Anyhow: I think it was very instructive.</p><p>I think there’s at least two more scenarios I want to add to this “test suite”: </p><ol><li><p>Role playing of some sort - maybe a meeting in a tavern where you have to learn some information. Maybe just getting past some guards at a gate, parlaying with some hobgoblins.</p></li><li><p>Open-ended exploring - you walk into a village and explore it, resulting in something. There’s a lot of adventures that work this way. The Village of Hommlet in <em>The Temple of Elemental Evil</em> is a good example of this, or just loading up, like, the Boulder’s gate or Waterdeep overview and seeing what happens when the character scurries about.</p></li></ol><h1>Logoff</h1><p>That’s all for today.</p><p>Well, a little bit more. </p><p>I talked with my old pal John Willis about this project today. He’s been going bonkers with AI so he had a lot of feedback and questions. According to John, what I need is something called a “vector database” and a “rag.” I’ll see if we have any of the second in the wash.</p> A ChatGPT prompt for solo roleplaying Dungeons & Dragons https://cote.io/2024/02/07/a-chatgpt-prompt.html Wed, 07 Feb 2024 07:31:16 -0800 http://cote.micro.blog/2024/02/07/a-chatgpt-prompt.html <p>Here’s <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5xC0dn-ZzdU">an overview of the prompt</a> I’m currently using to play D&D with ChatGPT:</p><div id="youtube2-5xC0dn-ZzdU" class="youtube-wrap" data-attrs="{"videoId":"5xC0dn-ZzdU","startTime":null,"endTime":null}" data-component-name="Youtube2ToDOM"><div class="youtube-inner"><iframe src="https://www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/5xC0dn-ZzdU?rel=0&autoplay=0&showinfo=0&enablejsapi=0" frameborder="0" loading="lazy" gesture="media" allow="autoplay; fullscreen" allowautoplay="true" allowfullscreen="true" width="728" height="409"></iframe></div></div><p>In my mind, I’ve got as new talk that evaluates several of the AIs out there based on how well they can play Dungeons and Dragons. After using ChatGPT for about a year, I have first hand experience that makes all the hype - good and negative - seems a lot less amazing. ChatGPT is practical, it’s quick, fun, and even creative. But, it’s not perfect at being a D&D dungeon master right out of the box. It takes a lot of work, adapting, and work on the player’s part. This feels like a good test case to learn and experiment with what exactly all this AI stuff can do in all domains, business or fun. </p><p>While it’s a game, Dungeons and Dragons has extensive rules, almost endless lore and commentary on the Internet, and an open ended nature that means you can do anything. To work well, it requires strict adherence to a lengthy set of rules, but a lot of judgement in how they’re applied and interpreted. And, at the same time success at Dungeons and Dragons requires a lot imagination, creativity, and, well, making shit up. </p><p>That’s just like business strategy, marketing, product development, <em>maybe</em> therapy, law, and most things that are high-value activities. I mean, what do us humans do except try to predict what is going to happen next and predict what should happen next, or, predict what <em>we want</em> to happen next?</p><p>Put another way, I think if I can get ChatGPT to play a dungeon master well, I can probably get it to do other human-creative things well.</p><p>Furthermore, there’s a lot of these generative AI things out there. How would you rate them? Usually you take the same problem/task, come up with some criteria for grading the thing’s performance, and then run that test across all the options. That’s the second part that I want to do: come up with a way of rating and judging the performance of each AI setup. In this case, when it comes to being a dungeon master.</p><p>If I come up with a few criteria and test cases (like, an adventure to play on each), I can evaluate ChatGPT versus Bard versus <a href="https://tanzu.vmware.com/content/blog/genai-for-tanzu-application-service-now-in-beta?utm_source=cote&utm_campaign=devrel&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_content=newsletter20240207">a Tanzu OSS stack</a> versus Bing/CoPilot versus Claude (whenever it’s available in the EU) versus Watsonx, etc. & what have you.</p><p>We’ll see! This could also just be an elaborate excuse to play D&D instead of organizing my desk drawers.</p><p>The, uh, “analysis” of my prompt above is based on <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jeK6jjxjLP8">a session I did live today which you can also watch</a> if you’re into seeing it all happen step by step. It ends right as combat starts with some goblins, which I’ll have to pick-up next time. In <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jeK6jjxjLP8">that livestream recording</a>, you can see the tool-chain and technique I use for solo playing with ChatGPT, along with some commentary on the project.</p><p>If you want to check out the prompt more, it’s in <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5xC0dn-ZzdU">the description of the video</a>.</p><h1>My Content</h1><ul><li><p><a href="https://www.softwaredefinedtalk.com/452">Write the letters - Software Defined Talk #452</a>: This week, we examine the balancing act CEOs face between maintaining operations and pursuing growth, the IRS's attempt to automate tax filing, and defining success in thought leadership.</p></li><li><p><a href="https://www.youtube.com/shorts/u7yNMfdOTjk">How to get over your fear of public speaking</a>.</p></li><li><p><a href="https://www.youtube.com/shorts/u7yNMfdOTjk">For conference presentations, use your own visual style</a>.</p></li></ul><h1><strong>Relevant to your interests</strong></h1><ul><li><p><a href="https://www.theregister.com/2024/02/02/return_to_office_mandates_do_not_boost_profits/">Return to Office mandates boost company profits? Nope</a> - More studies.</p></li><li><p><a href="https://open.substack.com/pub/laserllama/p/to-ceos-and-vcs-suggesting-tech-staffing?r=2d4o&utm_medium=ios&utm_campaign=post">To CEOs and VCs Suggesting Tech-Staffing Cuts</a> - He’s not in favor of the app architectures of the past 15 years. Nor kubernetes, or Scrum.</p></li><li><p><a href="https://thenewstack.io/can-enterprise-devops-ever-measure-up/">Can Enterprise DevOps Ever Measure Up?</a> - A check-in on developer productivity and DevOps metrics.</p></li><li><p><a href="https://www.gartner.com/en/newsroom/press-releases/2024-02-06-gartner-survey-finds-sales-analytics-has-less-influence-on-sales-performance-than-what-leadership-expected">Gartner Survey Finds Sales Analytics Has Less Influence on Sales Performance Than What Leadership Expected</a> - “Eighty-four percent of sales leaders agreed that sales analytics has had less influence on sales performance than what leadership expected.”</p></li><li><p><a href="https://jessewarden.com/2024/01/github-copilot-research-finds-downward-pressure-on-code-quality.html">GitHub Copilot Research Finds “Downward Pressure on Code Quality”</a> - The AI generates too much code and does not favor code re-use.</p></li><li><p><a href="https://www.tomtunguz.com/ai-design-patterns/">AI Design Patterns</a> - As it says! This is from a VCs perspective, collecting together the patterns they see.</p></li></ul><h1><strong>Wastebook</strong></h1><ul><li><p>“He was getting his team to paint a fence.” “About ten percent of the drowned men had their flies open.” <a href="https://marginalrevolution.com/marginalrevolution/2024/02/amsterdam-urban-engineering.html">Here</a>.</p></li><li><p>“Repatriating the partner margins.” <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/posts/jaymcbain_to-be-a-fly-on-the-wall-in-broadcoms-strategy-activity-7153817296111570944-96b0">Here</a>.</p></li><li><p>“I wonder how long it would take to reach product-market-fit if I start with a double-sided spoon…” <a href="https://taylor.town/non-sivers">Derek Sivers</a>.</p></li><li><p>“I just replied to an email from 2018.” Current year: 2024. <a href="https://ma.tt/2024/02/old-emails/">Here</a>.</p></li><li><p>I don't understand very much but I know a lot of things.</p></li><li><p>“I recall hearing a presentation by a GE senior executive at a conference I attended almost ten years ago. Accompanied by a surfeit of PowerPoint, the executive spoke about how GE was reinventing itself as an information technology company. Yet the talk, with its generalities, platitudes and bureaucratic and taxonomic framing, sounded like the corporate America of a bygone age. I walked away from the session convinced that the company had no future. The successful tech people were … crazier than that, more ambitious and more focused on what their companies can and cannot do well. And they don’t use PowerPoint.” <a href="https://archive.ph/CnqyM">Here</a>.</p></li><li><p>“I’m a shower idiot!” <a href="https://overcast.fm/+BEN2QWhHVU">Tyler Cowen</a>.</p></li><li><p>“Dungeon Crawler Carl.”</p></li></ul><div class="captioned-image-container"><figure><a class="image-link is-viewable-img image2" target="_blank" href="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F1e1f17b1-d8e1-4d1e-b30e-4af1f49d5595_1290x968.jpeg" data-component-name="Image2ToDOM"><div class="image2-inset"><picture><source type="image/webp" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_424,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F1e1f17b1-d8e1-4d1e-b30e-4af1f49d5595_1290x968.jpeg 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_848,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F1e1f17b1-d8e1-4d1e-b30e-4af1f49d5595_1290x968.jpeg 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1272,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F1e1f17b1-d8e1-4d1e-b30e-4af1f49d5595_1290x968.jpeg 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F1e1f17b1-d8e1-4d1e-b30e-4af1f49d5595_1290x968.jpeg 1456w" sizes="100vw"><img src="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F1e1f17b1-d8e1-4d1e-b30e-4af1f49d5595_1290x968.jpeg" width="1290" height="968" data-attrs="{"src":"https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/1e1f17b1-d8e1-4d1e-b30e-4af1f49d5595_1290x968.jpeg","srcNoWatermark":null,"fullscreen":null,"imageSize":null,"height":968,"width":1290,"resizeWidth":null,"bytes":185204,"alt":null,"title":null,"type":"image/jpeg","href":null,"belowTheFold":true,"topImage":false,"internalRedirect":null}" class="sizing-normal" alt="" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_424,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F1e1f17b1-d8e1-4d1e-b30e-4af1f49d5595_1290x968.jpeg 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_848,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F1e1f17b1-d8e1-4d1e-b30e-4af1f49d5595_1290x968.jpeg 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1272,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F1e1f17b1-d8e1-4d1e-b30e-4af1f49d5595_1290x968.jpeg 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F1e1f17b1-d8e1-4d1e-b30e-4af1f49d5595_1290x968.jpeg 1456w" sizes="100vw" loading="lazy"></picture><div class="image-link-expand"><svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="16" height="16" viewBox="0 0 24 24" fill="none" stroke="#FFFFFF" stroke-width="2" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" class="lucide lucide-maximize2 "><polyline points="15 3 21 3 21 9"></polyline><polyline points="9 21 3 21 3 15"></polyline><line x1="21" x2="14" y1="3" y2="10"></line><line x1="3" x2="10" y1="21" y2="14"></line></svg></div></div></a></figure></div><h1>Conferences, Events, etc.</h1><p><em><a href="https://cote.io/speaking/">Talks</a> I’m giving, places I’ll be, and other plans. </em></p><p><strong><a href="https://devopsdays.org/events/2024-los-angeles/welcome/">DevOpsDays LA</a></strong>, March 15th, “We Fear Change” talk; <strong><a href="https://events.linuxfoundation.org/kubecon-cloudnativecon-europe/co-located-events/platform-engineering-day/">KubeCon EU</a></strong>, March 19th. <strong><a href="https://ismg.events/roundtable-event/dallas-robust-security-java-applications/?utm_source=cote&utm_campaign=devrel&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_content=newsletterUpcoming">Executive dinner in Dallas</a></strong>, March 31st.</p><h1>Logoff</h1><p>Weird.</p><p></p> "14 pints of mouthwash rations per week" - alcohol in Wes Anderson movies https://cote.io/2024/01/31/pints-of-mouthwash.html Wed, 31 Jan 2024 07:49:16 -0800 http://cote.micro.blog/2024/01/31/pints-of-mouthwash.html <div class="captioned-image-container"><figure><a class="image-link image2" target="_blank" href="https://www.impastiamoclasses.com/post/let-s-talk-about-the-drinks-of-french-dispatch" data-component-name="Image2ToDOM"><div class="image2-inset"><picture><source type="image/webp" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_424,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fc15e6e32-12b4-4ac6-9364-d76630eada13_1480x1088.png 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_848,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fc15e6e32-12b4-4ac6-9364-d76630eada13_1480x1088.png 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1272,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fc15e6e32-12b4-4ac6-9364-d76630eada13_1480x1088.png 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fc15e6e32-12b4-4ac6-9364-d76630eada13_1480x1088.png 1456w" sizes="100vw"><img src="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fc15e6e32-12b4-4ac6-9364-d76630eada13_1480x1088.png" width="1456" height="1070" data-attrs="{"src":"https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/c15e6e32-12b4-4ac6-9364-d76630eada13_1480x1088.png","srcNoWatermark":null,"fullscreen":null,"imageSize":null,"height":1070,"width":1456,"resizeWidth":null,"bytes":null,"alt":"","title":null,"type":null,"href":"https://www.impastiamoclasses.com/post/let-s-talk-about-the-drinks-of-french-dispatch","belowTheFold":false,"topImage":true,"internalRedirect":null}" class="sizing-normal" alt="" title="" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_424,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fc15e6e32-12b4-4ac6-9364-d76630eada13_1480x1088.png 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_848,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fc15e6e32-12b4-4ac6-9364-d76630eada13_1480x1088.png 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1272,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fc15e6e32-12b4-4ac6-9364-d76630eada13_1480x1088.png 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fc15e6e32-12b4-4ac6-9364-d76630eada13_1480x1088.png 1456w" sizes="100vw" fetchpriority="high"></picture><div></div></div></a></figure></div><p>There is <a href="https://www.impastiamoclasses.com/post/let-s-talk-about-the-drinks-of-french-dispatch">already a delightful article on all this</a>, but… If I needed some kind of thesis or dissertation, how about the roll of alcohol in Wes Anderson movies. How is it used as a plot device, character motivation, and just overall establishing the Wes Anderson feel.</p><p>The rat in <em>The Fantastic Mr. Fox</em> is motivated by “cider,” it’s what made kept him going - an alcoholic. Mr. Fox makes a rash celebratory toast after, as he says, having had too much to drink already. The animals tunnels are then flushed out with a flood of Bean’s cider!</p><p>Bean is said to survive primarily on his cider, which is extra strong and custom made. We must presume he is drunk the whole time, drinking what looks like between two to three gallons of cider a day (though, perhaps his wife shares the cider so it’s slightly less). This is likely what makes him obsess over the fox and make the dumb decision at the end to keep sieging the animals out.</p><p>Despite this alcoholism, Bean retains all of his dexterity. He also has a vert Hunter Thompson look: tall, thin, and with a constant cigarette holder and drink in hand - also always with a pistol!</p><p>The beginning of <em>The French Dispatch</em> uses the delivery of a tray of drinks as a sort of pacing and structure. I don’t know the term, but that plate of drinks is what drags (directs? creates the path for?) the camera through the first scene.</p><p>Also in that one: in prison, Moses is slowly killing himself by drinking 14 pints of mouthwash rations per week" until he’s motivated to re-discover his art in his art class. As <a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt8847712/characters/nm0001125">he says</a>:</p><blockquote><p>Well, I’ve been here 3,647 days and nights. Another 14,603 to go. I drink 14 pints of mouthwash rations per week. At that rate, I think I’m going to poison myself to death before I ever get to see the world again, which makes me feel very sad. I gotta change my program. I gotta go in a new direction. Anything I can do to keep my hands busy, I’m gonna do. Otherwise, I think maybe it’s gonna be a suicide. And that’s why I signed up for clay pottery and basket weaving. My name is Moses.</p></blockquote><p>About midway through her lecture, J.K.L. Berensen, abruptly stops saying something like, “now, I’ll have my drink,” pulls out what looks like a portable martini set from under the podium, pours a drink, takes a sip, and then keeps lecturing.</p><p>What do each of the drinks say about the characters? Bill Murray’s character in <em>The French Dispatch</em> has a Prairie Oyster, harkening back to Kansas, but it has an actual oyster in it, something you wouldn’t actually have in Kansas (so close from the sea in the <sub>1950s</sub>). And the actual person, Bill Murray, has <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2016/07/28/fashion/champagne-on-the-rocks-summer.html">a bunch of booze lore</a> already.</p><p>And so forth!</p><h1>Wastebook</h1><ul><li><p>There’s a lot urgency about urgency around here.</p></li><li><p>“Pre-emptive nothingburger.”</p></li><li><p>Wow! <a href="https://www.silverliningsinfo.com/silverliningsinfocom/writing-silverlinings">COMIN' HOT</a>! “We don’t run blogs because blogs are not journalism. We run news analysis stories or opinion columns (which are written in the first person and demonstrate an opinion). If you do not have an opinion that can be backed up by compelling and expert knowledge, do not write in the first person.” // The number on thing they’re missing is how much - if at all! - you get paid.</p></li><li><p>I’d never argue with them. They’re way too smart.</p></li><li><p>“The concept of a fey creature is a gamer-created mishmash of virtually all folkloric creatures that don’t eat humans, aren’t of godlike power, aren’t significantly larger than humans, are corporeal, and are basically of a human body type.” <em><a href="https://preview.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/396154/Tome-of-Adventure-Design-Revised">Tome of Adventure Design</a></em>.</p></li><li><p>“The kingdom of Wessex was now a swamp and, for a few days, it possessed a king, a bishop, four priests, two soldiers, the king’s pregnant wife, two nurses, a whore, two children, one of whom was sick, and Iseult." <em><a href="https://a.co/d5fqB90">The Pale Horseman</a></em>.</p></li><li><p>“We do not 'leverage” anything." <a href="https://www.threads.net/@techemails/post/CxOXwL4PLgi/">Google diction directives</a>.</p></li><li><p>“unlocked efficiency gains.” <a href="https://open.substack.com/pub/onlycfo/p/warning-signs-of-a-layoff?r=2d4o&utm_medium=ios&utm_campaign=post">They found that lost key</a>.</p></li><li><p>“This floor has been taken over by sentient water coolers that stab people with their water dispenser faucets - which are now fanged - to suck their blood.” <a href="https://www.wordmillgames.com/mythic.html">Here</a>.</p></li></ul><h1>Relative to your interests</h1><p><em>Only two today. If you want more links you should be subscribing to and reading <a href="https://seroter.com/category/daily-reading-list/">Seroter’s daily reading list</a>. I look forward to it each day…and often steal links from him!</em></p><ul><li><p><a href="https://www.macrumors.com/2024/01/30/apple-card-1-billion-daily-cash-2023/">Apple Card Users Earned More Than $1 Billion in Daily Cash Last Year</a> - I don’t really use my Apple Card, but I like the savings account. They should setup an auto savings option that buys into an S&P index, or those age-driven Vanguard accounts. That’d be #DefaultsLifestyle FTW.</p></li><li><p><a href="https://www.theregister.com/2024/01/28/handwriting_vs_typing_study/">Handwriting beats typing for turbocharging your noggin</a> - The sample size was only “36 university students,” but they did scan their brain.</p></li></ul><h1>Logoff</h1><p>I haven’t “released” this video yet, so here, dear readers, you can get a sneak peak:</p><div id="youtube2--hNfAbDGPjM" class="youtube-wrap" data-attrs="{"videoId":"-hNfAbDGPjM","startTime":null,"endTime":null}" data-component-name="Youtube2ToDOM"><div class="youtube-inner"><iframe src="https://www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/-hNfAbDGPjM?rel=0&autoplay=0&showinfo=0&enablejsapi=0" frameborder="0" loading="lazy" gesture="media" allow="autoplay; fullscreen" allowautoplay="true" allowfullscreen="true" width="728" height="409"></iframe></div></div><p>Sorry about the coffee mustache. It’s one of those things that happens as you get older.</p><p>I’ve been filming and putting up <a href="https://www.youtube.com/@thecote/shorts">more tiny videos</a> (and <a href="https://www.youtube.com/@VMwareTanzu/shorts">a few for work</a>). Predictably, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/shorts/gs6-SDXiSjo">the how to have more fun with solo Dungeons and Dragons one is doing well</a>.</p><p>I’m starting to like this short video format. It’s kind of like Tweeting used to be. 60 seconds is just for YouTube. Thanks to how quick I can edit with <a href="https://www.descript.com">Descript</a>, I’ve been making two versions: a <a href="https://www.youtube.com/@thecote/shorts">60 second or less one for YouTube</a>, and as long as it should be for <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelcote/recent-activity/videos/">LinkedIn</a>, <a href="https://www.tiktok.com/@drunkandretired">TikTok</a>, and <a href="https://www.instagram.com/bushwald/">Instagram</a>.</p> Getting Buck-Wild in PowerPoint https://cote.io/2024/01/26/getting-buckwild-in.html Fri, 26 Jan 2024 08:15:13 -0800 http://cote.micro.blog/2024/01/26/getting-buckwild-in.html <p><em>“They say all foxes are slightly allergic to linoleum, but it's cool to the paw, try it.”