Experts in Postgres and Open Source Infrastructure

Welcome to Episode 46 of More Than a Refresh! Join JD as he sits down with Elizabeth McCormick, a former US ARMY Black Hawk Helicopter Pilot turned Inspirational Speaker specializing in Leadership. In this episode, they explore the power of choice in dissatisfaction, the intricate relationship between confidence and self-worth, and the power of rhinestoned flak jackets.

Welcome to episode 45 of More Than a Refresh, where JD sits down with Montana Low, Founder and CEO @ PostgresML. Listen in as they discuss pragmatic perfectionism, why ML should happen in databases, and the difference between "hype beast" AI vs. "get shit done" AI.

Welcome to episode 43 of More Than a Refresh, where JD sits down with Lindsey Simon, VP Engineering at Vercel. Listen in as they differentiate between failure and opportunity, discuss the link between advertising and UX, and explain why "the long road" is actually just "the road." Plus, JD finally gets Rickrolled.

Welcome to episode 43 of More Than a Refresh, where JD sits down with Leta Keane, Experienced Front End Engineering Instructor. Listen in as they discuss investing in humans, not assets; having a fixed mindset vs. a growth mindset; and why "luxury" isn't just another yacht - it's childcare.

https://www.linkedin.com/in/letakeane/

Welcome to episode 42 of More Than a Refresh, where JD sits down with Hugh Forrest, Co-President & Chief Programming Officer @ SXSW. Listen in as they discuss collaborative problem solving, how humans parse authenticity, and that time Barack Obama back-channeled to nab a speaking slot at SXSW.

Welcome to episode 41 of More Than a Refresh, where JD sits down with jack of all trades (and master of many), Silona Bonewald, Founder & President @ Leadingbit Solutions. Listen in as they discuss production readiness, "Gutenberg moments," dude bros, and why the OSS community needs to get involved in standards.

Welcome to episode 40 of More Than a Refresh, where JD sits down with Cooper Quintin, Senior Staff Technologist @ The EFF. On Thursday, December 7th, Meta announced the roll out of default end-to-end encryption on all messages on Facebook. Listen into a high-octane discussion of privacy as a human right, mining children for data, and how law enforcement leverages capitalism to circumvent your 4th Amendment rights.

Click here to donate to EFF⁠, and if you're looking for other ways to get involved, the EFF has ⁠this helpful page⁠ of suggestions.

Welcome to episode 39 of More Than a Refresh, where JD sits down with Dave Stokes, Technology Evangelist @ Percona. Listen in as they discuss Postgres vs. MySQL, maintaining "boring but vital" OSS projects, and how to save a piece of data for 100+ years.

Welcome to episode 38 of More Than a Refresh, where JD sits down with Cooper Quintin, Senior Staff Technologist at The Electronic Frontier Foundation. Listen in as they discuss the "enshitification" of the internet, including how governments circumvent privacy laws to get to your data, rehabilitation vs. discipline in the legal system, why the Metaverse is already a dead mall, and how the stock market secretly owns everything.

Click here to donate to EFF, and if you're looking for other ways to get involved, the EFF has this helpful page of suggestions.

Welcome to episode 37 of More Than a Refresh, where JD sits down with Tom Michaels, Co-Founder @ Open Source Seed Initiative and Horticultural Science Professor at University of Minnesota - Twin Cities. Listen in as they discuss the relationship between soil health and human health, why the food system is flawed, and why we should treat cannabis like any other plant.

Welcome to Episode 28 of More than a Refresh, where JD sits down with Dr. Lauran Star, Workforce DE&I Psychologist, Strategist, & Speaker. Listen in as they discuss being diverse "enough," white privilege vs. class privilege, and why evidence-based research should guide us into a new phase of IDE.

Welcome to Episode 35 of More than a Refresh, where JD sits down with his old friend, Michael Meskes, Senior Director of Cloud Products @ NetApp. Listen in as they discuss what private companies "owe" Open Source Software, monetizing distribution, and creating a culture of work that's good for employees - and the environment.

Welcome to Episode 34 of More than a Refresh, where JD sits down with Phillip Merrick, CEO @ pgEdge, Serial Entrepreneur, and Technologist. Listen in as they discuss the relationship between latency across geographies and node placement, the role of AI in Postgres deployments, and simplifying vs. "dumbing down" processes.

Welcome to Episode 33 of More than a Refresh, where JD sits down with Ry Walker, Founder at Tembo. Listen in as they discuss the benefits of asynchronous work, the under-celebration of Postgres extensions, and why your Open Source competition is actually one of your greatest partners in development.

Welcome to Episode 32 of More than a Refresh, where JD sits down with Kris Jenkins, Developer Advocate, Podcast Host, Hacker, Speaker, Geek. Listen in as they discuss change management, why you need to understand your end user, and making the London Underground sing with Kafka.

