Parallella in 5 Minutes at RubyConf 2015

Thank You Organizers!

First things first: Thank you to the RubyConf organizers for inviting me to the lightning talk stage this year. Slides and video appear below:

Jekyll: ChicagoRuby Hack Night

Why Jekyll?

As software developers, we have a ton of stuff to learn. Our learning is reinforced when we share our learning with others. Blogging and presenting are two ways to share knowledge with our colleagues.

Jekyll is a static HTML page generator. Jekyll includes tools that accelerate the blogging process, especially for people who know Ruby, because Jekyll is written Ruby.

RubyConf Colombia: A Conference With A Mission

Let’s talk about software and leave our past behind.
~Juan Pablo Buritica

Juan Pablo Buritica and his team from Ride organized RubyConf Colombia in Medellín this month. The organizers ran JSConf Colombia concurrently with the Ruby conference. What a feat of logistical legerdemain!

Yes, the technical presentations were powerful. Even more inspiring: RubyConf Colombia is a technical conference with a mission to change the reputation of Colombia.

Research, or Ready-Fire-Aim?

First rule of user research: Never ask anyone what they want.
~Erika Hall, author of “Just Enough Research”

It is popular to view entrepreneurs as risk takers. After 20+ years running WisdomGroup, I’m not sure that’s an accurate view. From what I’ve observed, successful entrepreneurs will reduce risk before launching a venture. Consider a road full of potholes. Most people would avoid such a road. But if the benefits at the end of the road are big enough, an entrepreneur will devise ways to navigate over and around the obstacles.

Some people avoid risk outright. Entrepreneurs reduce risk through creativity.

WindyCityRails 2015 Recap

What an adventure… WindyCityRails 2015 achieved record attendance. Feedback has been amazing. Thank you speakers, sponsors, and attendees for making everything happen so well!

Here’s a 2-minute video recap of WindyCityRails 2015: