Today: People, In-Groups, Speed, and Automation

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1. If it weren't for the people “If only it weren’t for the people, the goddamned people,” said Finnerty, “always getting tangled up in the machinery. If it weren’t for them, earth would be an engineer’s paradise.” The quote, from Kurt Vonnegut’s dystopian novel Player Piano, contains a certain truth about our collective mindsets when it comes to people and systems. Our view is often that the system is basically safe, so long as the human works as imagined. We don’t seem to think of that someone—pilot, controller, train driver, or surgeon—as a human being who goes to work to ensure things go right in a messy, complex, demanding and uncertain environment. What is the proper role for people anyway? Steven Shorrock shares his thoughts on the all-important question of how humans and automation fit together. Did we mention that Shorrock is keynoting at Velocity in Barcelona? 2. 5 years of DevOps Has it really been 5 years since Patrick Debois launched the first DevOps Days? It turns out that time flies when developers and operations are getting along and getting bits shipped. Episode 51 of The Ship Show features an all-star DevOps cast, including Debois himself, talking about early DevOps days and where DevOps is headed now. 3. In-groups, out-groups, and DevOps The next time you start to talk about the “ops guy,” give it a pause. Bridget Kromhout makes a very wise case for avoiding gender-exclusive terms (no, “guy” is not gender-neutral). And for anyone who thinks they're just not “DevOps” enough, she has some new ways of thinking. The first rule of DevOps club is welcome to the club. 4. Get your boss to send you to Velocity in Barcelona Velocity in Barcelona is just days away and where will you be? At the office, wishing you were there? It’s not too late to get your manager’s approval. Just visit our Convince Your Manager Page and follow the steps. With a program like we’ve put together, you know Velocity is going to make you better at what you do. Make sure your boss knows it, too. Happening November 17-19—don’t miss out. Follow the steps → 5. The change agents of ops Sparking positive change in organizations requires certain things—an understanding of why the organization does things the way it does now, a clear idea of why change is needed, a willingness to takes risks, and more. At the top of the list, you’ll find “ask questions and listen.” Aliza Earnshaw describes what it really takes to be an agent of change. Sponsored Content Complimentary speed assessment What does a one-second delay mean to your bottom line? Discover how fast your customers need you to be. See exactly what page-load time metrics deliver the highest conversion rate for your customers with a 14-day trial of the full version of SOASTA’s award-winning mPulse Real User Measurement solution. 6. Digital content 101 It may come as a surprise, but not everyone knows what a CDN really does. Jason Thibeault sets out to remedy this with a multi-part series that aims to demystify digital content delivery. Part 1, short and sweet, explains just what a CDN does. 7. Automate the easy way with Ansible Among the many configuration management tools available, Ansible has some distinct advantages: it’s minimal in nature, you don’t need to install anything on your nodes, and it has an easy learning curve. Get a preview of O’Reilly’s Ansible Up & Running and get started with Ansible today. Thank you toAnsible for sponsoring this free preview! 8. The minimal holiday prep By now, you’ve probably taken time to examine your ecommerce business to make sure it can stand up to the holidays and you’ve got a plan in place. If you’re not entirely sure what steps to take, review these 3 suggestions offered by Deborah Sandock.