The landscape of digital privacy is changing. While cloud adoption and ethical hacking create new opportunities for all, data leaks and proposed legislation introduce new levels of threat to everyone from CTOs to laypeople. But what are these threats and what danger do they pose? Fully understanding the factors that influence digital privacy is about to be vital in protecting yourself, while continuing to benefit from living in a digital age.

Join More than a Refresh host, Joshua “JD” Drake, for a roundtable with Jon Callas, Director of Public Interest Technology @ Electronic Frontier Foundation, and Dan Frechtling, CEO @ Boltive, to discuss the state of digital privacy in the US and beyond.

Welcome to Episode 31 of More than a Refresh, where JD sits down with mega multi-hyphenate, Bobbie Carlton, Founder @ Innovation Women + Founder @ Carlton PR & Marketing. Listen in as they discuss day, night, and dream jobs; the reality of technical heckling; and when to rethink panel organization.

For more information on Innovation Women, to search for speakers, or to add yourself to the Innovation Women database, please visit their website at https://innovationwomen.com/.

Welcome to Episode 30 of More than a Refresh, where JD sits down with Glenda Sims, "the good witch of accessibility" and Chief Information Accessibility Officer at Deque Systems. Listen in as they discuss why independence is the crux of accessibility, social structures vs. brain patterns, and why accessible design is good for all users.

Please click here to access a transcription of this episode.

Blurb: Welcome to Episode 29 of More than a Refresh, where JD sits down with Paul Kochanski, Founder, President, and Keyboardist @ Foreigners Journey. Listen in as they discuss how a career in channel sales set up our guest to succeed in the music industry, advice on how to pivot your career, and the striking similarities between software sales and running a band.

Welcome to Episode 28 of More than a Refresh, where JD sits down with Dr. Lauran Star, Workforce DE&I Psychologist, Strategist, & Speaker. Listen in as they discuss equality vs. equity, the magic of blue paper, and why the core value of diversity is diverse perspectives. Plus, a challenge to "the glass ceiling." For more information, or to get in touch with Dr. Star, please visit her website --> https://www.drlauranstar.com/

Welcome to Episode 27 of More than a Refresh, where JD sits down with Ravi Murthy, Senior Director of Engineering at Google. Listen in as they discuss products vs. projects, the responsibility of cloud providers, and why Google is betting on Postgres.

Welcome to episode 26 of More than a Refresh, where JD sits down with Laura DiBenedetto, Chief Executive Officer @ Sovereign Ammo. Listen in as they discuss why sovereignty  is freedom + responsibility, what happy people have in common, and the problem with treating the symptom instead of the root cause.

Editor's Note

The opinions expressed in this episode by out guest are those of the individual. They do not purport to reflect the opinions of More than a Refresh, our host, or our producer. 

For more information on COVID-19, the vaccine, or the the anti-viral, please visit The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention at CDC.Gov.

Welcome to episode 25 of More than a Refresh, where JD sits down with Ajay Kulkarni, Co-Founder and CEO @ Timescale. Listen in as they discuss the intersection of cutting edge technology and the marketplace, open source vs. open standards, and the cloud as the reinvention of the wheel.

Welcome to episode 24 of More than a Refresh, where JD sits down with Peter Zaitsev, Founder @ Percona. Listen in as they discuss the value of long-term partnership, data automation & legacy planning, and why OSS is the best. 

Welcome to episode 23 of More Than a Refresh, where JD sits down with Divya Bhargov, Senior Director Of Engineering, Greenplum R&D, VMware. Listen in as they discuss finding a tribe, maintaining company culture in the face of M&A, and the Goldilocks Rule of communication.

Welcome to episode 22 of More Than a Refresh, where JD sits down with Nikolay Samokhvalov, Founder @ Postgres.ai – Database Lab. Listen in as they discuss ethical Open Source licenses, being "addicted" to Postgres, and maintaining a community in the face of war.

Welcome to episode 21 of More Than a Refresh, where JD sits down with Dan Frechtling, CEO @ Boltive. Listen in as they discuss dark signals, AdTech as a tool for counterespionage, and the humble origins - and eventual exploitation - of the internet cookie.

Welcome to episode 20 of More Than a Refresh, where JD sits down with Jon Callas, Director of Public Interest Technology at Electronic Frontier Foundation. Listen in as they discuss why paper is magical, international threats to privacy and security, and the problem with never-ending emergencies. Click here to donate to EFF, and if you're looking for other ways to get involved, the EFF has this helpful page of suggestions.

