#i also liked the idea of different departments in the same sector of the fleet having different hues

[universalcaffination]

Concept: as you go up the ranks instarfleet, your uniforms saturation gets stronger. Kirk's command gold is a rich ochre, and ensign chekov is a pastel yellow. Sulu's yellow is bright, but somewhere in the middle

Department heads like bones spock uhura and scotty are very vibrant! They're just missing the "richness" of their colors that's only reserved for the captain

[amplifyre]

Amplifyre: Developing Apps in a Modern PaaS Solution| AskTheHub

Do you know what is a PaaS solution? Do you want to learn how it affects software development? Then check out our latest #AskTheHub interview. This week David had a chat with Jonas Kröger, the Lead Solutions Architect at Platform.sh, about PaaS solutions and the benefits it provides to software development. Do you have any questions to @Platform.sh about #PaaS or #softwarearchitecture? Leave us a comment below and we are happy to answer! #AskTheHub is the series where we take questions from the community about business, technology, and product development topics, and talk to one of our partner companies who specializes in the topic.

David: Welcome to another episode of AskTheHub. The series will take questions from the community on business technology and product development and talk with the experts in the fields From the Amplifyre Hub today, we have Jonas, The lead Solutions architect of Platform.Sh. And the topic is when and why to develop your apps on a modern PAAS solution. Hi Jonas, how are you doing?

Jonas: I'm fine. How are you?

David: I'm doing good as well. And thank you very much for taking the time for the chat today.

Jonas: Pleasure to be here

David: Before we dive into the topic. Let's talk a little bit about Platform.Sh. What is this company about?

Jonas: So Platform.Sh wants our customers to focus on what matters the most, we want them to thrive, we don't want them to think about you much about infrastructure. We want to facilitate a collaboration between between teams and developers, especially building

experiences on the web. That can be a single website, that can be a large fleet of different websites. That doesn't really matter. We want to have the platform that facilitates all that and just abstracts infrastructure away from them under the hood. We are a remote company. So we've been founded around 2010. The product is actually a little bit older, even as a remote company from the beginning. So, even before the pandemic, we were working from all kinds of different places around the world. Right now we are 250 employees, and we have clients like UNICEF, University of Missouri, Cambridge, audio or mentors that trust and host their websites on our solution.

David: For the people out there, who are not so technical, They might know SAAS, Right? SAAS is likely the most commonly known one. But then there's also PAAS and IAAS, Yes. So, for these people could you explain a little bit. What is meant by the PAAS solution?

Jonas: When we talk about infrastructure for web applications, There are a lot of different options, Of course, on the market. Traditionally, even before infrastructure as a service or IAAS People would need on-premise infrastructure on-premise needs either their own data center or a renting space in a data center from someone else, but actually buying hardware, bringing in cables and everything infrastructure as a service like AWS, Azure, Google Cloud platform. But they provide basically an abstraction layer on top of that.

So instead of bringing physical hardware to the place, you can use Virtual computers in the

end. So you still get a computer from them. And you still have to do a lot of stuff on that computer, installing an operating system, making all the configuration, everything. But you don't need to worry about a disc that's erroring out, or something like that. You don't have to exchange that physically. Someone else's doing that for you, and on top of infrastructure providers infrastructure as a service providers, we as Platform.Sh being a platform as a service provider, we go even further in terms of the abstraction level don't need to worry about operating system updates about back up your data about the tiny little details That is, all the infrastructure sector configuration that you would need. And then you have software as a service provider where you don't have the flexibility to run your customers software, right? You need to be lying on what they provide and the options they give you on a PAAS. You can actually bring your own system and host it and have access to the data and have access to the source code and make changes to it, Whereas on the SAAS You probably don't have that possibility. So it's really about flexibility, abstraction, and not needing to worry about specifics.

David: Would you say, these are the reasons why I should use the paas? I mean, when we talk about this, the general question is, is this right for me or not? Is it then about the flexibility, or is there some other reason to own it?

Jonas: First of all, when running infrastructure is actually hard, I mean, there's a reason why there are so many companies who are specialized in that field. So it requires work, it requires people, it requires a lot of skills these days. Like I said, it's not getting less complex. and so complexity is a huge part of the topic and part of the decision. And the other one is, as you said, of course, flexibility and as well as agility. So I talked about collaboration and quick feedback in the beginning. For example, this is something that if it's integrated in your day-to-day workflow, and it is very flexible and not relying on a very static process, It actually makes you go faster. It brings you faster to the Market. And at the same time, you have the Ability to bring in people as needed, and don't need to worry too much about setting up everything. Let me tell you quickly how that works on Platform.Sh. So you get an idea of what this feels like in an actual project. Let's say you want to have a new website, or a new E-commerce system, or any kind of web application, and want to run it the way it works on Platform.Sh. You would just click and create a new project, Maybe even based on one of our templates. So you could start with a Drupal website already, and then make changes according to your specific needs. At some point You would bring that website live and receive traffic, get orders on your store. For example, Stuff like that. And then this is not a static site, Right? It lives. It is, there's changes. You want to improve your checkout process. The marketing department is requesting other features changes to the website.So the development team can go ahead and work on those features. But they don't have to work on them in a completely separated world. They would just create a new git branch. everything on Platform.Sh is actually based on git. So you create a new git branch in every git branch and it can be its own environment. Environment means basically, you get back a domain. A URL where you can make any changes, so you can push your new source code to it. Make changes, and you can send that to anybody involved stakeholders like QA teams, your product owner, or even customers, asking them for their feedback on the feature. And then you can integrate that feedback, Make a change, and tell them to check the site again, since it's a completely separate environment. You have all the features to do whatever you need to do. You can modify data. You don't need to worry about your production system, because that's still running. And at the same time, you can just share that domain. Right? So it's very fast to iterate over any changes. And then when you're done, you get the feedback. And you want to deploy that to your production set. That's also easy. And the production system makes sure it scales, together with the receiving growth that you have.

David: Let's say, I want a new feature that I would like to do. And I would like to see it fast and easy. What is the outcome? I want to compare different versions of its right And traditional development setting. This is, well, quite a cumbersome operation, or takes time. And here with Platform.Sh, when should I think about changing to a PAAS solution?

Jonas: What we see in our customers is actually a wide variety of different types, right?

We have large scale corporations that look for a The solution where they can host all the different kinds of projects, even different architectures, different text, and have a platform that is secure, compliant, easy to use for everybody, not only internally, but also external people like agencies, while at the same time being future-proof, right?

If you want to switch Technologies tomorrow, and we'll use a different content management

system, you don't want to be locked into anything. And then we have small teams who just don't have the luxury to have a devops team that is available twenty four seven. We have agencies that just want to focus on delivering great experiences and improving their Core Business for their customers, and want to make sure the money that they're spending is actually spent on the right place.We also have Freelancers who just want to have a easy and stable and modern solution that they can rely on without having to deal with anything related to infrastructure. So you can see that there's a lot of different use cases. And I think this is what you should expect from a modern PAAS these days. It should abstract all the infrastructure and make you less worried. But at the same time, you should have a lot of flexibility How it's used, how its integrated and what you actually bring to host.

David: So thank you. Jonas, for telling us about PAAS Solutions And when and why we should use them

Jonas: My pleasure, great to be here.

David: For the viewers out there If you have any questions on Platform.Sh, or on PAAS solutions in general, please leave them down in the comments. We are happy to answer them.

See you next time.!

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[russellwneuendorf]

Reflections on my career

On a recent walk through the bush I reflected back on what had changed over my career, particularly my time in the Public Sector.

I started out as an Architectural Technician developing design briefs, drafting plans/specifications and managing contracts for project delivery onto doing post occupancy reviews and facility management.  Dealing with hard assets and all that was related to ensuring that they delivered value for occupants and users.  Later in my career I was responsible for other classes of assets including fleet, communications and information systems.  The common theme was ensuring that the organisations were delivering services to a high standard and with a financially sound approach.

