The MonkCast

Todd Gardner, CEO of Request Metrics and TrackJS, discusses "Frontend Observability" with RedMonk senior analyst Kate Holterhoff. In an attempt to answer the question "Is Frontend Observability Hipster RUM?," Kate and Todd delve into the concept of frontend observability by exploring its definition, historical context, and the uphill marketing hurdles involved in educating web developers about observability tools. Their conversation highlights the disconnect between observability terminology and the practical needs of developers (from SREs to frontend engineers), emphasizing the need for a user-centric approach to positioning these products for the market.

In this RedMonk conversation, Coraline Ada Ehmke discusses her new book, We Just Build Hammers: Stories from the Past, Present, and Future of Responsible Tech, with Kate Holterhoff, senior analyst at RedMonk. In addition to outlining the book's argument and major themes, Kate and Coraline also chat about extensible lessons from science fiction including what is means to be a hacker and how the history of science connects to contemporary tech justice movements.

In this conversation, John O'Hara, inventor of the Advanced Message Queuing Protocol (AMQP), discusses this standard's history and development with Kate Holterhoff, senior analyst at RedMonk. O'Hara shares insights about the complexities of middleware, the importance of standards, and the evolution of AMQP 0-9-1 and 1-0. He reflects on the AMQP working group, the role of hyperscalers in shaping standards, the limitations of HTTP, and the importance of standards bodies like ISO, OASIS, and IEC. O'Hara emphasizes the need for middleware to become as ubiquitous as the web and shares insights on the future of AMQP and the standards process.

In this RedMonk conversation, Alexis Richardson, Founder and CEO of ConfigHub, discusses the evolution and significance of messaging in distributed systems, and particularly RabbitMQ, with Kate Holterhoff, Senior Analyst at RedMonk. Alexis shares insights from his experience in the tech industry, including the development of messaging protocol AMQP, the founding of Rabbit Technologies and its acquisition by VMware, and his role in founding the Cloud Native Computing Foundation (CNCF). The discussion highlights the importance of messaging for asynchronous communication, scalability, and integration in modern technology, particularly in financial services and cloud computing.

In this RedMonk conversation, Andrew Hutchings (aka LinuxJedi), a software engineer at wolfSSL, discusses what he terms "a war going on within the WordPress community" with Kate Holterhoff, senior analyst at RedMonk. Andrew shares his journey into open source, his experiences at MariaDB, and his involvement in the WordPress.org open source community. The discussion delves into the current litigation and his WordPress Slack ban, including this so-called war's broader implications for open source projects.

In this RedMonk conversation, Ram Iyengar, Chief Evangelist at the Cloud Foundry Foundation, chats with Rachel Stephens, Research Director at RedMonk. Their wide-ranging conversation centers on developer experience from cf push and the promise of PaaS, to Korifi, a developer platform built by the Cloud Foundry community for deploying cloud-native applications on Kubernetes. This RedMonk conversation is sponsored by the Cloud Foundry Foundation.

In this conversation, Ram Iyengar, Chief Evangelist at the Cloud Foundry Foundation, discusses Paketo Buildpacks and their role in simplifying containerization in the cloud-native ecosystem, with Kelly Fitzpatrick, senior analyst at RedMonk. Ram explains the evolution of Buildpacks, their advantages over traditional Docker workflows, and their applications in various domains, including MLOps. The discussion also highlights the importance of security and compliance in software development, emphasizing how Buildpacks inherently support these aspects. Finally, Ram provides guidance on how to get started with Paketo Buildpacks and where to find more resources. This RedMonk conversation is sponsored by the Cloud Foundry Foundation.

In this RedMonk conversation, Thomas Dohmke, CEO of GitHub, chats AI agents with Kate Holterhoff, Senior Analyst at RedMonk. They discuss the definition of AI agents, GitHub Copilot's role as peer programmer, and AI as an abstraction layer in software engineering. Thomas highlights how these agents can assist developers by automating tasks such as test generation and code reviews, ultimately enhancing productivity, while underlining the importance of human interaction in AI-assisted programming. The discussion also touches on the future of AI in development, including the need for continuous improvement and adaptation to meet the demands of modern coding practices. This was a RedMonk video, sponsored by GitHub.

Jennifer Marandola, Technical Writing Manager at Cribl, joins RedMonk's Kelly Fitzpatrick for a discussion on the evolving role of technical writing in an era of AI copilots and assistants. She shares insights on how her team collaborates with Cribl's AI team to enhance documentation, making it more accessible and effective for both human users and AI tools. The discussion also covers the changing nature of user queries, the importance of clear documentation, and advice for aspiring technical writers navigating this new landscape. Show notes: https://redmonk.com/blog/2025/03/10/rmc-making-docs-better-for-ai-and-humans-with-jennifer-marandola/

Dr. Cat Hicks, a psychologist specializing in software teams, joins the conversation to highlight the crucial link between psychology and technological innovation. She discusses her research on code review anxiety and the concept of "AI Skill Threat" impacting developers. Dr. Hicks emphasizes the need for inclusivity in STEM and the importance of a scientifically informed culture in software development. She also shares insights from her writing journey and her upcoming book on the psychology of software teams, reflecting on cultural challenges within the tech industry.