</em></p><div class="captioned-image-container"><figure><a class="image-link is-viewable-img image2" target="_blank" href="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fbe7aef75-ff9c-4306-9d74-cc73a9ff2da2_1228x813.png" data-component-name="Image2ToDOM"><div class="image2-inset"><picture><source type="image/webp" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_424,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fbe7aef75-ff9c-4306-9d74-cc73a9ff2da2_1228x813.png 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_848,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fbe7aef75-ff9c-4306-9d74-cc73a9ff2da2_1228x813.png 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1272,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fbe7aef75-ff9c-4306-9d74-cc73a9ff2da2_1228x813.png 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fbe7aef75-ff9c-4306-9d74-cc73a9ff2da2_1228x813.png 1456w" sizes="100vw"><img src="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fbe7aef75-ff9c-4306-9d74-cc73a9ff2da2_1228x813.png" width="1228" height="813" data-attrs="{"src":"https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/be7aef75-ff9c-4306-9d74-cc73a9ff2da2_1228x813.png","srcNoWatermark":null,"fullscreen":null,"imageSize":null,"height":813,"width":1228,"resizeWidth":null,"bytes":649300,"alt":"","title":null,"type":"image/png","href":null,"belowTheFold":false,"topImage":true,"internalRedirect":null}" class="sizing-normal" alt="" title="" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_424,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fbe7aef75-ff9c-4306-9d74-cc73a9ff2da2_1228x813.png 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_848,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fbe7aef75-ff9c-4306-9d74-cc73a9ff2da2_1228x813.png 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1272,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fbe7aef75-ff9c-4306-9d74-cc73a9ff2da2_1228x813.png 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fbe7aef75-ff9c-4306-9d74-cc73a9ff2da2_1228x813.png 1456w" sizes="100vw" fetchpriority="high"></picture><div class="image-link-expand"><svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="16" height="16" viewBox="0 0 24 24" fill="none" stroke="#FFFFFF" stroke-width="2" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" class="lucide lucide-maximize2 "><polyline points="15 3 21 3 21 9"></polyline><polyline points="9 21 3 21 3 15"></polyline><line x1="21" x2="14" y1="3" y2="10"></line><line x1="3" x2="10" y1="21" y2="14"></line></svg></div></div></a></figure></div><h1>Enshittification considerificated</h1><p>This week’s <strong><a href="https://www.softwaredefinedtalk.com/451">Software Defined Talk</a></strong><a href="https://www.softwaredefinedtalk.com/451">, episode 451</a>: How does anyone use the Internet? This week, we discuss what “enshittification” is, what causes it, and whether it can be prevented. Plus, stay tuned until the end to hear the Software Defined Talk origin story. (Sadly, we made no 451 Research references.)</p><h1><strong>Relative to your interests</strong></h1><ul><li><p><a href="https://shiftmag.dev/enterprise-developers-what-they-do-where-and-how-2619/">Enterprise developers: what they do, where, and how</a> - Highlights for a recent survey of developer types.</p></li><li><p><a href="https://gigaom.com/2024/01/24/container-networking-from-diy-to-buy/">Container Networking: From DIY to Buy</a> - People don’t cover Kubernetes networking, they say. And it’s yet another hassle: “the networking burden falls on DevOps teams who have not traditionally been (and should not be) responsible for network deployment and management. To do so, they need to learn about Layers 3 to 7, border gateway protocol (BGP), subnetting, network address translation (NAT), and the like, but that’s a fairly long training path.”</p></li><li><p><a href="https://www.dndbeyond.com/posts/1645-everythings-a-dungeon-a-different-approach-to">Everything’s a Dungeon: A Different Approach to Exploration Design</a> - How to think about the “node-paths” of an adventure, in a dungeon-crawl, city, etc.</p></li></ul><div class="captioned-image-container"><figure><a class="image-link image2" target="_blank" href="https://fonts.adobe.com/fonts/badtyp" data-component-name="Image2ToDOM"><div class="image2-inset"><picture><source type="image/webp" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_424,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Ffccd96bc-00c4-4dfa-8497-0c6c69fe8914.heic 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_848,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Ffccd96bc-00c4-4dfa-8497-0c6c69fe8914.heic 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1272,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Ffccd96bc-00c4-4dfa-8497-0c6c69fe8914.heic 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Ffccd96bc-00c4-4dfa-8497-0c6c69fe8914.heic 1456w" sizes="100vw"><img src="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Ffccd96bc-00c4-4dfa-8497-0c6c69fe8914.heic" width="1456" height="728" data-attrs="{"src":"https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/fccd96bc-00c4-4dfa-8497-0c6c69fe8914.heic","srcNoWatermark":null,"fullscreen":null,"imageSize":null,"height":728,"width":1456,"resizeWidth":null,"bytes":48750,"alt":"","title":"","type":"image/heic","href":"https://fonts.adobe.com/fonts/badtyp","belowTheFold":false,"topImage":false,"internalRedirect":null}" class="sizing-normal" alt="" title="" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_424,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Ffccd96bc-00c4-4dfa-8497-0c6c69fe8914.heic 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_848,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Ffccd96bc-00c4-4dfa-8497-0c6c69fe8914.heic 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1272,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Ffccd96bc-00c4-4dfa-8497-0c6c69fe8914.heic 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Ffccd96bc-00c4-4dfa-8497-0c6c69fe8914.heic 1456w" sizes="100vw"></picture><div></div></div></a><figcaption class="image-caption">This episode’s Font Selection.</figcaption></figure></div><h1><strong>Wastebook</strong></h1><ul><li><p>“I was trying to play a simple fantasy rogue adventure, but the AI is obsessed with half naked busty women.” <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Solo_Roleplaying/s/gcrq4lu1Ly">Yup</a>.</p></li><li><p>“1 hour of flying toasters.” <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HMMULaZUV_U">Here</a>. (I feel like there’s not <em>enough</em> toast in <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gwn59R8Mdps">this one</a>.)</p></li><li><p>Looks like we need to re-send the memo.</p></li><li><p>“Displeased unhappy bearded Caucasian man with cone hat on head and party horn in mouth looking at camera with bored dissatisfied expression as his birthday party sucks.” <a href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/displeased-unhappy-bearded-caucasian-man-cone-695383129">Here</a>. (And, see below for said bearded Caucasian man.)</p></li><li><p>“Some research has found that asking people to simply set aside half an hour a day for worrying allows them to avoid worrying during the rest of their day.” <a href="https://open.substack.com/pub/drsamanthaboardman/p/a-case-for-sweeping-negative-emotions?r=2d4o&utm_medium=ios&utm_campaign=post">Here</a>. By “simply,” they mean “<em>only</em>.”</p></li><li><p>“Also, for the record, this woman is the woman who was thrown out of a Walmart for cleaning their bathroom, but she is NOT the woman who went and stocked shelves at a Target.” <a href="https://www.garbageday.email/p/mrbeast-screwed-elons-pyramid-scheme?utm_source=www.garbageday.email&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_campaign=mrbeast-screwed-up-elon-s-pyramid-scheme">Here</a>.</p></li></ul><div class="captioned-image-container"><figure><a class="image-link image2" target="_blank" href="https://webflow.com/blog/corporate-memphis" data-component-name="Image2ToDOM"><div class="image2-inset"><picture><source type="image/webp" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_424,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F2600c008-3369-4a4e-ad35-1bcb57da5cb3_1276x717.jpeg 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_848,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F2600c008-3369-4a4e-ad35-1bcb57da5cb3_1276x717.jpeg 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1272,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F2600c008-3369-4a4e-ad35-1bcb57da5cb3_1276x717.jpeg 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F2600c008-3369-4a4e-ad35-1bcb57da5cb3_1276x717.jpeg 1456w" sizes="100vw"><img src="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F2600c008-3369-4a4e-ad35-1bcb57da5cb3_1276x717.jpeg" width="1276" height="717" data-attrs="{"src":"https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/2600c008-3369-4a4e-ad35-1bcb57da5cb3_1276x717.jpeg","srcNoWatermark":null,"fullscreen":null,"imageSize":null,"height":717,"width":1276,"resizeWidth":null,"bytes":null,"alt":"An image of a Corporate Memphis version of “Saturn Devouring His Son.“ This serves as a critique for the art style. ","title":"An image of a Corporate Memphis version of “Saturn Devouring His Son.“ This serves as a critique for the art style. ","type":null,"href":"https://webflow.com/blog/corporate-memphis","belowTheFold":true,"topImage":false,"internalRedirect":null}" class="sizing-normal" alt="An image of a Corporate Memphis version of “Saturn Devouring His Son.“ This serves as a critique for the art style. " title="An image of a Corporate Memphis version of “Saturn Devouring His Son.“ This serves as a critique for the art style. " srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_424,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F2600c008-3369-4a4e-ad35-1bcb57da5cb3_1276x717.jpeg 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_848,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F2600c008-3369-4a4e-ad35-1bcb57da5cb3_1276x717.jpeg 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1272,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F2600c008-3369-4a4e-ad35-1bcb57da5cb3_1276x717.jpeg 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F2600c008-3369-4a4e-ad35-1bcb57da5cb3_1276x717.jpeg 1456w" sizes="100vw" loading="lazy"></picture><div></div></div></a></figure></div><h1>Logoff</h1><p>I’ve done a lot of slide work today for my upcoming “We Fear Change” talk. </p><p>As <a href="https://markcathcart.com">Mark Cathcart</a>, Distinguished Engineer at Dell and previously IBM, once said to me, shit-eating grin on his face looking up from his cubical, “I used to be good at my job. Now I’m good at PowerPoint.”</p><p>This presentation I’ve been worked on today gets buck-wild right from the start:</p><div class="captioned-image-container"><figure><a class="image-link is-viewable-img image2" target="_blank" href="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F0f739cfc-32c4-4b39-8946-bac1007ff63c_890x576.gif" data-component-name="Image2ToDOM"><div class="image2-inset"><picture><source type="image/webp" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_424,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_lossy/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F0f739cfc-32c4-4b39-8946-bac1007ff63c_890x576.gif 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_848,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_lossy/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F0f739cfc-32c4-4b39-8946-bac1007ff63c_890x576.gif 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1272,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_lossy/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F0f739cfc-32c4-4b39-8946-bac1007ff63c_890x576.gif 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_lossy/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F0f739cfc-32c4-4b39-8946-bac1007ff63c_890x576.gif 1456w" sizes="100vw"><img src="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_lossy/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F0f739cfc-32c4-4b39-8946-bac1007ff63c_890x576.gif" width="890" height="576" data-attrs="{"src":"https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/0f739cfc-32c4-4b39-8946-bac1007ff63c_890x576.gif","srcNoWatermark":null,"fullscreen":null,"imageSize":null,"height":576,"width":890,"resizeWidth":null,"bytes":8766002,"alt":null,"title":null,"type":"image/gif","href":null,"belowTheFold":true,"topImage":false,"internalRedirect":null}" class="sizing-normal" alt="" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_424,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_lossy/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F0f739cfc-32c4-4b39-8946-bac1007ff63c_890x576.gif 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_848,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_lossy/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F0f739cfc-32c4-4b39-8946-bac1007ff63c_890x576.gif 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1272,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_lossy/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F0f739cfc-32c4-4b39-8946-bac1007ff63c_890x576.gif 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_lossy/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F0f739cfc-32c4-4b39-8946-bac1007ff63c_890x576.gif 1456w" sizes="100vw" loading="lazy"></picture><div class="image-link-expand"><svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="16" height="16" viewBox="0 0 24 24" fill="none" stroke="#FFFFFF" stroke-width="2" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" class="lucide lucide-maximize2 "><polyline points="15 3 21 3 21 9"></polyline><polyline points="9 21 3 21 3 15"></polyline><line x1="21" x2="14" y1="3" y2="10"></line><line x1="3" x2="10" y1="21" y2="14"></line></svg></div></div></a></figure></div><p>First, we’ll see if I actually use this. Second, what’s going on here is this. I really want to use that <em>Wayne’s World</em> bit.<a class="footnote-anchor" data-component-name="FootnoteAnchorToDOM" id="footnote-anchor-1" href="#footnote-1" target="_self">1</a> It’s what I named this presentation after! But, when you start a presentation you don’t just go cold into the title slide, you have to mess around with wires, wait to get the signal to start, etc. So I needed some kind of resting slide <em>before</em> the title slide. What better than toasters? Then, you can just put “slide zero” up - the toasters - and go into the title slide when needed, making sure you can time the, you know, joke.</p><p>Yeah. </p><p>We’ll see if I actually use it next week. </p><p>IT COULD BE <em><strong>TOO</strong></em> MUCH.</p><div class="footnote" data-component-name="FootnoteToDOM"><a id="footnote-1" href="#footnote-anchor-1" class="footnote-number" contenteditable="false" target="_self">1</a><div class="footnote-content"><p>I didn’t make that lovely clip, I found it <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/posts/davisgillian_issue-7-the-sum-of-all-fears-is-a-breakdown-activity-7055209793858232320-znO3/">here</a>.</p></div></div> “Don’t Try” Expanded https://cote.io/2024/01/24/dont-try-expanded.html Wed, 24 Jan 2024 06:51:44 -0800 http://cote.micro.blog/2024/01/24/dont-try-expanded.html <p><em>The “p” in IDP is for portal, not platform.</em></p><div class="captioned-image-container"><figure><a class="image-link image2" target="_blank" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/craigius/3377085600/" data-component-name="Image2ToDOM"><div class="image2-inset"><picture><source type="image/webp" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_424,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fb4036087-8df1-4bbd-9b9a-427e67a77bc8_1024x768.jpeg 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_848,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fb4036087-8df1-4bbd-9b9a-427e67a77bc8_1024x768.jpeg 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1272,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fb4036087-8df1-4bbd-9b9a-427e67a77bc8_1024x768.jpeg 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fb4036087-8df1-4bbd-9b9a-427e67a77bc8_1024x768.jpeg 1456w" sizes="100vw"><img src="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fb4036087-8df1-4bbd-9b9a-427e67a77bc8_1024x768.jpeg" width="1024" height="768" data-attrs="{"src":"https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/b4036087-8df1-4bbd-9b9a-427e67a77bc8_1024x768.jpeg","srcNoWatermark":null,"fullscreen":null,"imageSize":null,"height":768,"width":1024,"resizeWidth":null,"bytes":null,"alt":null,"title":null,"type":null,"href":"https://www.flickr.com/photos/craigius/3377085600/","belowTheFold":false,"topImage":true,"internalRedirect":null}" class="sizing-normal" alt="" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_424,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fb4036087-8df1-4bbd-9b9a-427e67a77bc8_1024x768.jpeg 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_848,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fb4036087-8df1-4bbd-9b9a-427e67a77bc8_1024x768.jpeg 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1272,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fb4036087-8df1-4bbd-9b9a-427e67a77bc8_1024x768.jpeg 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fb4036087-8df1-4bbd-9b9a-427e67a77bc8_1024x768.jpeg 1456w" sizes="100vw" fetchpriority="high"></picture><div></div></div></a><figcaption class="image-caption">Photo from <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/craigius/3377085600">Craig I, 2009</a>.</figcaption></figure></div><p>I think about this headstone often. It’s a well known, eye-rolling cliché is that, of course, he meant to let art flow through you effortlessly. He was, after all, a poet.</p><p>For those of us who can’t just pour the muse out of a bottle, there’s something more to “Don’t Try.” And that is: stick to what you’re good at. If you’ve developed a skill (or, I guess, an outlook on life) make sure to do it a lot, by default even.<a class="footnote-anchor" data-component-name="FootnoteAnchorToDOM" id="footnote-anchor-1" href="#footnote-1" target="_self">1</a> You also don’t need to show off and get validation for it, just do the work. Don’t try to do more than you’re good at in day-to-day life.</p><p>Of course you should learn new things, improve, and push yourself. But not <em>that</em> much. If you’re always focused on how you could be better, you’ll get depressed. You know, gratitude journals about how well things are going, and how good a person you are just the way you are.</p><p>There is also the Don’t Try of <a href="https://www.softwaredefinedtalk.com/450">getting too involved outside of your area of concerns at work</a>.</p><p>And, there's the Don't Try that therapy is always telling me: all these things you're tormented about are actually not that bad, most are even "nothing." You are the one tormenting yourself because you're trying too hard to care, to think things matter when they don't. Instead, don't try to see what's not there, just accept what the flow of life. It's probably fine.</p><p>Anyhow. I could probably try to make this point better. But, you know…</p><h1>Update your Java apps to do that FinOps magic</h1><p>If you run Java apps, chances are high you run Spring. This year, you should make sure you've upgraded to the latest version: you'll get <strong>huge performance boosts like uses 70% less memory</strong> and faster boot-up times that I can't even calculate the improvement for. Check out <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ck4AP7kRQkc">my pal DaShaun demonstrating these improvements in this quick video</a>.</p><p>That means <strong>saving money if you can FinOps your way into using less beefy, costly cloud doo-dads</strong> and shutting down long-running Java process because you can’t afford the VM startup-time delays. Also, many older versions will not longer have support available. Upgrading is easier than you'd think and it'll get you these free payoffs. Plus, you know, actually new functionality and happier developers.</p><p>And, if you want a free way to see if your app can get these benefits, <a href="https://tanzu.vmware.com/spring-health-assessment?utm_source=cote&utm_campaign=devrel&utm_content=newsletter20240124&utm_medium=newsletter">check out our Spring Health Assessment report</a>. It’ll look at your app and take a swing at how you can make it run rul-better-like.</p><h1><strong>Wastebook</strong></h1><ul><li><p>Reading Rainbow: Business Book Edition - “Synergies in the sky! I can crow CAGR twice as I high! Take a look, it’s in a PowerPoint, Reading Rainbow!” Yes, and, who would be the host?</p></li><li><p>GUM IS TERRIBLE WHEN OUTSIDE THE MOUTH.</p></li><li><p>“It’s not something I keep a tab open for.” _Dear John Letters, Jan 18th, 2024</p></li><li><p>Well, you know what they say about “hope,” right? What? Yeah, neither do I. That’s probably why I ain’t got none.</p></li><li><p>One powerful benefit of getting older is the default stance of knowing less about pop culture and generally not caring. As an aging Gen-X’er, you can really amp this up by taping into your mutant super-power of not giving a shit about anything. If you’re getting older, and you find yourself getting upset more and more, then you’re doing it wrong, and just giving yourself the shits.</p></li></ul><h1>Logoff</h1><p>Awhile back I mentioned that I was asked to contribute to a 2024 predictions round-up. Here’s <a href="https://shiftmag.dev/technology-trends-2024-kubernetes-java-backstage-2565/">the final article, converted to an interview style with just me</a>.</p><p></p><div class="footnote" data-component-name="FootnoteToDOM"><a id="footnote-1" href="#footnote-anchor-1" class="footnote-number" contenteditable="false" target="_self">1</a><div class="footnote-content"><p>I’m a proponent of something I call the #DefaultsLifestyle which is literally and, more broadly, metaphorically the idea that you should just use the apps that come on your iPhone instead of spending time hunting down and learning to use “better” ones.</p></div></div> Lessons from Uber on developer productivity & platforms https://cote.io/2024/01/23/lessons-from-uber.html Tue, 23 Jan 2024 07:09:34 -0800 http://cote.micro.blog/2024/01/23/lessons-from-uber.html <p><em>Tell me the last new condiment you tried that you didn’t like.</em></p><h1>Developer Productivity</h1><p>One of my co-workers worked at Uber for awhile on their internal developer tools and platforms. In this week’s Tanzu Talk episode, Cora and I talk to him about what they did, why, and how as well. Check out the video below, or <a href="https://tanzutalk.podbean.com/e/developer-platforms-and-productivity-with-serdar-badem/">the podcast episode</a> if you prefer that.</p><div id="youtube2-ZkVBjtODpiM" class="youtube-wrap" data-attrs="{"videoId":"ZkVBjtODpiM","startTime":null,"endTime":null}" data-component-name="Youtube2ToDOM"><div class="youtube-inner"><iframe src="https://www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/ZkVBjtODpiM?rel=0&autoplay=0&showinfo=0&enablejsapi=0" frameborder="0" loading="lazy" gesture="media" allow="autoplay; fullscreen" allowautoplay="true" allowfullscreen="true" width="728" height="409"></iframe></div></div><h1><strong>Relative to your interests</strong></h1><ul><li><p><a href="https://om.co/2024/01/22/death-of-the-critic/">Pitchfork & The Death of the critic</a> - Death of the critic? No, as always, when the medium changes, how the job is done is changes. // “The culture critics who spent days creating words of criticism now have to evolve to use today’s tools to help others think differently, try new things, and have an influence. Playlists are the new words. Followers are the new readers. Critics of yesterday are now ‘tastemakers.’ While anyone can be a tastemaker, to be good, and have real influence, one still needs to have skills that add up to a professional critic – broad awareness of modern and past works, other aspects of life, understanding of popular culture, knowledge of society, and contemporary politics, economics, and global context.” // Socrates hated writing. His medium was talking. He feared that writing would ruin philosophy. Plato learned the new medium, and the reach was more powerful effective and durable. A 60 second video may not seem like a critical piece, but if it contains critical analysis and, even, recommendations, of course it is.</p></li><li><p><a href="https://www.zdnet.com/article/why-agile-doesnt-work-for-most-it-pros-the-bigger-you-are-the-harder-you-fall/#ftag=RSSbaffb68">Why Agile doesn’t work for most IT pros: The bigger you are, the harder you fall</a> - I thought they’d stopped doing the State of Agile surveys, so it’s fun to see a new one.</p></li><li><p><a href="https://om.co/2024/01/22/bell-labs-google-same-sad-story/">Bell Labs & Google: bookends of the same sad story?</a> - “Whether it’s Bell Labs, Xerox Parc, or IBM Research Labs, the story is always the same: corporate overlords are so married to the staid predictability of their cash cows that they fail to make bold decisions. Middle managers who eventually rise to the top lack the imagination or risk-taking capabilities to put their companies on new growth curves.” // I don’t like this as a complete failure explanation. The missing piece is something more like innovation in business models: figuring out how to create a business out new products and new features, and often failing to! The comments from Google people are right, though: you need some kind of innovation and product driven leadership to keep the product going. In contrast to the usual innovate or die mindset, an appreciate for cash cows: yes, your company is “just” a cash cow with predictable, low growth revenue. That is how most businesses function and it’s perfectly fine: you just have different expectations as an investor and an employee. You are low risk, you are steady, and likely you are part of how society functions. You move slow and care for things.</p></li><li><p>Related, <a href="https://open.substack.com/pub/benn/p/its-time-to-build?selection=0c874398-fde8-45be-b547-f51d3c6a7c93&r=2d4o&utm_medium=ios">incremental improvement</a> (or <a href="https://www.thecloudcast.net/2024/01/technology-shifts-vs-drifts.html">“drift”</a>): “In other words, to build a great data business, today’s startups don’t have to come up with particularly novel ideas or get a bunch of bets about the market right. They just have to rebuild what’s already there, but more deliberately and on more certain ground than the original pioneers could.”</p></li></ul><h1><strong>Wastebook</strong></h1><ul><li><p>I have no idea what they’re doing, but they’re obviously not very good at it.</p></li><li><p>Two models of judging “value”: (1) how much value you can create, (2) how much value you can take. You can grow a forest, or you can harvest a forest. You can lower prices, or you can raise prices. You can collaborate, or you can take credit. We aspire to turn all those or’s into and’s, but we mostly do one or the other.</p></li><li><p>All process improvement can be learned by how to manage the flow of laundry and dirty dishes. And we should take the overwhelming nature of those as therapeutic council that you can never master it consistently. Especially when you have kids.</p></li><li><p>“On the other hand, the frenzy is destabilizing.” <a href="https://open.substack.com/pub/benn/p/its-time-to-build?selection=ad30eafb-4bcc-45b7-9a4e-f6f33f546c4a&r=2d4o&utm_medium=ios">Here</a>.</p></li></ul><h1>Logoff</h1><p>It’s a regular hurry up and wait situation at the moment.</p> If you're not changing tools, you're not changing https://cote.io/2024/01/22/if-youre-not.html Mon, 22 Jan 2024 06:35:28 -0800 http://cote.micro.blog/2024/01/22/if-youre-not.html <h1>All Talk, No Tools</h1><p>I like heuristics you can use to figure out what’s “really” going on at work (well, in any system, I guess). When it comes to Big Change, one of the heuristics I like to use is to ask if the organization is using new tools. </p><p>My colleague Bryan Ross has <a href="https://tanzu.vmware.com/content/blog/digital-transformation-bottlenecks-all-talk-and-no-tools?utm_source=cote&utm_campaign=devrel&utm_content=newsletter20240122&utm_medium=newsletter">a new post up on using this test</a>.</p><p>For example, if you’re in some big digital transformation initiative - like migrating to cloud, converting your app dev style to cloud native, getting more agile/DevOps/platform engineering - are you using new tools? Are you at least upgrading your existing tools to get new functionality? If you’re not, there’s a good chance you’re not going to actually change. Worse, if management is avoiding changing and adding budget for new tools, you’re also likely not going to change.</p><p>Sure, this isn’t always the case, but it should make you suspicious. Tools are how you get most things done in IT; just talking doesn’t write code too well, deploy it to production, or troubleshoot it when things go wrong in production. Tools will generally embody how you work and what you do (and vice-versa). So, if the tools aren’t changing, it’s likely that how you work isn’t going to change, and, thus, the outcomes won’t change.</p><p>Check out <a href="https://tanzu.vmware.com/content/blog/digital-transformation-bottlenecks-all-talk-and-no-tools?utm_source=cote&utm_campaign=devrel&utm_content=newsletter20240122&utm_medium=newsletter">Bryan’s post</a>! It’s part of the series he’s been doing to write-up his version of a series of goofy videos I did last, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kh6Nktcfq6c&list=PLAdzTan_eSPSgboBF9W2VqnJ8BzYkOHgR&index=3">this one in particular</a>.<a class="footnote-anchor" data-component-name="FootnoteAnchorToDOM" id="footnote-anchor-1" href="#footnote-1" target="_self">1</a></p><h1>How to walk on ice</h1><p>Here is me making some kind of life-inspirational video. PROSPER!</p><div id="youtube2-f9XeMHqR0Uo" class="youtube-wrap" data-attrs="{"videoId":"f9XeMHqR0Uo","startTime":null,"endTime":null}" data-component-name="Youtube2ToDOM"><div class="youtube-inner"><iframe src="https://www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/f9XeMHqR0Uo?rel=0&autoplay=0&showinfo=0&enablejsapi=0" frameborder="0" loading="lazy" gesture="media" allow="autoplay; fullscreen" allowautoplay="true" allowfullscreen="true" width="728" height="409"></iframe></div></div><h1><strong>Relative to your interests</strong></h1><ul><li><p><a href="https://www.bbc.com/worklife/article/20240118-workers-are-filming-their-layoffs-then-posting-them-to-tiktok-what-could-go-wrong">Workers are filming their layoffs, then posting them to TikTok. What could go wrong? </a>- Where there’s information asymmetric, there’s generally bad power-dynamics. And when The Kids hack that asymmetry, The Olds generally lose their shit.</p></li><li><p><a href="https://www.tomtunguz.com/the-missing-bschool-class/">The Class Missing from Business School</a> - What is the best way to do this an IC? ‘1. Shifting mindset from “How do I accomplish this?” to “Who should be the right person to accomplish this task & how would it fit into their goals?”’</p></li><li><p><a href="https://thenewstack.io/2-ways-to-reduce-bottlenecks-with-the-theory-of-constraints/">2 Ways to Reduce Bottlenecks with the Theory of Constraints</a> - Things get a little confusing when he all the sudden says to finish things to the right of the bottleneck, but I think that just means to first finish all the work that has no bottleneck and can be shipped. It’s cleaning your room before getting to work. All that unfinished work is its own bottleneck, I guess. What I think is always (or just often) missing from theory of constrains, value stream thinking is (1) innovation, and, (2) controlling marketing demand (marketing and sales). I guess you could call demand a bottleneck, sure, but at some point you’re just reinventing the universe to bake an apple pie from scratch.</p></li><li><p><a href="https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=4693148">The Value of Open Source Software by Manuel Hoffmann, Frank Nagle, Yanuo Zhou :: SSRN</a> - “We estimate the supply-side value of widely-used OSS is $4.15 billion, but that the demand-side value is much larger at $8.8 trillion. We find that firms would need to spend 3.5 times more on software than they currently do if OSS did not exist.”</p></li></ul><h1><strong>Wastebook</strong></h1><ul><li><p>In our little town, if you leave trash outside of the trash bin, you get fined. There’s a guy who comes every two or three weeks to figure out who put that trash out the: he rifled through boxes to find any that have addresses on them and takes picture of it. I presume these people get fines. That guy must have the worst job ever. No one likes what he does and thus they look at him in distain and even shame. He’s on law enforcement and would probably like to do something more impactful than trash patrol. The whole policy is absurd. Amsterdam doesn’t do this (we live in a small enclave village), and things are fine. Setting a policy that creates a job like this should tell policy makers that something is wrong with the policy.</p></li><li><p>“Indefinite hyperbolic numerals.” <a href="https://overcast.fm/+LfVe8Hxdo">Here</a>.</p></li><li><p>Improving productivity assumes one, often unstated first step: you want to get things done with less effort and cost, or just done at all. I argue that in most cases, people don’t want to get things done, or, often, they don’t want to get things done efficiently. One angle is to ask who benefits from the productivity. If it’s not the people doing the actual work (the workers), they won’t have much motivation and, likely, won’t care, and won’t want to do it. Would you put a lot of work into a project you got nothing (new) out of?</p></li><li><p>“This is not the cliff hanger any of us need right now.”</p></li></ul><h1>Logoff</h1><div class="captioned-image-container"><figure><a class="image-link is-viewable-img image2" target="_blank" href="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F322dbb8f-476a-4f02-b2a2-2684984feffd_5964x5948.jpeg" data-component-name="Image2ToDOM"><div class="image2-inset"><picture><source type="image/webp" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_424,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F322dbb8f-476a-4f02-b2a2-2684984feffd_5964x5948.jpeg 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_848,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F322dbb8f-476a-4f02-b2a2-2684984feffd_5964x5948.jpeg 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1272,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F322dbb8f-476a-4f02-b2a2-2684984feffd_5964x5948.jpeg 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F322dbb8f-476a-4f02-b2a2-2684984feffd_5964x5948.jpeg 1456w" sizes="100vw"><img src="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F322dbb8f-476a-4f02-b2a2-2684984feffd_5964x5948.jpeg" width="1456" height="1452" data-attrs="{"src":"https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/322dbb8f-476a-4f02-b2a2-2684984feffd_5964x5948.jpeg","srcNoWatermark":null,"fullscreen":null,"imageSize":null,"height":1452,"width":1456,"resizeWidth":null,"bytes":7079062,"alt":null,"title":null,"type":"image/jpeg","href":null,"belowTheFold":true,"topImage":false,"internalRedirect":null}" class="sizing-normal" alt="" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_424,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F322dbb8f-476a-4f02-b2a2-2684984feffd_5964x5948.jpeg 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_848,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F322dbb8f-476a-4f02-b2a2-2684984feffd_5964x5948.jpeg 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1272,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F322dbb8f-476a-4f02-b2a2-2684984feffd_5964x5948.jpeg 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F322dbb8f-476a-4f02-b2a2-2684984feffd_5964x5948.jpeg 1456w" sizes="100vw" loading="lazy"></picture><div class="image-link-expand"><svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="16" height="16" viewBox="0 0 24 24" fill="none" stroke="#FFFFFF" stroke-width="2" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" class="lucide lucide-maximize2 "><polyline points="15 3 21 3 21 9"></polyline><polyline points="9 21 3 21 3 15"></polyline><line x1="21" x2="14" y1="3" y2="10"></line><line x1="3" x2="10" y1="21" y2="14"></line></svg></div></div></a><figcaption class="image-caption">The Map is Not The Game.</figcaption></figure></div><p>It’s Solo D&D update time! Last time, I told you that <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jVO55dxt7lE">playing solo D&D with ChatGPT was going well</a>. I’ve found the limits of my prompting abilities, though. And, probably, ChatGPT has hit a limit too. It’s just not very creative, and it can’t run mechanics very well. It’s great at co-creating and being a sort of sounding board. But it’s bad at action. And, action is at heart of Dungeons and Dragons: if there’s no action, you’re more just writing a book. </p><p>So, I’ve been doing a lot more solo D&D in my head, and not really using ChatGPT much at all. I went a few weeks not really getting much playtime out of the time I spent on it - I’d be reading published adventures, making maps, etc., but I never seemed to get around to actually playing. </p><p>Playing a module on your own that’s intended be played by a group is weird. There’s no surprise about anything so you have to be disciplined not to cheat. I mean, this is pretty easy if you remind yourself that the point of the game is to have fun, and challenge is fun. If you cheated at solitaire, what would be the point?</p><p>This weekend, I started playing through <em><a href="https://1shotadventures.com/the-final-voyage/">The Final Voyage of Draengr Thar</a></em>, which turned out great! That guy makes good, little adventures. This one was pretty much all action focused - there’s some room for role-playing, but most of it is just movement, investigation, and, yes, combat in caves. I did this kind of thing early on in playing solo D&D, but I kind of lost track of it…or I feel into thinking up more story-based adventures.</p><p>My theory is that there’s a few reasons why the fun slowed down for me:</p><ol><li><p>I’d create an environment where there was little conflict. Everything was fine in The Elderwood. If you want action, you want conflict. So, I made up some story that there was a multi-year battle between involving devils. Then, in the aftermath, everything was still messed up with all sorts of weird and dark parts of the land left. Thus, you can get more of the <a href="https://rpg.stackexchange.com/a/151149">“murder hobo”</a> or <a href="https://thealexandrian.net/wordpress/46020/roleplaying-games/5e-hexcrawl">Hexcrawl</a> style play where anything can happen, where random things fit in because there is no pre-defined structure and campaign, and where there’s more conflict, thus, action.</p></li><li><p>I don’t really like dungeon crawls, but those are easy to to pack in the action. So, if you throw those in there, you have more action. I’m pretty sure you can convert “dungeons” into cities and forests and stuff as well.</p></li></ol><p> That’s all I’ve got so far!</p><p>I’ve tried using several of the solo adventure oracles and systems, but I just can’t seem to get into them. I think a lot of it has to do with #1 above: I want too much control over the environment and campaign, I just need to go with randomness. I do really like <a href="http://jamesturneronline.net/game-masters-apprentice/">this GM Apprentice tool</a> that rolls a lot of those systems into one.</p><div class="footnote" data-component-name="FootnoteToDOM"><a id="footnote-1" href="#footnote-anchor-1" class="footnote-number" contenteditable="false" target="_self">1</a><div class="footnote-content"><p>“Last year” is inaccurate. It was October, 2022! How strange the brain works that I feel like it was just this past Fall, when it was really two Falls ago.</p></div></div> What does "synergies mean"? https://cote.io/2024/01/19/what-does-synergies.html Fri, 19 Jan 2024 01:32:09 -0800 http://cote.micro.blog/2024/01/19/what-does-synergies.html <p>…</p><div id="youtube2-22TGsZhDL24" class="youtube-wrap" data-attrs="{"videoId":"22TGsZhDL24","startTime":null,"endTime":null}" data-component-name="Youtube2ToDOM"><div class="youtube-inner"><iframe src="https://www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/22TGsZhDL24?rel=0&autoplay=0&showinfo=0&enablejsapi=0" frameborder="0" loading="lazy" gesture="media" allow="autoplay; fullscreen" allowautoplay="true" allowfullscreen="true" width="728" height="409"></iframe></div></div><p><em>I implore you to click on the video above because I live for the views, but if you (like me!) can’t stand video, here is the transcript:</em></p><p>Synergies is actually a very useful precise word in the business world but it gets overused and it's not well understood. </p><p>What it means is that if you combine two or more things together, you gain a capability that they didn't have on their own.</p><p>You often hear this in terms of M&A, where two companies are going to come together, and they get new products, access to market, new innovation, that combined with each other allows them to come up with a new product. </p><p>The downside of "activating synergies" is that the easiest, quickest way to activate synergies is to fire people who are duplicative in HR, finance, even in the product delivery groups, [and, well, any group, really] you can "activate the synergies" of getting rid of people and saving that money, which is not great for actual workers.</p><p>I would say that's more sad synergies [I really shit the bed there, I should have said "sadnergies"] than good synergies.</p><p>But it sure makes [the stock market] happy!</p><p><em>See the other entries from </em><a href="https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLk_5VqpWEtiXBH0mEGNL5YuEEgNvdIloT">The Business Bullshit Dictionary</a><em>, watch them all and share them with your co-workers!</em></p><h1>My Content</h1><ul><li><p><a href="https://www.youtube.com/shorts/f9XeMHqR0Uo">Don't be perfect, be resilient, or, how to walk on ice</a>.</p></li><li><p>Software Defined Talk <strong><a href="https://www.softwaredefinedtalk.com/450">#450: Workers of the world, don’t let HR hide in darkness</a> - </strong>This week, we discuss the role of DevRel, Remote Work and Layoffs. Plus, Matt reveals his latest keyboard recommendation. // I’ve been neglecting to post links to our episodes for many weeks. If you’ve been missing them, don’t worry, we’ve still been doing them weekly: <a href="https://www.softwaredefinedtalk.com/episodes">check out the episodes</a>.</p></li></ul><h1><strong>Relative to your interests</strong></h1><ul><li><p><a href="https://www.gartner.com/en/newsroom/press-releases/01-17-2024-gartner-forecasts-worldwide-it-spending-to-grow-six-point-eight-percent-in-2024">Gartner Forecasts Worldwide IT Spending to Grow 6.8% in 2024</a> - IT spend for software estimated to grow 12.7% y/y from $913m to $1.02bn in 2024. // That’s the highest growth rate in each category. // It’s good to be in software.</p></li><li><p><a href="https://newsletter.pragmaticengineer.com/p/measuring-developer-productivity-bae">Measuring Developer Productivity: Real-World Examples</a> - Lots to read here if you’re into the whole developer productivity metrics thing.</p></li><li><p><a href="https://thenewstack.io/red-hat-developer-hub-an-enterprise-ready-idp/">Red Hat Developer Hub: An Enterprise-Ready IDP</a> - “this new Developer Hub is designed to tackle common DevOps challenges, including complexity, lack of standardization, and cognitive overload. It features a self-service portal, standardized software templates, and plug-in management, all underpinned by enterprise role-based access control (RBAC) and robust support systems.” // I love that the reporter picked up on RBAC as a major (differentiating) feature - or that Red Hat would list it. That’s like saying “yes, but this car has tires!”</p></li><li><p><a href="https://simonwillison.net/2024/Jan/18/bryan-cantrill/">A quote from Bryan Cantrill</a> - ’Tools are the things we build that we don’t ship—but that very much affect the artifact that we develop.’ // In favor of the DIY stack. // This line of thinking is commercial poison for most tech vendors/clouds. // But, the reaction to that poison might say more about errors in pricing more than “value.” // Also, we’re not all re-inventing enterprise hardware.</p></li><li><p><a href="https://www.ciodive.com/news/cio-change-fatigue-dampens-enterprise-tech-spend-gartner/704808/">CIO ‘change fatigue’ dampens enterprise IT spend</a> - Enterprise people will talk about AI, but not spend money on it: ’Generative AI, however, won’t have a major impact on IT spending, Lovelock said. “2024 will be the year when organizations actually invest in planning for how to use GenAI,” said Lovelock. “IT spending will be driven by more traditional forces, such as profitability, labor, and dragged down by a continued wave of change.' On the other hand, <a href="https://www.ciodive.com/news/CEO-generative-AI-job-cuts-pwc/704795/">consultant surveys paint a picture of much activity</a>. And, elsewhere: ‘Lovelock said vendors were introducing AI to solve problems – such as reducing customer churn or getting better value for marketing – that companies had been trying to solve for 25 years. “Most of the use cases that we see coming forward are, in fact, something that has already been done. We’re just saying do it better, faster and cheaper.”’</p></li><li><p><a href="https://russelldavies.typepad.com/planning/2024/01/voices-in-your-head.html">Voices in your head</a> - I read this and I think: yes, and I have become exhausted hearing and running from voice to voice like a harried thought-waiter seeing what new orders and desires the voices have. Some are happy and delighted and leave good tips, others have sent their steak back for the third time, others would like to tell me about their grandchildren as I struggle to hold a tray of tacos and table 6 keeps eyeing me for the check. I used to be able to serve all the voices, but now it’s just a slog. Maybe this is part of what fuels the turn to cranky conservative as we get older: we just want a break. Mix that with fear of the young and new (driven by lack of understanding and fearing your support, money, and identity are being destroyed, or worse, laughed at and mocked), and you have a potent force to drag you to the dark side. Outside of that: good advice for figuring editing content.</p></li><li><p><a href="https://www.theregister.com/2024/01/18/ibm_consulting_office/">IBM Consulting orders a return to office - and means it</a> - This always the story. The Federal Reserve of San Francisco says: “We conclude that the shift to remote work, on its own, is unlikely to be a major factor explaining differences across sectors in productivity performance. By extension, despite the important social and cultural effects of increased telework, the shift is unlikely to be a major factor explaining changes in aggregate productivity.” And yet, management insists that things are going poorly. In the middle part of my career that I’m in, I’ve worked with “executives” almost exclusively. Most are curious and pragmatic - they “make it happen” inside whatever constraints they have, using whatever tools work, old or new. But the inability of (some) higher level management to adapt in this remote work era is so weird. They’re capable and crafty, that’s how they got the reward of toiling in the glow of the executive suite, but they just can’t wrap their heads around a new way of working. And the whole thing gets even more painful to think about <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2024/01/10/bosses-want-to-work-remote-more-than-employees-but-still-push-return-to-office.html">when surveys like this</a> show that management also wants to keep working from home.</p></li><li><p><a href="https://www.tbray.org/ongoing/When/202x/2024/01/15/Google-2024">Mourning Google</a> - Here, I submit the late term success of Google: even those who loathe it can’t help but use many of the services from it because they like the services and they work. Search may be a gewgaw swamp of As Seen on TV quality shit…but people’s stated preference is using Google services every day.</p></li><li><p><a href="https://archive.is/8g3g5">Your Child’s Favorite Teacher May Soon Be a Chatbot</a> Yeah, the idea of having a student peer simulator is pretty good for kids who are - however you want to say it - resistant/incompatible with traditional pedantry methods.</p></li></ul><div class="captioned-image-container"><figure><a class="image-link is-viewable-img image2" target="_blank" href="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fe126c062-7831-441a-bb1f-339795f4abcc_5258x4206.jpeg" data-component-name="Image2ToDOM"><div class="image2-inset"><picture><source type="image/webp" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_424,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fe126c062-7831-441a-bb1f-339795f4abcc_5258x4206.jpeg 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_848,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fe126c062-7831-441a-bb1f-339795f4abcc_5258x4206.jpeg 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1272,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fe126c062-7831-441a-bb1f-339795f4abcc_5258x4206.jpeg 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fe126c062-7831-441a-bb1f-339795f4abcc_5258x4206.jpeg 1456w" sizes="100vw"><img src="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fe126c062-7831-441a-bb1f-339795f4abcc_5258x4206.jpeg" width="1456" height="1165" data-attrs="{"src":"https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/e126c062-7831-441a-bb1f-339795f4abcc_5258x4206.jpeg","srcNoWatermark":null,"fullscreen":null,"imageSize":null,"height":1165,"width":1456,"resizeWidth":null,"bytes":4598271,"alt":null,"title":null,"type":"image/jpeg","href":null,"belowTheFold":true,"topImage":false,"internalRedirect":null}" class="sizing-normal" alt="" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_424,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fe126c062-7831-441a-bb1f-339795f4abcc_5258x4206.jpeg 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_848,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fe126c062-7831-441a-bb1f-339795f4abcc_5258x4206.jpeg 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1272,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fe126c062-7831-441a-bb1f-339795f4abcc_5258x4206.jpeg 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fe126c062-7831-441a-bb1f-339795f4abcc_5258x4206.jpeg 1456w" sizes="100vw" loading="lazy"></picture><div class="image-link-expand"><svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="16" height="16" viewBox="0 0 24 24" fill="none" stroke="#FFFFFF" stroke-width="2" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" class="lucide lucide-maximize2 "><polyline points="15 3 21 3 21 9"></polyline><polyline points="9 21 3 21 3 15"></polyline><line x1="21" x2="14" y1="3" y2="10"></line><line x1="3" x2="10" y1="21" y2="14"></line></svg></div></div></a></figure></div><h1><strong>Wastebook</strong></h1><ul><li><p>You know children are a lot like chocolate syrup. It’s great in almost any quantity on anything. But if you were to submerge yourself in it for too long, you’d suffocate to death.</p></li><li><p>“specific resource allocation decisions.”</p></li><li><p>“Which is basically, more often than not, my feeling on the entire generative AI movement now. None of it seems to be making anything better, just a different kind of annoying.” <a href="https://open.substack.com/pub/garbageday/p/a-new-way-to-measure-xs-current-level?r=2d4o&utm_medium=ios&utm_campaign=post">Here</a>. // I would rejoin-quip: yes, and it’s making the pre-existing annoying things slightly better.</p></li><li><p>“It’s mostly pass-the-sickbag stuff.” <a href="https://memex.naughtons.org/friday-19-january-2024/39049/">Here</a>.</p></li><li><p>“I’m gonna go and see Van Halen, and come back at 10. And we’ll have <em>this</em> conversation then.” <em><a href="https://www.patreon.com/posts/dear-john-ep-52-96593055">Dear John Letters</a></em><a href="https://www.patreon.com/posts/dear-john-ep-52-96593055"> #52</a>.</p></li></ul><div class="native-video-embed" data-component-name="VideoPlaceholder" data-attrs="{"mediaUploadId":"c708a1fb-9418-492f-8167-27539c61b75d","duration":null}"></div><p><em>She actually asked to do this. They grow up so fast!</em></p><h1>Logoff</h1><p>Aside from the usual bucket of edits here and there, I’ve wrapped a video course I'm doing with O’Reilly. One of the editors there (“<em>my</em> editors”?) was really interested in my <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UFqz5xkgRbs">how to survive and thrive in a BigCo oeuvre</a>, so they asked me to make a series out of them. </p><p>I thought this was, like, kind of ridiculous, but I’ve never turned down someone who gave me a specific content assignment. They came up with the suggested topics - which was what I was spacing out on - and we were off to the races. It’s eight 3 or 4 minute chunks (with an 8 or so minute one on presentations, predictably, since that’s like a huge part of my life). I could look at the timelines and schedules and shit for when it comes out, but, it’s like, sometime (I got some other work I need to get to - that landing page copy for an “invite only executive event” isn’t gonna write itself!)…and I’ll obviously annoy you with repeatedly linking to here it.</p><p>Anyhow, although this is an uncomfortable amount of polishing my own toot-horn, it came out really well. I don’t mind saying: I somehow managed impress even myself!</p><p>In the next few months (next month, maybe even?) you’ll be able to <a href="https://www.oreilly.com/start-trial/?utm_source=cote&utm_campaign=devrel&utm_content=newsletter20240119&utm_medium=newsletter">watch it in O’Reilly Safari</a>. Chances are high your big company already pays for a seat for you!</p> We built a platform, but no one uses it! https://cote.io/2024/01/17/we-built-a.html Wed, 17 Jan 2024 07:30:19 -0800 http://cote.micro.blog/2024/01/17/we-built-a.html <p>This year we’ll see a lot app platform teams struggle to get developers to actually use and appreciate their platforms. I know this because this has happened to every platform team I’ve talked with over the 9 years when they’ve put Cloud Foundry in place, failed to appreciate <a href="https://newsletter.cote.io/p/does-kuberbetes-make-application?r=2d4o&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web">the “Kubernetes is not for developers” paradox</a>, and are now putting “platform engineering” platforms in place. The solution is marketing and developer advocacy, and good old fashioned trust building. These are things that IT is traditionally not good at: it’s never been their job. So, this year, it’s time to fix that!</p><p>My colleague <a href="https://tanzu.vmware.com/content/blog/digital-transformation-bottlenecks-reluctance-to-change?utm_source=cote&utm_campaign=devrel&utm_content=newsletter20240117&utm_medium=newsletter">Bryan Ross wrote up his real-world experience doing platform advocacy and marketing</a> recently, and I got him to give me a quick overview in the video below:</p><div id="youtube2-To9Q1FO0Lgc" class="youtube-wrap" data-attrs="{"videoId":"To9Q1FO0Lgc","startTime":null,"endTime":null}" data-component-name="Youtube2ToDOM"><div class="youtube-inner"><iframe src="https://www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/To9Q1FO0Lgc?rel=0&autoplay=0&showinfo=0&enablejsapi=0" frameborder="0" loading="lazy" gesture="media" allow="autoplay; fullscreen" allowautoplay="true" allowfullscreen="true" width="728" height="409"></iframe></div></div><p>If you’re in the platform, DevOps, even kubernetes rodeos, <a href="https://tanzu.vmware.com/content/blog/digital-transformation-bottlenecks-reluctance-to-change?utm_source=cote&utm_campaign=devrel&utm_content=newsletter20240117&utm_medium=newsletter">you’ll get a lot out of his article</a>.</p><h1><strong>Wastebook</strong></h1><ul><li><p>Don’t worry about where the fence is, just swing.</p></li><li><p>Daughter: “I can’t read that book yet because I’m still reading this book.” Me: “you know, you can read more than one book at once.” Daughter: “What?! No you can’t. WHO TOLD YOU THAT?!”</p></li><li><p>“A real holiday. No weird stuff.” <em>Hilda</em>, s3e1. (Good luck with that!)</p></li><li><p>If that’s what I need to do to get a seat at your table, then your table sucks.</p></li><li><p>“I don’t know why people lose sight of the fact that having fun is one of the very best parts of being a human.” <a href="https://thewaltdisneycompany.com/disney-on-apple-vision-pro-ushers-in-a-new-era-of-storytelling-innovation-and-immersive-entertainment/">Here</a>.</p></li></ul><h1><strong>Relative to your interests</strong></h1><ul><li><p><a href="https://arstechnica.com/google/2024/01/google-lays-off-hundreds-more-as-ad-division-switches-to-ai-powered-sales/">Google lays off “hundreds” more as ad division switches to AI-powered sales</a> - How Google is using AI to replace human’s role in sales: ‘Google has been packing Google Ads—its most important product—with tons of generative AI features lately. One is a natural-language chatbot that helps people navigate the large selection of ad products; another is a system that can just make ad assets like images and text on its own based on a budget and goals given by the ad purchaser. Google’s generative AI ad system is part of a product called “Performance Max” which works by autonomously remixing and tweaking your ads using the click-through rate as an instant feedback system. Google used to have humans do sales guidance for its products, create art assets, and decide on text and layouts, but now AI can do it a thousand times a second.’</p></li><li><p><a href="https://www.thediff.co/archive/a-theory-of-grift/?ref=the-diff-newsletter">A Theory of Grift</a> - “the heart of a grift is that you get something that, in a technical sense, is what you paid for, but that is also not worth what you paid for it.” Who gets grifted: “grifts tend to target the middle of whatever the relevant bell curve is. There are a lot more average people than non-average people, so the market is bigger. And their averageness makes it easier to reason about their motivations.” Meanwhile, <a href="https://www.mckinsey.com/industries/consumer-packaged-goods/our-insights/the-trends-defining-the-1-point-8-trillion-dollar-global-wellness-market-in-2024">some management consulting suggestions for the health and wellness grifters out there</a>.</p></li><li><p><a href="https://matt.might.net/articles/how-to-change-your-behavior/">HOWTO: Change your behavior</a> - Advice in that tidy style the nerds love.</p></li><li><p><a href="https://www.forrester.com/blogs/high-performance-it-continuously-improves-business-results-through-great-technology/">How High-Performance IT Improves Business Through Technology</a> - I never like the way I word the concept of “business/IT alignment” when it comes to software development, that is, using your software to run, innovate, and grow your business. It always sounds so marketing-y. Similarly the word “enterprise” is a term of art that is incredible precise and helpful in my field but it feels weird and slightly eye-roll-y. And, of course, “digital transformation.” Anyhow, some good wording in this piece.</p></li></ul><h1>Logoff</h1><div class="captioned-image-container"><figure><a class="image-link image2" target="_blank" href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelcote/" data-component-name="Image2ToDOM"><div class="image2-inset"><picture><source type="image/webp" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_424,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F5a99ba90-47ac-45d7-bb07-7fb665387a52_1290x924.jpeg 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_848,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F5a99ba90-47ac-45d7-bb07-7fb665387a52_1290x924.jpeg 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1272,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F5a99ba90-47ac-45d7-bb07-7fb665387a52_1290x924.jpeg 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F5a99ba90-47ac-45d7-bb07-7fb665387a52_1290x924.jpeg 1456w" sizes="100vw"><img src="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F5a99ba90-47ac-45d7-bb07-7fb665387a52_1290x924.jpeg" width="1290" height="924" data-attrs="{"src":"https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/5a99ba90-47ac-45d7-bb07-7fb665387a52_1290x924.jpeg","srcNoWatermark":null,"fullscreen":null,"imageSize":null,"height":924,"width":1290,"resizeWidth":null,"bytes":null,"alt":null,"title":null,"type":null,"href":"https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelcote/","belowTheFold":true,"topImage":false,"internalRedirect":null}" class="sizing-normal" alt="" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_424,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F5a99ba90-47ac-45d7-bb07-7fb665387a52_1290x924.jpeg 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_848,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F5a99ba90-47ac-45d7-bb07-7fb665387a52_1290x924.jpeg 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1272,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F5a99ba90-47ac-45d7-bb07-7fb665387a52_1290x924.jpeg 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F5a99ba90-47ac-45d7-bb07-7fb665387a52_1290x924.jpeg 1456w" sizes="100vw" loading="lazy"></picture><div></div></div></a></figure></div><p>People make fun of <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelcote/">LinkedIn</a> and do a lot of performative throwing-up about it. <a href="https://www.threads.net/@bushwald/post/C2K7KJwNXHk">Even I do that</a>! But, over the years it’s been very valuable to me and helped me do my job. With the shit-showing of Twitter I don’t have much access to the 11,000 people I built up over there since 2006,<a class="footnote-anchor" data-component-name="FootnoteAnchorToDOM" id="footnote-anchor-1" href="#footnote-1" target="_self">1</a> but LinkedIn has been great for that for many years, especially now. </p><p>My only worry is that most of those people are co-workers, but I’m starting to notice many more people from other organizations. There’s nothing wrong with those co-workers and I like having them in the audience as well, but I also like to get to people outside of my immediate social spheres. </p><p>And, even if it does just remain co-workers, it’s alway good to be well known in your company. Better, I’ve heard over the years that the silly videos I do are useful for education and training and, of course, to give other people stuff to post themselves.</p><p>So, LinkedIn: <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelcote/">it’s good stuff</a>!</p><div class="footnote" data-component-name="FootnoteToDOM"><a id="footnote-1" href="#footnote-anchor-1" class="footnote-number" contenteditable="false" target="_self">1</a><div class="footnote-content"><p>Also, my 2FA got fucked, so I can’t login, and you can imagine what a black-hole of bullshit it is to get that fixed.</p></div></div> Touching the Flying Spaghetti Monster https://cote.io/2024/01/16/touching-the-flying.html Tue, 16 Jan 2024 07:05:18 -0800 http://cote.micro.blog/2024/01/16/touching-the-flying.html <h1>Upgrade That Spring!</h1><div id="youtube2-D_VxGmOWHDM" class="youtube-wrap" data-attrs="{"videoId":"D_VxGmOWHDM","startTime":null,"endTime":null}" data-component-name="Youtube2ToDOM"><div class="youtube-inner"><iframe src="https://www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/D_VxGmOWHDM?rel=0&autoplay=0&showinfo=0&enablejsapi=0" frameborder="0" loading="lazy" gesture="media" allow="autoplay; fullscreen" allowautoplay="true" allowfullscreen="true" width="728" height="409"></iframe></div></div><p>If you do Spring stuff in a large enterprise, you should <a href="https://tanzu.vmware.com/spring-health-assessment?utm_source=cote&utm_campaign=devrel&utm_content=newsletter20240116&utm_medium=newsletter">check this thing out</a>.</p><h1><strong>Relative to your interests</strong></h1><ul><li><p><a href="https://sites.google.com/view/lastunen/ai-for-economists">AI for Economists</a> - Some prompt formations and stuff for the ChatGPT and friends.</p></li><li><p><a href="https://adrianco.medium.com/signs-that-its-time-to-leave-a-company-5f8759ad018e">Signs that it’s time to leave a company</a> - Attempts to get people back in the office are something to watch in 2024: “I do think there’s lessons to be learned, and that the delusion that they can roll back work from home and enforce RTO without killing off innovation is a big problem that will increasingly hurt them over time.” Also: I like this kind of advice because it focuses (1) on analyzing and judging the “culture” of an organization by how it runs its business day to day, not just the vibes, (2) pointing out that high growth companies are (like celebrity diets) the weirdos, not the instructive norm that you can imitate 100%. I’m most interested in this transition from high growth to “just normal” - few people write about that in tech.</p></li><li><p><a href="https://www.thecloudcast.net/2024/01/2024-look-ahead-surviving-q1-kickoff.html?m=1">The Cloudcast: 2024 Look Ahead - Surviving the Q1 Kickoff</a> - There’s a lot of good advice in here for surviving and thriving in a big company. Find out how the money is made, seek to spend less/do more with the same budget, support that, keep doing what worked last year, don’t get involved in bold (and thus risky) new ideas. The point of a big company (1) is stability and cash flow growth (profit), (2) good compensation and a secure job for staff. The second gets lost on all the startup frenzy: customer one of a big company are the people working there.</p></li><li><p><a href="https://newsletter.getdx.com/p/applying-the-space-framework">Applying the SPACE Framework</a> - Developer productivity metrics through context.</p></li><li><p><a href="https://www.thestack.technology/citi-layoffs-tech-spend/">Citi retires 6% of its legacy applications – and 20,000 people</a> - I’m pretty sure those 20,000 are across the whole company, not just the people whose software was modernized as the headline sort of implies. Also, check out the chart for IT things they did, indicative of what they’re proud of and what matters to enterprise buyers.</p></li><li><p><a href="https://www.moma.org/collection/works/163936">Max Ernst. Volume III: La Cour du dragon (Volume III: The Court of the Dragon) from Une Semaine de bonté ou les sept éléments capitaux (A Week of Kindness or the Seven Deadly Elements). 1933–34, published 1934</a> - Looks pretty cool.</p></li><li><p><a href="https://www.axios.com/newsletters/axios-markets-f5981a3b-59b7-4843-8a94-082b8f060577.html?story0">This workplace battle is over</a> - Axios summarizes a recent work from home survey: ‘“Maintain hybrid work” was cited as a priority by 27% of the U.S. CEOs who responded to the survey conducted in October and November. A separate survey of chief financial officers by Deloitte, conducted in November, found that 65% of CFOs expect their company to offer a hybrid arrangement this year. “Remote work appears likely to be the most persistent economic legacy of the pandemic,” Goldman Sachs economists wrote in a recent note. About 20%-25% of workers in the U.S. work from home at least part of the week, per Goldman.’</p></li><li><p><a href="https://jicowan.medium.com/the-trouble-with-devrel-80ebcd0f5b36">The trouble with DevRel</a> - “When awareness and adoption are no longer issues, the role of DevRel needs to change. It becomes less about creating content than it does interacting with and growing the community, fostering goodwill, nurturing customers, and providing feedback. Sadly, this is hard to justify when budgets get reduced and headcount is flat. DevRel then becomes an easy target for elimination.”</p></li><li><p><a href="https://nltimes.nl/2024/01/14/ing-says-supermarket-revenue-will-drop-sharply-due-ban-tobacco-sales">ING says supermarket revenue will drop sharply due to ban on tobacco sales</a> - On July 1st, you can’t sell cigarettes, etc. in Netherlands grocery stores. So, ING predicts prices for everything else will go up to make up for lost revenue: “When excluding tobacco sales, the sales in supermarkets are on the rise, according to ING. The prices on the shelves appear to be headed for another one percent increase, after a sharp rise in prices during previous years.” It seems like something is wrong with capitalism if that happens.</p></li></ul><div class="captioned-image-container"><figure><a class="image-link image2" target="_blank" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/brucesterling/53459588807/in/feed-268216-1705127077-1-72157721703007158" data-component-name="Image2ToDOM"><div class="image2-inset"><picture><source type="image/webp" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_424,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F1c56eae7-520e-4271-8611-98356b47fc2a_600x800.jpeg 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_848,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F1c56eae7-520e-4271-8611-98356b47fc2a_600x800.jpeg 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1272,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F1c56eae7-520e-4271-8611-98356b47fc2a_600x800.jpeg 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F1c56eae7-520e-4271-8611-98356b47fc2a_600x800.jpeg 1456w" sizes="100vw"><img src="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F1c56eae7-520e-4271-8611-98356b47fc2a_600x800.jpeg" width="600" height="800" data-attrs="{"src":"https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/1c56eae7-520e-4271-8611-98356b47fc2a_600x800.jpeg","srcNoWatermark":null,"fullscreen":null,"imageSize":null,"height":800,"width":600,"resizeWidth":null,"bytes":185949,"alt":null,"title":null,"type":"image/jpeg","href":"https://www.flickr.com/photos/brucesterling/53459588807/in/feed-268216-1705127077-1-72157721703007158","belowTheFold":false,"topImage":true,"internalRedirect":null}" class="sizing-normal" alt="" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_424,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F1c56eae7-520e-4271-8611-98356b47fc2a_600x800.jpeg 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_848,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F1c56eae7-520e-4271-8611-98356b47fc2a_600x800.jpeg 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1272,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F1c56eae7-520e-4271-8611-98356b47fc2a_600x800.jpeg 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F1c56eae7-520e-4271-8611-98356b47fc2a_600x800.jpeg 1456w" sizes="100vw" fetchpriority="high"></picture><div></div></div></a><figcaption class="image-caption">From <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/brucesterling/53459588807/in/feed-268216-1705127077-1-72157721703007158">Bruce Sterling</a>.</figcaption></figure></div><h1><strong>Wastebook</strong></h1><ul><li><p>“it’s unhelpful to say ‘let me know if I can do anything to help,’ because when you are going through a stressful life change, the last thing you need is for someone to demand that you make another decision.” <a href="https://newsletter.goodtechthings.com/p/google-is-a-giant-squid-wearing-mickey">Here</a>.</p></li><li><p>“Instagramming videos of the donkey he lets roam around his kitchen. It seems like a good life.” <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/books/2024/jan/15/the-big-idea-is-couples-therapy-a-waste-of-time">Here</a>.</p></li><li><p>I’m trying to use Google Docs as my note taking tool for work. It’s hard to get over the feeling that I’m using Word to take notes when I should be all tech-hipster and use markdown files instead. Also, if it’s an official corporate tool, you comply with all the corporate data security governance, you can share with employees, and (depending on what the admins have done?), you can use the Google AI stuff (well, I haven’t actually tested this, work has it turned off).</p></li><li><p>“Efficiency 2: Cost Savings Boogaloo.” <a href="https://softwaredefinedtalk.slack.com/archives/C04EK1VBK/p1705035794572279?thread_ts=1705033912.015659&cid=C04EK1VBK">Here</a>.</p></li></ul><h1>Conferences, Events, etc.</h1><p><em><a href="https://cote.io/speaking/">Talks</a> I’m giving, places I’ll be, and other plans.</em></p><p><strong><a href="https://cfgmgmtcamp.eu/ghent2024/">cfgmgmtcamp</a>, </strong>Feburary 5th to 7th, “We Fear Change” talk; <strong><a href="https://devopsdays.org/events/2024-los-angeles/welcome/">DevOpsDays LA</a></strong>, March 15th, “We Fear Change” talk; <strong><a href="https://events.linuxfoundation.org/kubecon-cloudnativecon-europe/co-located-events/platform-engineering-day/">Platform Engineering Day at KubeCon EU</a></strong>, tentative, March 19th. I’ve got a couple of CFPs out there: Devoxx UK and DevOpsDays London. </p><h1>Logoff</h1><p>I’ve been a lot more focused on making <a href="https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC8cRg_d0Qzq_1b6KUS3yI5w">videos for YouTube</a> since COVID, like many people. I’m tired of all those thumbnails of people looking shocked or upset. I make a lot of them too! They certainly don’t help me reach a lot of views. How about I stop making them?</p> Tamale House https://cote.io/2024/01/12/tamale-house.html Fri, 12 Jan 2024 05:54:50 -0800 http://cote.micro.blog/2024/01/12/tamale-house.html <p><em>Not much today, just cleaning up the queue.</em></p><div class="captioned-image-container"><figure><a class="image-link is-viewable-img image2" target="_blank" href="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F24e3fb7e-6916-45bc-a260-f9f4b72865d0_1280x1024.jpeg" data-component-name="Image2ToDOM"><div class="image2-inset"><picture><source type="image/webp" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_424,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F24e3fb7e-6916-45bc-a260-f9f4b72865d0_1280x1024.jpeg 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_848,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F24e3fb7e-6916-45bc-a260-f9f4b72865d0_1280x1024.jpeg 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1272,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F24e3fb7e-6916-45bc-a260-f9f4b72865d0_1280x1024.jpeg 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F24e3fb7e-6916-45bc-a260-f9f4b72865d0_1280x1024.jpeg 1456w" sizes="100vw"><img src="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F24e3fb7e-6916-45bc-a260-f9f4b72865d0_1280x1024.jpeg" width="1280" height="1024" data-attrs="{"src":"https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/24e3fb7e-6916-45bc-a260-f9f4b72865d0_1280x1024.jpeg","srcNoWatermark":null,"fullscreen":null,"imageSize":null,"height":1024,"width":1280,"resizeWidth":null,"bytes":190848,"alt":null,"title":null,"type":"image/jpeg","href":null,"belowTheFold":false,"topImage":true,"internalRedirect":null}" class="sizing-normal" alt="" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_424,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F24e3fb7e-6916-45bc-a260-f9f4b72865d0_1280x1024.jpeg 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_848,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F24e3fb7e-6916-45bc-a260-f9f4b72865d0_1280x1024.jpeg 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1272,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F24e3fb7e-6916-45bc-a260-f9f4b72865d0_1280x1024.jpeg 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F24e3fb7e-6916-45bc-a260-f9f4b72865d0_1280x1024.jpeg 1456w" sizes="100vw" fetchpriority="high"></picture><div class="image-link-expand"><svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="16" height="16" viewBox="0 0 24 24" fill="none" stroke="#FFFFFF" stroke-width="2" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" class="lucide lucide-maximize2 "><polyline points="15 3 21 3 21 9"></polyline><polyline points="9 21 3 21 3 15"></polyline><line x1="21" x2="14" y1="3" y2="10"></line><line x1="3" x2="10" y1="21" y2="14"></line></svg></div></div></a></figure></div><h1><strong>Wastebook</strong></h1><ul><li><p>“Look, it’s a Cybertruck!” - yelled out by a Bay Area co-worker I was talking with on the phone as they drove into work.</p></li><li><p>“In one way this is ‘just’ the evolution of the comment section.” <a href="https://open.substack.com/pub/tidyfirst/p/a-new-literature?r=2d4o&utm_medium=ios&utm_campaign=post">Here</a>.</p></li><li><p>If you’re saying something you believe to be true, you don’t need to tell people you “honestly think it’s true” or that you “actually think” it’s the case. That’s just, like, assumed when you’re talking. When you say those things, true or not, you’re running the risks of (1) pointing out that when you <em>don’t</em> use those phrases in other statements, you’re <em>not</em> being honest, and, (2) point out that your claims are unbelievable and likely risky-to-bonkers.</p></li><li><p>“There are no large language models in vacuum cleaners.” Ben Thompson on CES 2024.</p></li><li><p>“She’s like you, but lacks a sense of humor.” <em>Ahsoka</em>, s1e7</p></li></ul><div class="captioned-image-container"><figure><a class="image-link is-viewable-img image2" target="_blank" href="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F40d56ef4-bef3-4479-a9dd-620cc5cd5350_1280x1024.jpeg" data-component-name="Image2ToDOM"><div class="image2-inset"><picture><source type="image/webp" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_424,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F40d56ef4-bef3-4479-a9dd-620cc5cd5350_1280x1024.jpeg 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_848,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F40d56ef4-bef3-4479-a9dd-620cc5cd5350_1280x1024.jpeg 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1272,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F40d56ef4-bef3-4479-a9dd-620cc5cd5350_1280x1024.jpeg 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F40d56ef4-bef3-4479-a9dd-620cc5cd5350_1280x1024.jpeg 1456w" sizes="100vw"><img src="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F40d56ef4-bef3-4479-a9dd-620cc5cd5350_1280x1024.jpeg" width="1280" height="1024" data-attrs="{"src":"https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/40d56ef4-bef3-4479-a9dd-620cc5cd5350_1280x1024.jpeg","srcNoWatermark":null,"fullscreen":null,"imageSize":null,"height":1024,"width":1280,"resizeWidth":null,"bytes":133930,"alt":null,"title":null,"type":"image/jpeg","href":null,"belowTheFold":false,"topImage":false,"internalRedirect":null}" class="sizing-normal" alt="" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_424,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F40d56ef4-bef3-4479-a9dd-620cc5cd5350_1280x1024.jpeg 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_848,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F40d56ef4-bef3-4479-a9dd-620cc5cd5350_1280x1024.jpeg 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1272,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F40d56ef4-bef3-4479-a9dd-620cc5cd5350_1280x1024.jpeg 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F40d56ef4-bef3-4479-a9dd-620cc5cd5350_1280x1024.jpeg 1456w" sizes="100vw"></picture><div class="image-link-expand"><svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="16" height="16" viewBox="0 0 24 24" fill="none" stroke="#FFFFFF" stroke-width="2" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" class="lucide lucide-maximize2 "><polyline points="15 3 21 3 21 9"></polyline><polyline points="9 21 3 21 3 15"></polyline><line x1="21" x2="14" y1="3" y2="10"></line><line x1="3" x2="10" y1="21" y2="14"></line></svg></div></div></a></figure></div><h1><strong>Relative to your interests</strong></h1><ul><li><p><a href="https://cloud.google.com/blog/products/application-development/how-to-become-a-platform-engineer">How to become a platform engineer</a> - Also a good list of the Google Cloud products you’d use to do “platform engineering.”</p></li><li><p><a href="https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2024/01/what-i-learned-selling-a-used-pencil-on-tiktok-shop.html">What I Learned Selling a Used Pencil on TikTok Shop</a> - “Within two minutes, I had hundreds of viewers. I asked them how they ended up there but nobody answered. I put on a face filter. I played carnival music. I showed them my dog. One informed me that the same pencil was much cheaper at the Dollar Tree. Another asked me if I had diabetes and then promptly left —&nbsp;much to think about.”</p></li><li><p><a href="https://www.gartner.com/en/newsroom/press-releases/2023-10-30-gartner-says-50-percent-of-critical-enterprise-applications-will-reside-outside-of-centralized-public-cloud-locations-through-2027">Gartner Says 50% of Critical Enterprise Applications Will Reside Outside of Centralized Public Cloud Locations Through 2027</a> - “’Through 2027, 50% of critical enterprise applications will reside outside of centralized public cloud locations… 'Enterprises are beginning to seek placement for workloads that have not migrated to the public cloud,” said Dennis Smith, Distinguished VP Analyst at Gartner. ‘This represents approximately 70% of all workloads.’” I think that means they’re estimating that 30% of enterprise workloads (apps) are in public cloud.</p></li><li><p><a href="https://www.theparisreview.org/blog/2024/01/09/invisible-ink-at-the-cias-creative-writing-group/?ref=thebrowser.com">Invisible Ink: At the CIA’s Creative Writing Group</a> - “When an organization has, say, financed the overthrow of the government of Guatemala, you would think there might be a speaking fee.” If you’ve ever been asked to create something for free, or had a big organizations cheap out on you, that is so wickedly funny! My newer theory on this is that organization would actually be fine paying you, it’s that the individual asking for the work doesn’t want to go through the dumb-pain of working with procurement to get the money. Their toil avoidance is understandable.</p></li></ul><h1>Out and about</h1><p><em>Conferences, talks, events, etc. that I’ll be at.</em></p><p>I’m speaking at <strong><a href="https://cfgmgmtcamp.eu/ghent2024/">cfgmgmtcamp</a></strong><a href="https://cfgmgmtcamp.eu/ghent2024/"> on February 5th</a>, and then <strong><a href="https://devopsdays.org/events/2024-los-angeles/welcome/">DevOpsDays LA</a></strong><a href="https://devopsdays.org/events/2024-los-angeles/welcome/"> on March 15th</a>. I’m hoping my talk get accepted for the platform engineering day at <strong>KubeCon EU</strong>, but we’ll see if I manage to escape the “wait list.” If not, does that mean I can speak at <strong><a href="https://cloud-native.rejekts.io">Cloud Native Rejekts</a></strong>? I’ve got CPFs out to Devoxx UK and DevOpsDays London - we’ll see what happens. So far, no webinars or online conferences planned.</p><p>Do you have any conference recommendations?</p><h1>Logoff</h1><div class="captioned-image-container"><figure><a class="image-link is-viewable-img image2" target="_blank" href="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F986b9416-bbb9-4e40-86e2-6f47839099d3_640x480.jpeg" data-component-name="Image2ToDOM"><div class="image2-inset"><picture><source type="image/webp" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_424,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F986b9416-bbb9-4e40-86e2-6f47839099d3_640x480.jpeg 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_848,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F986b9416-bbb9-4e40-86e2-6f47839099d3_640x480.jpeg 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1272,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F986b9416-bbb9-4e40-86e2-6f47839099d3_640x480.jpeg 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F986b9416-bbb9-4e40-86e2-6f47839099d3_640x480.jpeg 1456w" sizes="100vw"><img src="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F986b9416-bbb9-4e40-86e2-6f47839099d3_640x480.jpeg" width="640" height="480" data-attrs="{"src":"https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/986b9416-bbb9-4e40-86e2-6f47839099d3_640x480.jpeg","srcNoWatermark":null,"fullscreen":null,"imageSize":null,"height":480,"width":640,"resizeWidth":null,"bytes":71487,"alt":null,"title":null,"type":"image/jpeg","href":null,"belowTheFold":true,"topImage":false,"internalRedirect":null}" class="sizing-normal" alt="" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_424,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F986b9416-bbb9-4e40-86e2-6f47839099d3_640x480.jpeg 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_848,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F986b9416-bbb9-4e40-86e2-6f47839099d3_640x480.jpeg 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1272,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F986b9416-bbb9-4e40-86e2-6f47839099d3_640x480.jpeg 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F986b9416-bbb9-4e40-86e2-6f47839099d3_640x480.jpeg 1456w" sizes="100vw" loading="lazy"></picture><div class="image-link-expand"><svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="16" height="16" viewBox="0 0 24 24" fill="none" stroke="#FFFFFF" stroke-width="2" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" class="lucide lucide-maximize2 "><polyline points="15 3 21 3 21 9"></polyline><polyline points="9 21 3 21 3 15"></polyline><line x1="21" x2="14" y1="3" y2="10"></line><line x1="3" x2="10" y1="21" y2="14"></line></svg></div></div></a></figure></div><p>Another week in the bag! Sadly, it won’t be possible to go get 85¢ tacos tomorrow morning.</p> Backstage, Java, and remote work - three more things to watch in 2024 https://cote.io/2024/01/10/backstage-java-and.html Wed, 10 Jan 2024 09:07:12 -0800 http://cote.micro.blog/2024/01/10/backstage-java-and.html <p>Here are the other three things I’m going to watch in 2024. By “watch,” I suppose I mean “I really hope something interesting and <em>definitive</em> happens here instead of just a continuation of what was going on in 2023.” I put <a href="https://newsletter.cote.io/p/does-kuberbetes-make-application">the first one (our old k-friend) in yesterday’s episode</a>.</p><ol><li><p><strong>Backstage</strong> - in 2022 and 2023 Backstage became super popular, at least in interest. I don’t know how widely it’s used now. It solves a legitimate problem (a framework and community for building a DevOps-oriented intranet for app developers - an internal developer portal to use the clunky word for the category of tools). How widely will get used? Is it easy to use and does it deliver the benefits, or just result in the same old thing? “Platform engineering” and Backstage have a symbiotic relationship now - though, ironically the progenitor of platforms engineering a concept/category isn’t exactly a Backstage company, I think.</p></li><li><p><strong>Java migrations and changes</strong> - Oracle has changed licensing terms for their Java VM, there are older versions of the Spring Framework rolling &nbsp;out of community support, and large enterprises are forever in the process of migrating and modernizing their apps. There’s a lot of motivation to change around your Java stack, and when it comes to price, things actually happen a lot more than when the motivation is more abstract ideas like “digital transformation.”</p></li><li><p><strong>Remote Work</strong> - tech people are in limited supply for the demand from every organization to use software as its primary way of running the business. This is always a problem. Over COVID and the last few years, many of these workers have come to cherish working from home - and if the share prices of companies is any indication, working remotely, well, works. However, many executives seem allergic to the concept. I think you can make cases for both positions: it just depends on how you engineer the company to run. As long time pro remote work executives like Matt Mullenweg (of Autommatic/WordPress) have said, you can build a system of work where remote work is great. And many of us saw this happen during COVID. As executives try to bring people back to the office, workers have a bunch of bluster that they’ll rebel and quit - and some other companies may be happy to hire them and have them work remotely. But will people go back to the office? Will executives relent? It’ll be interesting to see what happens. I wrote <a href="https://newsletter.cote.io/i/140504484/relative-to-your-interests">a little bit more about this in yesterday’s links</a>.</p></li></ol><div><hr></div><div class="captioned-image-container"><figure><a class="image-link image2" target="_blank" href="https://tanzu.vmware.com/spring-health-assessment?utm_source=cote&utm_campaign=devrel&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_content=newsletter20240110" data-component-name="Image2ToDOM"><div class="image2-inset"><picture><source type="image/webp" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_424,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F8f9f7b35-c97b-4666-8ba9-7b5534176f65_1000x1942.png 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_848,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F8f9f7b35-c97b-4666-8ba9-7b5534176f65_1000x1942.png 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1272,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F8f9f7b35-c97b-4666-8ba9-7b5534176f65_1000x1942.png 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F8f9f7b35-c97b-4666-8ba9-7b5534176f65_1000x1942.png 1456w" sizes="100vw"><img src="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F8f9f7b35-c97b-4666-8ba9-7b5534176f65_1000x1942.png" width="586" height="1138.012" data-attrs="{"src":"https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/8f9f7b35-c97b-4666-8ba9-7b5534176f65_1000x1942.png","srcNoWatermark":null,"fullscreen":null,"imageSize":null,"height":1942,"width":1000,"resizeWidth":586,"bytes":null,"alt":"Report preview","title":"Report preview","type":null,"href":"https://tanzu.vmware.com/spring-health-assessment?utm_source=cote&utm_campaign=devrel&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_content=newsletter20240110","belowTheFold":true,"topImage":true,"internalRedirect":null}" class="sizing-normal" alt="Report preview" title="Report preview" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_424,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F8f9f7b35-c97b-4666-8ba9-7b5534176f65_1000x1942.png 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_848,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F8f9f7b35-c97b-4666-8ba9-7b5534176f65_1000x1942.png 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1272,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F8f9f7b35-c97b-4666-8ba9-7b5534176f65_1000x1942.png 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F8f9f7b35-c97b-4666-8ba9-7b5534176f65_1000x1942.png 1456w" sizes="100vw" loading="lazy" fetchpriority="high"></picture><div></div></div></a></figure></div><div><hr></div><h1><strong>Relative to your interests</strong></h1><ul><li><p><a href="https://www.reuters.com/technology/dutch-online-grocer-picnic-raises-388-mln-investors-gates-foundation-2024-01-09/">Dutch online grocer Picnic raises $388 mln from investors, Gates Foundation</a> - Back at cfgmgmtcamp 2023 in line waiting for some Belgian cafeteria food, I talked with some Dutch people, and we were working up an analogy to these little trucks to DIY infrastructure stacks. I didn’t verify this, but they said these little trucks are custom made (at the very least, highly customized). This made sense for Picnic’s business model: they’re all about innovating how food is delivered and the grocery delivery business. These cars can fit down narrow Europe alleys, are meant for close city delivery, etc. In contrast, already established, brick-and-mortar grocery stories like Albert Heijn and Jumbo just use stock delivery trucks. I think UPS customized trucks at some point too. I’m guessing airlines don’t get custom planes built, but might have some slight variation on the interior (the “front end”).</p></li><li><p><a href="https://diginomica.com/cio-interview-author-wolf-cios-clothing">CIO interview - author of The Wolf in CIO’s Clothing</a> - It’s been a long time since I read this book, but it’s good. It’s one of the few management books that focuses on the pragmatic, normal state of things instead of importing you to switch to a utopia culture…that is often unattainable and a distraction from just figuring out how to deal with unrealistic, cruel, and often uninformed requests from The Business. “[The work is made up of] responses to the toxic cultures that exist in many firms. CIOs are often asked to cope with budget cuts yet deliver more, and the organization will not tolerate failures. She says:&nbsp;’It is a manipulative technique, but if they defend themselves, they are accused of being aggressive. I genuinely believe that we have to be able to defend ourselves.&nbsp;’”</p></li><li><p><a href="https://www.nextgov.com/defense/2024/01/marines-using-cheap-commercial-tech-hide-command-posts-plain-sight/393215/">Marines using cheap commercial tech to hide command posts in plain sight - Nextgov/FCW</a> - Some reverse-flow variation of “the street finds its own uses.” The other implication is that the security of consumer grade networking and IT is probably good enough, at least balancing the trade offs and benefits of secrecy and blending in.</p></li><li><p><a href="https://aws.amazon.com/blogs/enterprise-strategy/book-recommendations-from-the-aws-enterprise-strategy-team/">Book Recommendations from the AWS Enterprise Strategy Team</a> - Some books for IT/business stuff (you know, “digital transformation”).</p></li><li><p><a href="https://doc.searls.com/2024/01/05/the-new-news-business/">The New News Business</a> - “everything that happens in a marketplace falls into just three categories: transaction, conversation, and relationship. In our First World business culture, transaction matters most, conversation less, and relationship least.”</p></li><li><p><a href="https://thenewstack.io/developer-productivity-in-2024-new-metrics-more-genai/">Developer Productivity in 2024: New Metrics, More GenAI</a> - A round-up of all the developer productivity stuff from last year. It makes me think: what if developers are actually as productive as they can be? Put another way: how productive <em>should</em> developers be? Does anyone even know?</p></li><li><p><a href="https://everydeveloper.com/developer-events/">How to Choose Developer Events</a> - Good advice.</p></li></ul><div class="captioned-image-container"><figure><a class="image-link is-viewable-img image2" target="_blank" href="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Ff47eb97d-ecc5-4be3-9ce2-5555aed54152_3024x3024.jpeg" data-component-name="Image2ToDOM"><div class="image2-inset"><picture><source type="image/webp" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_424,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Ff47eb97d-ecc5-4be3-9ce2-5555aed54152_3024x3024.jpeg 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_848,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Ff47eb97d-ecc5-4be3-9ce2-5555aed54152_3024x3024.jpeg 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1272,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Ff47eb97d-ecc5-4be3-9ce2-5555aed54152_3024x3024.jpeg 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Ff47eb97d-ecc5-4be3-9ce2-5555aed54152_3024x3024.jpeg 1456w" sizes="100vw"><img src="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Ff47eb97d-ecc5-4be3-9ce2-5555aed54152_3024x3024.jpeg" width="1456" height="1456" data-attrs="{"src":"https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/f47eb97d-ecc5-4be3-9ce2-5555aed54152_3024x3024.jpeg","srcNoWatermark":null,"fullscreen":null,"imageSize":null,"height":1456,"width":1456,"resizeWidth":null,"bytes":3901296,"alt":null,"title":null,"type":"image/jpeg","href":null,"belowTheFold":false,"topImage":false,"internalRedirect":null}" class="sizing-normal" alt="" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_424,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Ff47eb97d-ecc5-4be3-9ce2-5555aed54152_3024x3024.jpeg 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_848,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Ff47eb97d-ecc5-4be3-9ce2-5555aed54152_3024x3024.jpeg 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1272,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Ff47eb97d-ecc5-4be3-9ce2-5555aed54152_3024x3024.jpeg 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Ff47eb97d-ecc5-4be3-9ce2-5555aed54152_3024x3024.jpeg 1456w" sizes="100vw"></picture><div class="image-link-expand"><svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="16" height="16" viewBox="0 0 24 24" fill="none" stroke="#FFFFFF" stroke-width="2" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" class="lucide lucide-maximize2 "><polyline points="15 3 21 3 21 9"></polyline><polyline points="9 21 3 21 3 15"></polyline><line x1="21" x2="14" y1="3" y2="10"></line><line x1="3" x2="10" y1="21" y2="14"></line></svg></div></div></a><figcaption class="image-caption">I feel like I saw this wall stuff a lot in the 80s.</figcaption></figure></div><h1><strong>Wastebook</strong></h1><ul><li><p>“spatial computing apps.” <a href="https://9to5mac.com/2024/01/08/apple-visionos-apps-ar-vr/">Here</a>.</p></li><li><p>“Letterman is hurting inside and the way he is dealing with it is putting on a Velcro suit and throwing himself off a three-story building.” <em>RoTL</em>, <sub>Jan</sub>, 2024</p></li><li><p>Oftentimes in the corporate world, success is rated by “sure, we didn’t win, but imagine how bad it’d be if we hadn’t even tried” rather than rated by “did we win?” Related: the best way to make money is to avoid losing it.</p></li><li><p>“We’re gonna have to pull this from the Dorito budget.”</p></li><li><p>Last night I dreamt that the Netherlands consulting firm ITQ invited me to their conference as an an analyst without knowing I wasn’t one. When one of them remembered that I worked at a vendor, they told me about a support ticket they had open with AppDynamics. They were cheery as always.</p></li></ul><div class="captioned-image-container"><figure><a class="image-link is-viewable-img image2" target="_blank" href="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Ff03883d0-24ab-455e-93f0-3ac2365a0dd0_2049x1537.jpeg" data-component-name="Image2ToDOM"><div class="image2-inset"><picture><source type="image/webp" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_424,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Ff03883d0-24ab-455e-93f0-3ac2365a0dd0_2049x1537.jpeg 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_848,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Ff03883d0-24ab-455e-93f0-3ac2365a0dd0_2049x1537.jpeg 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1272,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Ff03883d0-24ab-455e-93f0-3ac2365a0dd0_2049x1537.jpeg 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Ff03883d0-24ab-455e-93f0-3ac2365a0dd0_2049x1537.jpeg 1456w" sizes="100vw"><img src="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Ff03883d0-24ab-455e-93f0-3ac2365a0dd0_2049x1537.jpeg" width="1456" height="1092" data-attrs="{"src":"https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/f03883d0-24ab-455e-93f0-3ac2365a0dd0_2049x1537.jpeg","srcNoWatermark":null,"fullscreen":null,"imageSize":null,"height":1092,"width":1456,"resizeWidth":null,"bytes":1117347,"alt":null,"title":null,"type":"image/jpeg","href":null,"belowTheFold":true,"topImage":false,"internalRedirect":null}" class="sizing-normal" alt="" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_424,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Ff03883d0-24ab-455e-93f0-3ac2365a0dd0_2049x1537.jpeg 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_848,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Ff03883d0-24ab-455e-93f0-3ac2365a0dd0_2049x1537.jpeg 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1272,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Ff03883d0-24ab-455e-93f0-3ac2365a0dd0_2049x1537.jpeg 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Ff03883d0-24ab-455e-93f0-3ac2365a0dd0_2049x1537.jpeg 1456w" sizes="100vw" loading="lazy"></picture><div class="image-link-expand"><svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="16" height="16" viewBox="0 0 24 24" fill="none" stroke="#FFFFFF" stroke-width="2" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" class="lucide lucide-maximize2 "><polyline points="15 3 21 3 21 9"></polyline><polyline points="9 21 3 21 3 15"></polyline><line x1="21" x2="14" y1="3" y2="10"></line><line x1="3" x2="10" y1="21" y2="14"></line></svg></div></div></a></figure></div><h1>Logoff</h1><p>We’re recording <a href="https://www.youtube.com/@softwaredefinedtalk">Software Defined Talk today/tonight (Jan 10th, 2024)</a>. Check out <a href="https://www.youtube.com/@softwaredefinedtalk">our YouTube channel</a> to see the unedited recording, always with a few streamer-only treats.</p> Does kuberbetes make application development and delivery better? - 2024 Watch List https://cote.io/2024/01/09/does-kuberbetes-make.html Tue, 09 Jan 2024 07:30:32 -0800 http://cote.micro.blog/2024/01/09/does-kuberbetes-make.html <p><em>I don’t like annual predictions. Thankfully, no one’s asked me to do a big post about them this year, but usually I’m asked to do something formal. I always end up just predicting the same thing - predictions turn a lot more into hopes and dreams. I do like flagging things to pay attention to, and especially in a sort of “will this finally happen, or will we start re-calibrating our expectations from <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gartner_hype_cycle">the apex of inflated expectations</a>.”<a class="footnote-anchor" data-component-name="FootnoteAnchorToDOM" id="footnote-anchor-1" href="#footnote-1" target="_self">1</a></em></p><p><em>I’ve got three things to watch in 2024, here’s the first one (predictable for many of you, dear readers, no doubt).</em></p><h1>Does kuberbetes make <em>application</em> development and delivery better? </h1><p>For years we've read that kuberbetes is powerful but complex. We've also heard that application developers are not actually supposed to use it directly, let alone build all the app platforms and tools they need to make kuberbetes easy to use. </p><p>So, who is kuberbetes for, and are those people getting value out of it versus just using a standard VMs or more exotic things like serverless? </p><p>Survey results have been sort of good, people get some benefits. If you look at <a href="https://newsletter.cote.io/p/kubernetes-marketshare-across-cloud?r=2d4o&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web">estimates for how many apps run in containers</a> to get a sense for how much kuberbetes usage there is, you see something like 15% to 20% globally. If kuberbetes is going to be universal, it needs to expand to 50%, maybe even 70% of workloads. </p><p>Is that what the community wants for it, or is kuberbetes meant to be further down in the stack than something that application developers ever touch?</p><p>I try to follow the original intention of the Kubernetes Krew, which is, developers were never really meant to be exposed to it:</p><blockquote><p>Well, I don't know how many of you have built Kubernetes-based apps. But one of the key pieces of feedback that we get is that it's powerful. But it can be a little inscrutable for folks who haven't grown up with a distributed systems background. The initial experience, that 'wall of yaml,' as we like to say, when you configure your first application can be a little bit daunting. And, I'm sorry about that. We never really intended folks to interact directly with that subsystem. It's more or less developed a life of its own over time. <em>Craig McLuckie, SpringOne 2021</em>.</p></blockquote><p>If that’s true, when it comes to application the developers, I think the most valuable thing the CNCF (as an aggregate of the kubernetes kommunity) can do is define the application architectures, patterns, and practices application developers and architects need to use to be successful with kubernetes. And, you know, that might be done enough, in which case it’s just the endless slog of developer relations and thought-leadership to teach everyone <em>and</em> keep it rolling and updated.<a class="footnote-anchor" data-component-name="FootnoteAnchorToDOM" id="footnote-anchor-2" href="#footnote-2" target="_self">2</a></p><p>I haven’t programmed in a long time, so my historic examples are old, but the one I always think of are all those J2EE patterns and books. There was an underlying, infrastructure layer for Java (trying to re-write the CORBA death-star to get a better distributed application model), but if an application developer just made up their own way to use that underlying infrastructure, it all tended towards unique variation. Once every application follows its own design and practices, you have to spend a lot of time learning how to manage each one, and you typically lose any organization-wide benefits you were hoping to achieve: hopefully I don’t need to make the case for standardization?</p><p>Similarly, if we don’t start getting application developers (and architects) to use standardized design and patterns for their apps that are running on Kubernetes, we’ll get a bunch of unique garbage, er, sorry, variation. I feel like this happened with OpenStack: the conversation never evolved a new branch from operations into application development.</p><p>Good luck to the kommunity in 2024!</p><div class="captioned-image-container"><figure><a class="image-link is-viewable-img image2" target="_blank" href="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F1c398698-61e1-431c-bd96-5cf50b7c47ec_4032x3024.jpeg" data-component-name="Image2ToDOM"><div class="image2-inset"><picture><source type="image/webp" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_424,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F1c398698-61e1-431c-bd96-5cf50b7c47ec_4032x3024.jpeg 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_848,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F1c398698-61e1-431c-bd96-5cf50b7c47ec_4032x3024.jpeg 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1272,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F1c398698-61e1-431c-bd96-5cf50b7c47ec_4032x3024.jpeg 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F1c398698-61e1-431c-bd96-5cf50b7c47ec_4032x3024.jpeg 1456w" sizes="100vw"><img src="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F1c398698-61e1-431c-bd96-5cf50b7c47ec_4032x3024.jpeg" width="1456" height="1092" data-attrs="{"src":"https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/1c398698-61e1-431c-bd96-5cf50b7c47ec_4032x3024.jpeg","srcNoWatermark":null,"fullscreen":null,"imageSize":null,"height":1092,"width":1456,"resizeWidth":null,"bytes":2210555,"alt":null,"title":null,"type":"image/jpeg","href":null,"belowTheFold":true,"topImage":false,"internalRedirect":null}" class="sizing-normal" alt="" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_424,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F1c398698-61e1-431c-bd96-5cf50b7c47ec_4032x3024.jpeg 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_848,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F1c398698-61e1-431c-bd96-5cf50b7c47ec_4032x3024.jpeg 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1272,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F1c398698-61e1-431c-bd96-5cf50b7c47ec_4032x3024.jpeg 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F1c398698-61e1-431c-bd96-5cf50b7c47ec_4032x3024.jpeg 1456w" sizes="100vw" loading="lazy"></picture><div class="image-link-expand"><svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="16" height="16" viewBox="0 0 24 24" fill="none" stroke="#FFFFFF" stroke-width="2" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" class="lucide lucide-maximize2 "><polyline points="15 3 21 3 21 9"></polyline><polyline points="9 21 3 21 3 15"></polyline><line x1="21" x2="14" y1="3" y2="10"></line><line x1="3" x2="10" y1="21" y2="14"></line></svg></div></div></a></figure></div><div><hr></div><h1>Got Java Apps? Stay on-top of security patches, upgrades, and out of support apps</h1><p>We have a new tool at Tanzu,<a class="footnote-anchor" data-component-name="FootnoteAnchorToDOM" id="footnote-anchor-3" href="#footnote-3" target="_self">3</a> <a href="https://tanzu.vmware.com/spring-health-assessment?utm_source=cote&utm_campaign=devrel&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_content=newsletter20240109">the Spring Health Assessment</a>. You can use it for one project for free by uploading your dependency info from maven. It’ll create a report for telling you the, well, <em>health</em> of your app (see report example below). At a larger scale, we’ll work with you to do this at enterprise scale, you know, across hundreds and thousands of apps.</p><p>There’s all the usual stuff of wanting to keep your Spring apps secure and updated, but also <a href="https://tanzu.vmware.com/spring-health-assessment?utm_source=cote&utm_campaign=devrel&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_content=newsletter20240109">you can figure out</a> when your older version of Spring (and other Java components, I think) are no longer supported by the community or otherwise. </p><div class="captioned-image-container"><figure><a class="image-link image2" target="_blank" href="https://tanzu.vmware.com/spring-health-assessment?utm_source=cote&utm_campaign=devrel&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_content=newsletter20240109" data-component-name="Image2ToDOM"><div class="image2-inset"><picture><source type="image/webp" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_424,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F8f9f7b35-c97b-4666-8ba9-7b5534176f65_1000x1942.png 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_848,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F8f9f7b35-c97b-4666-8ba9-7b5534176f65_1000x1942.png 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1272,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F8f9f7b35-c97b-4666-8ba9-7b5534176f65_1000x1942.png 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F8f9f7b35-c97b-4666-8ba9-7b5534176f65_1000x1942.png 1456w" sizes="100vw"><img src="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F8f9f7b35-c97b-4666-8ba9-7b5534176f65_1000x1942.png" width="586" height="1138.012" data-attrs="{"src":"https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/8f9f7b35-c97b-4666-8ba9-7b5534176f65_1000x1942.png","srcNoWatermark":null,"fullscreen":null,"imageSize":null,"height":1942,"width":1000,"resizeWidth":586,"bytes":null,"alt":"Report preview","title":null,"type":null,"href":"https://tanzu.vmware.com/spring-health-assessment?utm_source=cote&utm_campaign=devrel&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_content=newsletter20240109","belowTheFold":true,"topImage":false,"internalRedirect":null}" class="sizing-normal" alt="Report preview" title="Report preview" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_424,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F8f9f7b35-c97b-4666-8ba9-7b5534176f65_1000x1942.png 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_848,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F8f9f7b35-c97b-4666-8ba9-7b5534176f65_1000x1942.png 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1272,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F8f9f7b35-c97b-4666-8ba9-7b5534176f65_1000x1942.png 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F8f9f7b35-c97b-4666-8ba9-7b5534176f65_1000x1942.png 1456w" sizes="100vw" loading="lazy"></picture><div></div></div></a></figure></div><p>I think there’s a lot of use for <a href="https://tanzu.vmware.com/spring-health-assessment?utm_source=cote&utm_campaign=devrel&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_content=newsletter20240109">this tool</a> ahead because (1) recent changes in JVM licensing costs, (2) Spring Framework components rolling out of community support, ands, if I remember and understand correctly, (3) there’s going to be more frequent releases of the JVM from now on. And, of course, there’s the never ending slog of modernizing applications.</p><p>There’s thousands and thousands - and even more thousands! - of Spring apps out there in the world and keeping on-top of all of them is a chore. Check out our tool to start automating all that.</p><p>For even more, my team-mate <a href="https://www.youtube.com/@dashaun">DaShaun</a> has <a href="https://www.youtube.com/live/MVLvHPdRUNw?si=K_lGe5Mhb9iGyOJJ&t=825">a demo and discussion of the Spring Health Assessment, fresh from the streams</a>.</p><p>Anyhow, look, <a href="https://tanzu.vmware.com/spring-health-assessment?utm_source=cote&utm_campaign=devrel&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_content=newsletter20240109">if you’re using Spring, you should check it out</a>. And if you want to apply it at a larger scale, you should <a href="mailto:cote@broadcom.com">email me</a>, ‘cause the team is interested in how it goes for you.</p><div><hr></div><h1><strong>Relative to your interests</strong></h1><ul><li><p><a href="https://lu.ma/austin-tech-scene">Austin Tech Scene</a> - Tracking events in Austin.</p></li><li><p><a href="https://textslashplain.com/2024/01/02/coding-at-google/">Coding at Google – text/plain</a> - File under “probably should read this.”</p></li><li><p><a href="https://hbr.org/podcast/2024/01/the-best-return-to-office-policies-arent-one-size-fits-all">The Best Return-to-Office Policies Aren’t One-Size-Fits-All</a> - Good summary of the return to office thing. Basically, workers hate it and say it’s a waste of their time, but management is freaked out that workers are slacking off. “Oftentimes, it’s more of a preference for leaders in organizations. And when they don’t have visibility into employees’ work lives, those concerns certainly come about. And again, our research doesn’t suggest that there’s a fire burning and we’ve got to bring folks back into the office. But it certainly has been the way that many organizations have responded to some of these concerns about productivity and collaboration in some of those areas.” What you have here is a classic anti-pattern of work: the people who are not doing the work are determining how their work is done. There’s <a href="https://youtu.be/tD6oyklMI_8?si=0X85Qp5w6nhxU2SO&t=1151">a principle from lean that says the people closest to the work should define how the work is done - they are experts in it, after all, and will spot ways to improve it day to day</a>. That applies here as well. What management needs to do is establish the strategy, context, and principles, even metrics, that those employees follow (I don’t know, insert all that military, small teams Make Your Bed Everyday productivity cult stuff from the 2010’s), and then let the workers define how they work. This is about more than morale, it’s about productivity. Anyhow: like any worker, management needs something to do, and the easiest thing to do is to inspect workers. It’s at lost harder to build a system where workers are autonomous, but a lot better than just being in a bunch of meetings no one wants to be in and that everyone except the boss thinks - knows - is a waste of time for them. Speaking of metrics: I’ve yet to see any ongoing metric-driven model that tracks any of this in office; remote work stuff. That’d very something helpful! Even more damning, in that interview, you can see in the research that management has to come up with - invent - reasons to make being in the office worth it to employees. Applying that lean principle (<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tD6oyklMI_8&t=1151s">the people who do the work define and optimize how the work is done</a>): if the workers think that being in the office is the best way to do the work, they should go into the office. Otherwise, you have to budget for starting up hot-dog roasts every Thursday, or whatever, to make being in the office worth it.</p></li><li><p><a href="https://hbr.org/2024/01/a-simple-hack-to-help-you-communicate-more-effectively">A Simple Hack to Help You Communicate More Effectively</a> - “Break down your message into three parts: What? So what? Now what?” - I like to do these in reverse order to get people’s attention, but I’m also impatient.</p></li><li><p><a href="https://open.substack.com/pub/davekarpf/p/silicon-valley-runs-on-futurity?r=2d4o&utm_medium=ios&utm_campaign=post">Silicon Valley runs on Futurity</a> - Story (or “vibes”) drives a huge part of tech company valuation.</p></li><li><p><a href="https://open.substack.com/pub/cutlefish/p/tbm-265-rebuilding-trust-and-breaking?r=2d4o&utm_medium=ios&utm_campaign=post">Rebuilding Trust and Breaking Free From Trust Proxies and The Swirl</a> - “1. People underestimate how powerful it can be to take responsibility for past behaviors. In many cases, that is all people wanted to hear. They wanted to hear that leaders could accept responsibility for being part of the swirl. 2. Don’t underestimate the ritualistic shedding of past wrongs. Many cultures use rituals to shed bad mojo. In this case, it could be a meeting to air the dirty laundry, put it in a box, and burn the box.”</p></li><li><p><a href="https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2024/jan/01/100-tiny-changes-to-transform-your-life-from-the-one-minute-rule-to-pyjama-yoga">100 tiny changes to transform your life: from the one-minute rule to pyjama yoga</a> - “’By asking: “If it’s irrational, why do it?” I stop doing it’” - this is the problem, though: how do you get yourself to actually do the rational act of following the rational? Perhaps it’s something like: you have to trust that things will be better. If you still end up unsatisfied and struggling after doing the rational, what was the point? Instead you can live in the moment and have a better chance of some seconds of happiness and relief.</p></li><li><p><a href="https://taylor.town/dollar-per-hour">Paying Netflix $0.53/h, etc.</a> - This is a fun way to look at streaming service pricing.</p></li><li><p><a href="https://overcast.fm/+_cBetdJpA">Tetragrammaton - Rick Rubin interviews Marc Andreessen</a> - This is an example of where a 3+ hour podcast works well, and is better than a 30 minute one. Normally, you just get tiny context-free chunks of Marc Anderson, and he comes off as a rich guy sort of floating above human moral concerns and everyday life. He doesn’t exactly get grounded in this interview - he’s ardently techno-positive and defensive about hating the tech industry. But, you at least get to understand his thinking so much more than you would in a WSJ column, or even a standard 30 to 40 minute podcast interview.</p></li><li><p><a href="https://danluu.com/seo-spam/?ref=labnotes.org">How bad are search results? Let’s compare Google, Bing, Marginalia, Kagi, Mwmbl, and ChatGPT</a> - Testing out search across search engine and AIs. Not good!</p></li></ul><p><em>I have a backlog of more links to share. Rather than overwhelm you, dear reader, I shall take the risk of saving some for next time, more aged as they may become. Do you like a long list, or a shorter one?</em></p><div class="captioned-image-container"><figure><a class="image-link is-viewable-img image2" target="_blank" href="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F086e0727-5d4d-44fb-b1a7-2724cf27a7d1_4332x3466.jpeg" data-component-name="Image2ToDOM"><div class="image2-inset"><picture><source type="image/webp" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_424,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F086e0727-5d4d-44fb-b1a7-2724cf27a7d1_4332x3466.jpeg 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_848,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F086e0727-5d4d-44fb-b1a7-2724cf27a7d1_4332x3466.jpeg 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1272,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F086e0727-5d4d-44fb-b1a7-2724cf27a7d1_4332x3466.jpeg 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F086e0727-5d4d-44fb-b1a7-2724cf27a7d1_4332x3466.jpeg 1456w" sizes="100vw"><img src="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F086e0727-5d4d-44fb-b1a7-2724cf27a7d1_4332x3466.jpeg" width="1456" height="1165" data-attrs="{"src":"https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/086e0727-5d4d-44fb-b1a7-2724cf27a7d1_4332x3466.jpeg","srcNoWatermark":null,"fullscreen":null,"imageSize":null,"height":1165,"width":1456,"resizeWidth":null,"bytes":8086412,"alt":null,"title":null,"type":"image/jpeg","href":null,"belowTheFold":true,"topImage":false,"internalRedirect":null}" class="sizing-normal" alt="" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_424,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F086e0727-5d4d-44fb-b1a7-2724cf27a7d1_4332x3466.jpeg 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_848,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F086e0727-5d4d-44fb-b1a7-2724cf27a7d1_4332x3466.jpeg 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1272,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F086e0727-5d4d-44fb-b1a7-2724cf27a7d1_4332x3466.jpeg 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F086e0727-5d4d-44fb-b1a7-2724cf27a7d1_4332x3466.jpeg 1456w" sizes="100vw" loading="lazy"></picture><div class="image-link-expand"><svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="16" height="16" viewBox="0 0 24 24" fill="none" stroke="#FFFFFF" stroke-width="2" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" class="lucide lucide-maximize2 "><polyline points="15 3 21 3 21 9"></polyline><polyline points="9 21 3 21 3 15"></polyline><line x1="21" x2="14" y1="3" y2="10"></line><line x1="3" x2="10" y1="21" y2="14"></line></svg></div></div></a><figcaption class="image-caption">Garbage Chairs of Amsterdam, New Year’s in Austin edition.</figcaption></figure></div><h1><strong>Wastebook</strong></h1><ul><li><p>“‘Failures’ are usually just incremental steps.” <a href="https://overcast.fm/+RrSFJTgg">Here</a>.</p></li><li><p>Related: I’m too busy being upset at myself fucking up yet again to care about you fucking up yet again.</p></li><li><p>The Dutch like to use <a href="https://taarten.plus.nl/get_item_detail/?itemid=P6018">cake as a pie-filling</a>.</p></li><li><p>“[A] Minotaur’s labyrinth costs nothing to enter. What we need is string to find our way out again.” <a href="https://www.theregister.com/2024/01/08/open_sources_new_mission/">Here</a>.</p></li><li><p>“Yeah, we know how magnets work. But they’re still incredible.” <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/trump-magnets-iowa-rally-insane-clown-posse-meme-2024-1">Here</a>.</p></li><li><p>“Fecosystem.” <a href="https://doc.searls.com/2024/01/05/the-new-news-business/">Here</a>.</p></li><li><p>“The problem is, everyone we know really <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stone_Soup">only has stones</a>.” <em><a href="http://www.merlinmann.com/roderick/ep-521-keep-the-nickel.html">RoTL</a></em><a href="http://www.merlinmann.com/roderick/ep-521-keep-the-nickel.html"> #521</a>.</p></li><li><p>“Do you believe that? I’m not asking if you can <em>argue</em> it, I’m asking if you <em>believe</em> it.” <a href="https://overcast.fm/+_cBetdJpA">Here</a>.</p></li><li><p>“Since having kids, deadlines are a mere illusion, shadows of their former selves.” <a href="https://tomcritchlow.com/2024/01/04/9-years/">Here</a>.</p></li><li><p>“Temporal illegibility.” <a href="https://crookedtimber.org/2024/01/05/american-gerontocracy-explained/">Here</a>.</p></li><li><p>It was only dark when it was night.</p></li><li><p>For me, the long winter vacation is about relaxing, “recharging.” But the real trick is figure out how to continue that chilled out mindset once back in the fray of life. I rarely can.</p></li><li><p>“We’d be showing them a pipeline of pipelines…redacting things that we don’t want to expose.”</p></li></ul><h1>Logoff</h1><div id="youtube2-7hTguuDS8iw" class="youtube-wrap" data-attrs="{"videoId":"7hTguuDS8iw","startTime":null,"endTime":null}" data-component-name="Youtube2ToDOM"><div class="youtube-inner"><iframe src="https://www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/7hTguuDS8iw?rel=0&autoplay=0&showinfo=0&enablejsapi=0" frameborder="0" loading="lazy" gesture="media" allow="autoplay; fullscreen" allowautoplay="true" allowfullscreen="true" width="728" height="409"></iframe></div></div><p>I have a new theory for <a href="https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLk_5VqpWEtiXBH0mEGNL5YuEEgNvdIloT">these little videos</a>. The views on them are so uneven - <a href="https://www.youtube.com/shorts/7hTguuDS8iw">that one above</a> has over 1,000 views, while others have, like, 79. I think what you’re supposed to do is (1) only post one a week or so, and, (2) re-post the ones that get low-views, maybe even varying the videos a little? Seems like a lot of work, but not really if you have a good workflow and a tool like Descript.</p><p>Also, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/shorts/7hTguuDS8iw">we should get lunch</a> - hahahah…jokes.</p><p>(Also: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/@JKenjiLopezMain">Kenji is so inspirational as a video maker</a>. His content, of course, is great, though it has nothing to do with <a href="https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC8cRg_d0Qzq_1b6KUS3yI5w">my content</a> [except <a href="https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLk_5VqpWEtiVGmMo9cPPWITyimvyH740E">the chip tasting and Nutella nonsense</a>, sort of]. What’s inspiring is that, well, if you make videos, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9sF6Mur3JUY&lc=UgyPo1as38k8N_j7hzJ4AaABAg">you can imagine his workflow</a>. I’m sure each video takes a long time, but you can totally see how he’s optimized a one-man [I’m guessing] workflow from content planning, filming, editing, post-production and posting. You can tell he has a “stop planning and just get out the camera and start filming” attitude that you have to have for this kind of work. It’s also a good example of how much “pro-am” equipment [I think Go Pro’s and iPhones] make it possible for individuals to do good, important, etc. content. In all the nonsense about TikTok destroying the world, or whatever us old people worry about, it’s easy to overlook how this equipment, contemporary computers with video editing and rendering horse-power, mics [you can see him <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LnQoM2SIZmM">using a Rode Wireless Go here</a>, <a href="https://rode.com/en/microphones/wireless/wirelessgoii">one of the best</a>], and video production have “democratized” video production. There may worrying about other types of content [text, music, etc.] being shittified by the Internet, but as a consumer, video is so much better than when there were just three channels, the PBS and the UHF channel. Also, I rewatched <a href="https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLk_5VqpWEtiVGmMo9cPPWITyimvyH740E">my goofy how to eat videos recently</a> - I mean, first, they’re great! And, second, it’s <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k4YSShn91K0&list=PLk_5VqpWEtiVGmMo9cPPWITyimvyH740E&index=24">adorable</a> to see my kids grow up over the course of three years. Also, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XzNJVsKEDfk&list=PLk_5VqpWEtiVGmMo9cPPWITyimvyH740E&index=2">gravy is always a winner</a>.)</p><div class="footnote" data-component-name="FootnoteToDOM"><a id="footnote-1" href="#footnote-anchor-1" class="footnote-number" contenteditable="false" target="_self">1</a><div class="footnote-content"><p>One of the key things people miss (or mis-use?) from [the hype cycle](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gartner_hype_cycle) is the fall from the peak of inflated expectations. People feel let down when a technology fails to live up to its promise, they think less of the technology. The point of that fall doesn't have anything to do with the goodness of that technology, it's all about the failure of humans to know understand the technology and the failure of boosters to moderate claims about the technology. When a technology slides down to the trough of disillusionment, it means that people's perceptions are more _correctly_ set. People being people (overreacting), the slide goes down too much, and it eventually re-sets, just a little bit up, hence, the Plateau of Productivity. Wow! Maybe there's something to be typed up here with mis-uses of the hype-cycle. The other dangerous use is to think t[he diffusion of innovation curve](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diffusion_of_innovations) is highly related - can be overlayed even - on the hype-cycle. And then you throw in [all the Disruption lore](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Innovator%27s_Dilemma), and you're off the races of chaos-strategy (applying the lessons of steel mill business strategy to software, it turns out, is dangerous).</p></div></div><div class="footnote" data-component-name="FootnoteToDOM"><a id="footnote-2" href="#footnote-anchor-2" class="footnote-number" contenteditable="false" target="_self">2</a><div class="footnote-content"><p>One of the principles of this newsletter is that I don’t have time to write the perfect thing. I bet there is such work going on - maybe it just needs to be spread more widely. I don’t know, get Martin Fowler to curate a series of blog posts that turn into a book, or something ¯\_(ツ)_/¯.</p></div></div><div class="footnote" data-component-name="FootnoteToDOM"><a id="footnote-3" href="#footnote-anchor-3" class="footnote-number" contenteditable="false" target="_self">3</a><div class="footnote-content"><p>After the Broadcom acquisition, my organization is now called "Tanzu by Broadcom," or, just "Tanzu." This is how most people would refer to it anyway, but it's noticeable sign throwing that it's no longer "VMware Tanzu." We're, you know, our own thing now, within the conglomerate of Broadcom.</p><p></p></div></div> American Christmas, part 3 https://cote.io/2024/01/03/american-christmas-part.html Wed, 03 Jan 2024 04:32:17 -0800 http://cote.micro.blog/2024/01/03/american-christmas-part.html <h1><strong>American Christmas, part 3</strong></h1><div class="captioned-image-container"><figure><a class="image-link is-viewable-img image2" target="_blank" href="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fd0d39a7c-91b8-44e9-8e93-3eec4c521588_4032x3024.jpeg" data-component-name="Image2ToDOM"><div class="image2-inset"><picture><source type="image/webp" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_424,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fd0d39a7c-91b8-44e9-8e93-3eec4c521588_4032x3024.jpeg 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_848,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fd0d39a7c-91b8-44e9-8e93-3eec4c521588_4032x3024.jpeg 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1272,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fd0d39a7c-91b8-44e9-8e93-3eec4c521588_4032x3024.jpeg 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fd0d39a7c-91b8-44e9-8e93-3eec4c521588_4032x3024.jpeg 1456w" sizes="100vw"><img src="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fd0d39a7c-91b8-44e9-8e93-3eec4c521588_4032x3024.jpeg" width="1456" height="1941" data-attrs="{"src":"https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/d0d39a7c-91b8-44e9-8e93-3eec4c521588_4032x3024.jpeg","srcNoWatermark":null,"fullscreen":null,"imageSize":null,"height":1941,"width":1456,"resizeWidth":null,"bytes":2390048,"alt":null,"title":null,"type":"image/jpeg","href":null,"belowTheFold":false,"topImage":true,"internalRedirect":null}" class="sizing-normal" alt="" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_424,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fd0d39a7c-91b8-44e9-8e93-3eec4c521588_4032x3024.jpeg 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_848,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fd0d39a7c-91b8-44e9-8e93-3eec4c521588_4032x3024.jpeg 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1272,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fd0d39a7c-91b8-44e9-8e93-3eec4c521588_4032x3024.jpeg 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fd0d39a7c-91b8-44e9-8e93-3eec4c521588_4032x3024.jpeg 1456w" sizes="100vw" fetchpriority="high"></picture><div class="image-link-expand"><svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="16" height="16" viewBox="0 0 24 24" fill="none" stroke="#FFFFFF" stroke-width="2" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" class="lucide lucide-maximize2 "><polyline points="15 3 21 3 21 9"></polyline><polyline points="9 21 3 21 3 15"></polyline><line x1="21" x2="14" y1="3" y2="10"></line><line x1="3" x2="10" y1="21" y2="14"></line></svg></div></div></a></figure></div><ul><li><p>Kids out and about in their pajamas.</p></li><li><p>“Help me remember that our full size mini-van is hidden behind this Suburban.”</p></li><li><p>Adults out and about in their pajamas.</p></li><li><p>“Here’s the check. No rush, though!”</p></li><li><p>Massive, high capacity washing machines that would fit a calf.</p></li><li><p>The cheap wine is still expensive.