The Joe Reis Show cover image

The Joe Reis Show

Wes McKinney

Oct 30, 2024
Wes McKinney, the creator of Pandas and Apache Arrow, now works at Posit on Positron, a cutting-edge data science IDE. He delves into the innovative, React-based features of Positron and its integration with TypeScript and Jupyter. McKinney shares insights on optimizing data science with DuckDB and Wasm, enhancing workflows through AI, and navigating coding complexities. He reminisces about the creation of Pandas during financial turmoil and the evolution of Arrow for improved data processing. Outside of coding, he enjoys video gaming and language learning.
59:03

Episode guests

Podcast summary created with Snipd AI

Quick takeaways

  • Positron is an innovative data science IDE built on VS Code, featuring a headless version for seamless data file exploration.
  • Wes McKinney emphasizes the significance of teamwork and adaptability as he learns TypeScript for the Positron project alongside backend developers.

Deep dives

Introduction to Positron IDE

The development of Positron, a new data science Integrated Development Environment (IDE) built on VS Code, has been a major focus for the speaker. Originally under wraps until its public beta launch, features like an advanced data viewer have been implemented, allowing users to interact smoothly with data frames. A notable addition is a 'headless version' utilizing WebAssembly for DuckDB, which enables users to directly explore data files like CSVs and Parquet without needing to load them through traditional coding languages. This integration signifies a streamlined approach for data scientists wishing to analyze datasets efficiently.

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