Ryan Booz from Redgate Software has answered our questions about open-source solutions and PostgreSQL. For the last two decades, Booz created and managed multiple IT systems and software deployments across companies large and small. He has also extensive experience on every level of the software and IT stack, from hands-on creation to the management of a software team as it transitioned from a legacy desktop product to a cutting-edge web application serving thousands of clients. His answers helped us better understand the PostgreSQL community and the open-source field in general.
Can you please introduce yourself? What is your role at Redgate?
My name is Ryan Booz and I work as a Developer Advocate at Redgate software, focusing on PostgreSQL. Redgate creates tools that help developers increase the velocity at the database layer throughout the enterprise. As an advocate, I get to interact with our customers and the PostgreSQL community about database design, development, and automation. I particularly enjoy creating educational content which helps users take the next step in their database journey.
Can you summarize your “We all deserve arrays: The undervalued PostgreSQL superpower” speech on SCaLE 20x?
PostgreSQL is one of the few relational databases that fully supports arrays as a datatype. As a developer, arrays are a commonplace and powerful data structure for accomplishing a wide range of tasks efficiently. Having this many of these same abilities at the database layer can unlock new ways of processing data and finding value.
Through the use of array-specific indexes and a myriad of built-in functions for manipulating arrays, PostgreSQL stands head and shoulders above other relational databases in providing efficient data management and transformation.
This session will provide an overview of how arrays are used in PostgreSQL and a demonstration of some key methods for using arrays.
What do you think about SCaLE 20x and its colocated events, especially KCD LA and the SCaLE Kids Day?
This will be my first time to SCaLE and I’m excited to be attending. As a developer of 20+ years, I’ve been to many conferences and am particularly fond of conferences that bring many disciplines together, the way that SCaLE does. Technologies are often interdependent and the ability to interact with other attendees about new technologies always leads to “ah-ha” moments I can carry back to improve my contributions to the team and help them grow their skills, too.
In what kind of situations does Redgate prefer open-source? How does the management make the decisions?
Redgate understands how open-source software empowers many organizations to innovate and grow. As the tide continues to turn in favor of open-source solutions, Redgate creates tools that help developers be more effective at all layers of their database stack, from developer changes to powerful database monitoring and alerting.
How does Redgate contribute to open source?
Redgate has invested in open-source tools for years. Most recently they acquired Flyway, a database migration framework, to provide new functionality and sustainable maintenance oversight.
What do you think of the current state and the future of open-source? What are your forecasts for the next 30 years?
Open-source is very strong in 2023. Many of the big technologies vendors, like AWS and Microsoft, are investing in teams dedicated to support popular open-source projects independently from other product teams. This builds awareness of the technologies, and open-source more generally, often fueling velocity in projects because there are dedicated resources to shepherd changes and standards.
Although the term “open-source” is only 25 years old, communities and software developers have been sharing their work with others for decades. Our interconnected world has only increased the ability of project developers and maintainers to collaborate, accelerating the pace of innovation and adoption.
If PostgreSQL is any indication of how effectively a global community can work together to create safe, secure, useful, and innovative software year after year, I think we’ll continue to see the usage of open-source software grow.