</p></li><li><p>Free electricity in AirBnBs.</p></li><li><p>15 types of cauliflower <em>frozen</em> pizza.</p></li><li><p>“Please be respectful of our neighbors and the residents living above us. Please keep noise down after dark.”</p></li><li><p>Golf-cart security guard.</p></li></ul><p>Also, see parts <a href="https://newsletter.cote.io/p/american-christmas">one</a> and <a href="https://newsletter.cote.io/p/american-christmas-part-2?r=2d4o&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web">two</a>.</p><div class="captioned-image-container"><figure><a class="image-link is-viewable-img image2" target="_blank" href="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F0a362304-fdcf-4848-8368-8da0ca4873b4_3024x4032.jpeg" data-component-name="Image2ToDOM"><div class="image2-inset"><picture><source type="image/webp" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_424,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F0a362304-fdcf-4848-8368-8da0ca4873b4_3024x4032.jpeg 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_848,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F0a362304-fdcf-4848-8368-8da0ca4873b4_3024x4032.jpeg 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1272,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F0a362304-fdcf-4848-8368-8da0ca4873b4_3024x4032.jpeg 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F0a362304-fdcf-4848-8368-8da0ca4873b4_3024x4032.jpeg 1456w" sizes="100vw"><img src="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F0a362304-fdcf-4848-8368-8da0ca4873b4_3024x4032.jpeg" width="1456" height="1941" data-attrs="{"src":"https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/0a362304-fdcf-4848-8368-8da0ca4873b4_3024x4032.jpeg","srcNoWatermark":null,"fullscreen":null,"imageSize":null,"height":1941,"width":1456,"resizeWidth":null,"bytes":3933222,"alt":null,"title":null,"type":"image/jpeg","href":null,"belowTheFold":false,"topImage":false,"internalRedirect":null}" class="sizing-normal" alt="" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_424,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F0a362304-fdcf-4848-8368-8da0ca4873b4_3024x4032.jpeg 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_848,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F0a362304-fdcf-4848-8368-8da0ca4873b4_3024x4032.jpeg 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1272,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F0a362304-fdcf-4848-8368-8da0ca4873b4_3024x4032.jpeg 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F0a362304-fdcf-4848-8368-8da0ca4873b4_3024x4032.jpeg 1456w" sizes="100vw"></picture><div class="image-link-expand"><svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="16" height="16" viewBox="0 0 24 24" fill="none" stroke="#FFFFFF" stroke-width="2" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" class="lucide lucide-maximize2 "><polyline points="15 3 21 3 21 9"></polyline><polyline points="9 21 3 21 3 15"></polyline><line x1="21" x2="14" y1="3" y2="10"></line><line x1="3" x2="10" y1="21" y2="14"></line></svg></div></div></a></figure></div><h1><strong>Relative to your interests</strong></h1><ul><li><p><a href="https://jvns.ca/blog/brag-documents/">Get your work recognized: write a brag document</a> - Making sure you prove your value at work.</p></li><li><p><a href="https://kidnonfic.substack.com/p/tech-stuff-for-ten-yr-olds?utm_source=substack&utm_medium=email">Tech stuff for Ten-yr-olds - by Camille Hartsell</a> - As it says.</p></li><li><p><a href="https://aeon.co/essays/sulking-is-a-fascinating-form-of-indirect-communication">Sulking is a fascinating form of indirect communication</a> - “Given that sulking is a somewhat understandable strategy through which powerless people can get their needs met, it’s puzzling that we are so opposed to it.”</p></li><li><p><a href="https://nesslabs.com/decision-making">The science of decision-making: why smart people do dumb things</a> - Drivers of decision making, a simple framework.</p></li><li><p><a href="https://hbr.org/2015/09/make-yourself-immune-to-secondhand-stress?utm_source=labnotes.org">Make Yourself Immune to Secondhand Stress</a> - “five positive psychology habits that help inoculate your brain against the negative mindsets of others: 1)writing a 2-minute email praising someone you know; 2) writing down three things for which you’re grateful; 3) journaling about a positive experience for two minutes; 4) doing cardio exercise for 30 minutes; or 5) meditating for just two minutes.”</p></li><li><p><a href="https://seroter.com/2024/01/01/2023-in-review-reading-and-writing-highlights/">2023 in Review: Reading and Writing Highlights</a> - “I had a great year.” Seroter’s list of books, publications, etc.</p></li><li><p><a href="https://kellblog.com/2024/01/02/kellblog-predictions-for-2024/">Kellblog Predictions for 2024</a> - “ABM is a lot of work. You shouldn’t bother trying it to win a $10K or even a $50K deal. But when you can do $100K to $500K+ deals and have a few strong references in a vertical to which your company has strategically committed, that is when you should do ABM.”</p></li></ul><h1><strong>Wastebook</strong></h1><ul><li><p>The best is when you visit an old friend and your phone still has the WiFi password.</p></li><li><p>"freelancers’ liedowns. <a href="https://open.substack.com/pub/heawood/p/its-the-final-rightmove-roundup-of?r=2d4o&utm_medium=ios&utm_campaign=post">Here</a>.</p></li><li><p>“I’ve eaten the burrito that tastes only of Wednesdays, all of your Wednesdays, all your loves that didn’t end because they didn’t begin, all your small midweek deaths.” <a href="https://open.substack.com/pub/heawood/p/the-sophist-goes-on-delicious-rightmove?r=2d4o&utm_medium=ios&utm_campaign=post">Here</a>.</p></li><li><p>“It’s just bald men. They’re going to be dead soon anyway.”</p></li><li><p>“This is a bad time to get mixed up in the uncanny, not that there’s ever a good time.” <a href="https://www.audible.com/pd/1250841399?source_code=ASSORAP0511160006&share_location=player_overflow">Here</a>.</p></li><li><p>“We told you about the Japanese bathroom story, right?”</p></li><li><p>“Seasonal jute.”</p></li><li><p>“I said I’m gonna die with my boots on.”</p></li><li><p>“I retired two months ago, and I feel like a teenager!”</p></li><li><p><em><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Haunting_of_Hill_House_(TV_series)">The Haunting of Hill House</a></em> is a story about siblings. It’s the part of the story that I’m most fascinated by. I hope my kids have that kind of ongoing relationship.</p></li><li><p>Was it Arley who changed Nine Inch Nails “Terrible Lies” into “Terrible Fries,” or was that Weird Al?</p></li><li><p>“Look, people know that coffee makes you poop.” <a href="https://youtu.be/IrIb7RSJL2I?si=UA0xXit6lyrswx6y">bdg</a>.</p></li><li><p>“It’s me, Andrew Jackson!”</p></li></ul><h1><strong>Logoff</strong></h1><p>We’re going back to Amsterdam today. A holiday trip is never long enough: always book the extra days, with maybe just a day or two buffer to get situated back for real life.</p><div class="captioned-image-container"><figure><a class="image-link is-viewable-img image2" target="_blank" href="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F1c062351-61a7-428b-adc8-26a91ffd3f5d_1994x3545.jpeg" data-component-name="Image2ToDOM"><div class="image2-inset"><picture><source type="image/webp" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_424,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F1c062351-61a7-428b-adc8-26a91ffd3f5d_1994x3545.jpeg 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_848,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F1c062351-61a7-428b-adc8-26a91ffd3f5d_1994x3545.jpeg 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1272,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F1c062351-61a7-428b-adc8-26a91ffd3f5d_1994x3545.jpeg 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F1c062351-61a7-428b-adc8-26a91ffd3f5d_1994x3545.jpeg 1456w" sizes="100vw"><img src="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F1c062351-61a7-428b-adc8-26a91ffd3f5d_1994x3545.jpeg" width="1456" height="2589" data-attrs="{"src":"https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/1c062351-61a7-428b-adc8-26a91ffd3f5d_1994x3545.jpeg","srcNoWatermark":null,"fullscreen":null,"imageSize":null,"height":2589,"width":1456,"resizeWidth":null,"bytes":1712993,"alt":null,"title":null,"type":"image/jpeg","href":null,"belowTheFold":true,"topImage":false,"internalRedirect":null}" class="sizing-normal" alt="" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_424,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F1c062351-61a7-428b-adc8-26a91ffd3f5d_1994x3545.jpeg 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_848,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F1c062351-61a7-428b-adc8-26a91ffd3f5d_1994x3545.jpeg 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1272,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F1c062351-61a7-428b-adc8-26a91ffd3f5d_1994x3545.jpeg 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F1c062351-61a7-428b-adc8-26a91ffd3f5d_1994x3545.jpeg 1456w" sizes="100vw" loading="lazy"></picture><div class="image-link-expand"><svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="16" height="16" viewBox="0 0 24 24" fill="none" stroke="#FFFFFF" stroke-width="2" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" class="lucide lucide-maximize2 "><polyline points="15 3 21 3 21 9"></polyline><polyline points="9 21 3 21 3 15"></polyline><line x1="21" x2="14" y1="3" y2="10"></line><line x1="3" x2="10" y1="21" y2="14"></line></svg></div></div></a></figure></div> American Christmas, part 2 https://cote.io/2023/12/29/american-christmas-part.html Fri, 29 Dec 2023 07:06:58 -0800 http://cote.micro.blog/2023/12/29/american-christmas-part.html <h1><strong>American Christmas, part 2</strong></h1><ul><li><p>Stores that are open on Sunday, and don’t close until 9pm.</p></li><li><p>People saying “sorry” for no reason.</p></li><li><p>Bagels.</p></li><li><p>Top sheets.</p></li><li><p>Ceiling fans.</p></li><li><p>HVAC.</p></li><li><p>Warmth from the sun.</p></li><li><p>Massive amounts of water in toilets.</p></li><li><p>Bottle caps that come all the way off.</p></li><li><p>Colby jack.</p></li><li><p>Cheddar.</p></li><li><p>Ritz crackers.</p></li><li><p>Crushed ice from your home refrigerator.</p></li><li><p>Oceans of lotions: ten versions of every product (sometime more than ten).</p></li><li><p>45mph.</p></li><li><p>Self-service checkout machines that insist in weighing every grocery.</p></li><li><p>Using physical credit cards.</p></li><li><p>“Everyone is so fuckin' happy.”</p></li><li><p>Giant, fluffy cupcakes for breakfast. (Called “muffins” by the locals.)</p></li><li><p>Limestone facade.</p></li><li><p>A box of 12 croissants, each as big as Drax the Destroyer’s two fists side-by-side.</p></li><li><p>Free toilets at gas stations.</p></li><li><p>Free toilets at grocery stores.</p></li><li><p>Free toilets at…everywhere.</p></li></ul><p>More <a href="https://newsletter.cote.io/p/american-christmas">things in part one</a>.</p><div class="captioned-image-container"><figure><a class="image-link is-viewable-img image2" target="_blank" href="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F6b394aef-74dd-4e6c-971f-62c26eb296a8_4434x3547.jpeg" data-component-name="Image2ToDOM"><div class="image2-inset"><picture><source type="image/webp" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_424,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F6b394aef-74dd-4e6c-971f-62c26eb296a8_4434x3547.jpeg 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_848,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F6b394aef-74dd-4e6c-971f-62c26eb296a8_4434x3547.jpeg 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1272,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F6b394aef-74dd-4e6c-971f-62c26eb296a8_4434x3547.jpeg 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F6b394aef-74dd-4e6c-971f-62c26eb296a8_4434x3547.jpeg 1456w" sizes="100vw"><img src="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F6b394aef-74dd-4e6c-971f-62c26eb296a8_4434x3547.jpeg" width="1456" height="1165" data-attrs="{"src":"https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/6b394aef-74dd-4e6c-971f-62c26eb296a8_4434x3547.jpeg","srcNoWatermark":null,"fullscreen":null,"imageSize":null,"height":1165,"width":1456,"resizeWidth":null,"bytes":3148991,"alt":null,"title":null,"type":"image/jpeg","href":null,"belowTheFold":false,"topImage":true,"internalRedirect":null}" class="sizing-normal" alt="" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_424,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F6b394aef-74dd-4e6c-971f-62c26eb296a8_4434x3547.jpeg 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_848,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F6b394aef-74dd-4e6c-971f-62c26eb296a8_4434x3547.jpeg 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1272,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F6b394aef-74dd-4e6c-971f-62c26eb296a8_4434x3547.jpeg 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F6b394aef-74dd-4e6c-971f-62c26eb296a8_4434x3547.jpeg 1456w" sizes="100vw" fetchpriority="high"></picture><div class="image-link-expand"><svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="16" height="16" viewBox="0 0 24 24" fill="none" stroke="#FFFFFF" stroke-width="2" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" class="lucide lucide-maximize2 "><polyline points="15 3 21 3 21 9"></polyline><polyline points="9 21 3 21 3 15"></polyline><line x1="21" x2="14" y1="3" y2="10"></line><line x1="3" x2="10" y1="21" y2="14"></line></svg></div></div></a></figure></div><h1><strong>Relevant to your interests</strong></h1><ul><li><p><a href="https://www.horsesforsources.com/not-even-god-can-save-dxc_122123/">Not even God can save DXC!</a> - “Stabilizing delivery on infrastructure doesn’t mean people will buy transformation. Just look at the similar price-to-sales ratio to <a href="https://www.horsesforsources.com/who-will-buy-kyndryl_120221/">Kyndryl</a>, another firm struggling to sell transformational services tied to its commodity infrastructure business.”</p></li><li><p><a href="https://toshareproject.it/artmakerblog/">Artmaker Blog</a> - Bruce Sterling starting up his Wired-style blogging again? I hope so! <a href="https://toshareproject.it/artmakerblog/the-alexander-calder-workshop-chaos-philosophy/">For example</a>: “He deliberately keeps it as a swamp so that he won’t become mentally trapped in the habits of the bourgeoisie.”</p></li><li><p><a href="https://www.theregister.com/2023/12/27/bruce_perens_post_open/">What comes after open source? Bruce Perens is working on it</a> - ‘“First of all, our licenses aren’t working anymore,” he said. “We’ve had enough time that businesses have found all of the loopholes and thus we need to do something new. The GPL is not acting the way the GPL should have done when one-third of all paid-for Linux systems are sold with a GPL circumvention. That’s RHEL.” RHEL stands for Red Hat Enterprise Linux, which in June, under IBM’s ownership, <a href="https://www.theregister.com/2023/06/23/red_hat_centos_move/">stopped making its source code available</a> as required under the GPL.’ And: ‘Another straw burdening the Open Source camel, Perens writes, “is that Open Source has completely failed to serve the common person. For the most part, if they use us at all they do so through a proprietary software company’s systems, like Apple iOS or Google Android, both of which use Open Source for infrastructure but the apps are mostly proprietary. The common person doesn’t know about Open Source, they don’t know about the freedoms we promote which are increasingly in their interest. Indeed, Open Source is used today to surveil and even oppress them.”’</p></li><li><p><a href="https://www.forrester.com/blogs/software-ag-webmethods-the-farewell-sale/">Software AG webMethods: The Farewell Sale</a> - “Yesterday, I was surprised to learn that IBM is acquiring webMethods from Software AG.”</p><div class="captioned-image-container"><figure><a class="image-link is-viewable-img image2" target="_blank" href="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9cab5133-8b5b-48ab-9a93-68f17f271a33_2730x2184.jpeg" data-component-name="Image2ToDOM"><div class="image2-inset"><picture><source type="image/webp" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_424,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9cab5133-8b5b-48ab-9a93-68f17f271a33_2730x2184.jpeg 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_848,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9cab5133-8b5b-48ab-9a93-68f17f271a33_2730x2184.jpeg 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1272,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9cab5133-8b5b-48ab-9a93-68f17f271a33_2730x2184.jpeg 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9cab5133-8b5b-48ab-9a93-68f17f271a33_2730x2184.jpeg 1456w" sizes="100vw"><img src="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9cab5133-8b5b-48ab-9a93-68f17f271a33_2730x2184.jpeg" width="1456" height="1165" data-attrs="{"src":"https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/9cab5133-8b5b-48ab-9a93-68f17f271a33_2730x2184.jpeg","srcNoWatermark":null,"fullscreen":null,"imageSize":null,"height":1165,"width":1456,"resizeWidth":null,"bytes":1041001,"alt":null,"title":null,"type":"image/jpeg","href":null,"belowTheFold":false,"topImage":false,"internalRedirect":null}" class="sizing-normal" alt="" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_424,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9cab5133-8b5b-48ab-9a93-68f17f271a33_2730x2184.jpeg 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_848,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9cab5133-8b5b-48ab-9a93-68f17f271a33_2730x2184.jpeg 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1272,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9cab5133-8b5b-48ab-9a93-68f17f271a33_2730x2184.jpeg 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9cab5133-8b5b-48ab-9a93-68f17f271a33_2730x2184.jpeg 1456w" sizes="100vw"></picture><div class="image-link-expand"><svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="16" height="16" viewBox="0 0 24 24" fill="none" stroke="#FFFFFF" stroke-width="2" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" class="lucide lucide-maximize2 "><polyline points="15 3 21 3 21 9"></polyline><polyline points="9 21 3 21 3 15"></polyline><line x1="21" x2="14" y1="3" y2="10"></line><line x1="3" x2="10" y1="21" y2="14"></line></svg></div></div></a></figure></div></li></ul><h1><strong>Wastebook</strong></h1><ul><li><p>“It’s good, but it’s fruit cake.”</p></li><li><p>‘I normally avoid camou clothing – (“It’s our version of plaid” – Wm Gibson)’ <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/bruces.bsky.social/post/3kgvjgul2f22t">Here</a>.</p></li><li><p>Frank Sinatra singing “Jingle Bells” is almost better than the theme song for <em>Halloween</em>, but only on Christmas Day.</p></li><li><p>On the Internet, you should always favor self-publishing and owning the published material. Each item may make zero money, but you’ll accrue the value and build the channel over years. Also, it’s often much faster, and publishers fall prey to perfect being the enemy of done.</p></li><li><p>“Essentially, where you could see the welds and joins before, you could now see the chop marks and bolts.” <a href="https://pocgamer.com/archives/1429?amp=1">Here</a>.</p></li><li><p>“This reminds me of my colonoscopy.”</p></li><li><p>"Probably, maybe. But, not on purpose</p><div class="captioned-image-container"><figure><a class="image-link is-viewable-img image2" target="_blank" href="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fb3507d56-06aa-47bc-9ef3-a346feceb0f9_5135x4108.jpeg" data-component-name="Image2ToDOM"><div class="image2-inset"><picture><source type="image/webp" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_424,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fb3507d56-06aa-47bc-9ef3-a346feceb0f9_5135x4108.jpeg 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_848,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fb3507d56-06aa-47bc-9ef3-a346feceb0f9_5135x4108.jpeg 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1272,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fb3507d56-06aa-47bc-9ef3-a346feceb0f9_5135x4108.jpeg 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fb3507d56-06aa-47bc-9ef3-a346feceb0f9_5135x4108.jpeg 1456w" sizes="100vw"><img src="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fb3507d56-06aa-47bc-9ef3-a346feceb0f9_5135x4108.jpeg" width="1456" height="1165" data-attrs="{"src":"https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/b3507d56-06aa-47bc-9ef3-a346feceb0f9_5135x4108.jpeg","srcNoWatermark":null,"fullscreen":null,"imageSize":null,"height":1165,"width":1456,"resizeWidth":null,"bytes":6763895,"alt":null,"title":null,"type":"image/jpeg","href":null,"belowTheFold":false,"topImage":false,"internalRedirect":null}" class="sizing-normal" alt="" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_424,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fb3507d56-06aa-47bc-9ef3-a346feceb0f9_5135x4108.jpeg 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_848,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fb3507d56-06aa-47bc-9ef3-a346feceb0f9_5135x4108.jpeg 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1272,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fb3507d56-06aa-47bc-9ef3-a346feceb0f9_5135x4108.jpeg 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fb3507d56-06aa-47bc-9ef3-a346feceb0f9_5135x4108.jpeg 1456w" sizes="100vw"></picture><div class="image-link-expand"><svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="16" height="16" viewBox="0 0 24 24" fill="none" stroke="#FFFFFF" stroke-width="2" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" class="lucide lucide-maximize2 "><polyline points="15 3 21 3 21 9"></polyline><polyline points="9 21 3 21 3 15"></polyline><line x1="21" x2="14" y1="3" y2="10"></line><line x1="3" x2="10" y1="21" y2="14"></line></svg></div></div></a></figure></div></li></ul><h1><strong>Logoff</strong></h1><p>Still in Texas, now with the kids at “Nana Camp,” that is, staying with my mother.</p>