With hindsight I was delusional in thinking that was what I was really doing.  I was just a cog in a machine that was necessary but not important.  At one time the area I managed had a “tag line” of “Providing Practical Solutions” and we proudly developed and engineered systems to support service delivery. If I was still in the Public Sector I suspect that an appropriate “tag line” now would be along the lines of “Providing Political Propaganda” coming up with spin as to how much this latest thing was benefiting you with an empathetic tone and if necessary a heart rending excuse around the failure.

The signs of the politicization of the Public Sector were always there no matter what particular sector I was working in.  The last-minute request for a paper that would be thrown into the budget process to get a line item that sounded like it was a “good” thing.  Admittedly generally it was something I had been promoting for funding but kept getting put off, so it was a good thing to get funded.  Just the issue about a business case and all the project design work so that it would in the end be beneficial to service delivery not being done when the system said that was what the process should be.

Sadly, the use of consultants is also a vexed issue. In most instances the “consultant’s report” is more highly regarded than any report provided by staff.  Ironically, most of the information, findings and recommendations are gathered from the same staff.  The recommendations of course are never independent but whatever the senior client wants them to be.  In the end only the recommendations that senior client representative wanted are ever implemented and none of the risks ever addressed so about three years later the situation is worse than before except for the consultant that got paid and the executive who has now moved onto a more senior role elsewhere.  Having said all those negative statements I also used consultants once that took my work and gave some legitimacy to it that was subsequently used in a budget submission that delivered improvements to significant public infrastructure.

One thing that has not changed is the seven-year cycle. Every seven years whatever the prevailing approach was it was reversed.  If there was a centralized approach you decentralized and visa versa.  You set up centralized for economies of scale and then you distribute because the central area has grown too big.  In the process focus is lost on the core purpose of the departments in the political power struggles.  The same issues come from centralized procurement vs other commercial arrangements where the costs are higher than the savings.

Recently I was at a restaurant enjoying a meal when at the table nearby were a group of senior Public Servants regaling each other with the latest brilliant idea that they were working on.  We agreed that it was like living in the middle of a comedy version of “yes Minister” or its later clones.  Other stories exchanged were around the deals done in back rooms that had then to be implemented.  Then again that has always been the way of things were back to feudal times now with just the veneer of democracy.  Its just that recent examples have been too hard for me to ignore and thus the calling it out.

On the walk was a Brisbane Wattle Tree in flower, its bright yellow trying desperately to lighten the otherwise dark green winter landscape.  So, I am reminded not to be the dampener but to lighten the mood.  But that is hard at the moment with the reality check that things are not going to change quickly as the whole system has evolved to support politics over substance with the media playing a core role.

So, as I come to the end of my working career I am thankful that at times I think I did actually make a difference and supported service delivery outcomes across Queensland.  It is still something good to work towards.  I encourage those working in the Public Sector or supporting them to focus on the fundamentals of service delivery (people, process and technology) and the broader public policy outcomes.  Public Value is a thing to be delivered and it and the people that deliver it should be valued.  “To infinity and beyond” is where we should be going, let’s get on with it where we can.

[inerginc]

It’s very fashionable nowadays for utility businesses to cite the great internet giants as their inspiration. I’ve been in many a meeting in recent years where clients have told me “we look to Google and Facebook” or “we want to be just like LinkedIn or Netflix”. Now, this is commendable … to an extent. These businesses are successful, popular, globally recognised and clearly very different from the traditional utility business.

And in these crazy times when utilities themselves don’t want to look like traditional utility businesses anymore, who wouldn’t want to turn to the darlings of the digital world for some tips? Right?

Digitising a hole in the ground?

However, digging further into how such businesses can genuinely be a guiding light for a century-old industry based on heavy assets, government funding and natural monopolies is not always so easy.1 These wholly digital, often global business models don’t always translate directly to the needs of a team planning the movement of an HV transformer along a country lane; an asset manager worried about how best to scrape waste off the filters in a fleet of 60-year-old water treatment plants; or a direct labour force, skilled in digging holes in the ground in major conurbations.

“Of course they don’t David!” I hear you cry. “We’re not trying to digitise excavations!” And I appreciate that. I really do. I understand fully that there are many opportunities to digitise; to emulate the customer-service ideals of the internet giants; to introduce flexibility and…gasp…innovation.

Safety first

But my examples about transformers and water treatment plants and labourers are not flippant ones. They’re examples of the fundamental tasks that define an industry. And of the unshakeable safety-first principles underpinning everything that is done in an industry that can all too easily blow up buildings, electrocute individuals or even poison whole populations. These things don’t happen too often. But they do happen.

Now, into such a safety-conscious, tried-and-trusted environment comes a new and enthusiastic Chief Digital Officer, citing the benefits of digital disruption and of new – possibly unproven – ways of doing things. Tough gig, huh?

It’s that culture thing again

As you may be working out by now, I’m talking about cultural issues. Again. I’ve written before on this site about CDOs and their role in culture change, but let’s take a particular example today and go into a little more detail.

One of Teradata’s mantras is “fail fast”. We’re a data & analytics company, so we’re talking about analytics, of course. The kind of analytics where business users - not the IT Department - have the tools, the environment and the opportunity to combine data sets and apply analytics quickly and easily. And see the results just a quickly. Some of those analytical journeys will lead to new insights that could save the company time or money, or even improve safety. But some will prove … nothing. And you know what? That’s OK. It’s part of the deal. And it’s not just us preaching such an approach. A culture of discovery and “fail fast” is a key part of all the inspirational organisations that your peers cite. Yes, all of them.

Failing like Netflix

Consider Netflix. They’re well known for building shows based on analytics. Netflix understands the kinds of plots, actors and direction that their customers like and create new combinations of them in their next original show. It means their hit rates are high. So far, so good. Something to emulate in customer interaction perhaps?

But wait. We’re not finished here. If that new show doesn’t perform as expected, it’s dropped. They fail fast. Even so, Reed Hastings, CEO of Netflix, recently discussed how they still “… have to take more risk; you have to try more crazy things. Because we should have a higher cancel rate overall. [By taking risks] you get some winners that are just unbelievable winners”.

Take another look at that quote. Where it says “we should have a higher cancel rate”. Netflix’s CEO wants to see failure. Because in experimentation, there is the opportunity to discover new, valuable things. And the reality is that some experiments fail. Others though … others create billionaires, or change the world. Or both.

Fail fast, or fail altogether?

Aye, there’s the rub 2. How many of your employers, your colleagues, or your staff are ready for experimentation and failure? Not many, I’d guess. And that’s not unreasonable. A TV show that goes live, but fails to capture the attention of a critical mass of viewers is not the same as, say … a combination of chemicals that’s released into a treatment plant but fails to make their water safe to drink. It just isn’t. Is it any wonder that utilities people are often uncomfortable with experimentation and failure?

But digitisation really is coming. Disruption is already here, from every angle. Citing Tesla and Apple as your new competitors is already getting old, because it’s no longer a threat. Its real. Today. We all know the industry must transform or die.

In such circumstances, even utilities need to experiment. And learn that failure can be OK. Not on live networks, experimenting with people’s health or their energy supply. Of course not. But with new combinations of asset, workforce and supplier data; with new ways to communicate and engage customers; with crazy ideas about weather and demographics and home solar-plus-storage takeup combined with opportunities to invest in grey water recycling startups.

Or just with adding ERP data to Historian data in an analytical environment, to try a few new ways of applying analytics to asset health monitoring or phase imbalance in MV networks.

It’s time to get over those cultural barriers and embrace the right kind of failure. The fast failure of discovery analytics. Because if you don’t, pretty soon failure is going to embrace you. And it’s a death grip. Coming soon.

  1 No matter what your favourite Management Consultancy might tell you. 2 It’s from Hamlet. The famous “to be or not to be” soliloquy in fact.

  About the author:

David Socha is Teradata’s Practice Partner for the Industrial Internet of Things (IoT).  He began his career as a hands-on electrical distribution engineer, keeping the lights on in Central Scotland, before becoming a part of ScottishPower’s electricity retail deregulation programme in the late 1990s. After a period in IT Management and Consulting roles, David joined Teradata to found their International Utilities practice, later also taking on responsibilities in Smart Cities and the wider Industrial IoT sector.

  Image credit: 123rf.

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