Welcome to episode 19 of More Than a Refresh, where JD sits down with old friend and Senior Director Cloud Products @ credativ, Dr. Michael Meskes. Listen in as they discuss Debian, why competition yields better software, the difference between free and open source, and how to attract the next generation of developers to Postgres.

Welcome to the second episode in our AgData series of More Than a Refresh, where JD sits down for a second time with Tom Michaels, Co-Founder @ Open Source Seed Initiative and Horticultural Science Professor at University of Minnesota - Twin Cities. Listen in as they discuss industrial hemp in all its glories: legislation and economics, how hemp could save the US water system, and why it's always important to have a fire extinguisher on your combine.

Welcome to episode 17 of More Than a Refresh, where JD sits down with Tom Michaels, Co-Founder @ Open Source Seed Initiative and Horticultural Science Professor at University of Minnesota- Twin Cities. Listen in as they discuss copyleft, the hallmarks of healthy open-source communities, the value of diversity, and DNA as source code. 

Welcome to episode 16 of More Than a Refresh, where JD sits down with Jeff Mains, five-time founder and current CEO @ Intelligent Contacts and CEO @ Champion Leadership Group. Listen in as they discuss solving real problems for real people, idea validation, succession planning, and why ideas without passion will lead to failure.

Welcome to a bonus episode of More than a Refresh, where JD sits down with Andrés Arrieta, Director Consumer Privacy Engineering @ EFF. Listen in as they pick up where they left off in their last conversation, chatting about the price of convenience, the complexities of  children being online, and the inherent dangers of passing legislation without understanding the technology behind the laws.

Welcome to episode 15 of More Than a Refresh, where JD sits down with Jacque Istok, Vice President, Data at VMware. Listen in as they discuss closed source giants, why Postgres is the Linux of databases, and the politics of the rental housing market.

Welcome to episode 14 of More Than a Refresh, where JD sits down with Ned Lilly, President & CEO of xTuple. Listen in as they discuss ERPs, innovation vs. acquisition as growth strategy, and why there's more to xTuple's name than you may realize.

Welcome to episode 13 of More Than a Refresh, where JD sits down with Andrés Arrieta, Director of Consumer Privacy Engineering at Electronic Frontier Foundation. Listen in as they discuss the role of anti-trust policy in mitigating threats, finding a healthy balance with technology in contemporary society, and why Facebook isn't actually free.

Welcome to episode 12 of More Than a Refresh, where JD sits down with Geoffrey Gill, President, Shimmer Americas and Co-Founder at The Open Wearables Initiative (OWEAR). Listen in as they discuss proactive health management, the line between user privacy and effective wearables, magic vs. math in neuromarketing, and the necessity of peer review.

Welcome to episode 11 of More Than a Refresh, where JD sits down with Altinity CEO, Robert Hodges. Listen in as they discuss user friendliness vs. engineering correctness, high speed compression, and why any organization's greatest asset is its people.

Welcome to episode ten of More Than a Refresh, where JD sits down with Jim Mlodgenski, Principal Engineer at Amazon Web Services. Listen in as these two old friends discuss the ins and outs of VC funding, why databases must evolve to meet the needs of more complex data, and why community is vital to the Open Source ecosystem.

Welcome to our second bonus episode of More Than a Refresh, where we revisit the topic of engineering culture with Mark Porter, CTO at MongoDB. Listen in as he and JD discuss the foundations of building a strong organization, management vs. leadership, and the value of leaving your ego at the door.

Welcome to episode nine of More than a Refresh, with Joshua "JD" Drake. Listen in as he and Mark Porter discuss the importance of persistence software, the beauty of the ah ha moment, and why organizations need to be built according to Dunbar's Number and Conway's Law.

Welcome to episode eight of More than a Refresh, with Joshua "JD" Drake. Listen in as he and Jordan Lewis, Director of Engineering, SQL at Cockroach Labs, discuss what drives a successful OSS project, writing a database in Go, and what to eat when you're in New York City.

Welcome to episode seven of More than a Refresh, with Joshua "JD" Drake. Listen in as he and Hicham Oudghiri, Co-Founder & CEO at Enigma, chat about soundscapes, breakdown why small business is vital to the economy, and discuss the necessity of democratizing access to credit.

Welcome to the first bonus episode of More than a Refresh, with Joshua "JD" Drake. Listen in as we check back in with Karinn Chambers, Breast Cancer Oncologist and Surgeon. In addition to a segue to cattle ranching, where happy cows come from, and calving season, we discuss nonsensical EMR systems and bridging the communication divide between Doctors and Software Developers. If you're interest in assisting in solving the healthcare EMR problem, get in touch with podcast Producer, Lindsay Hooper, at lindsay@commandprompt.com

Welcome to episode six of More than a Refresh, with Joshua "JD" Drake. Listen in as he and Stephanie Kirmer, Senior Data Scientist at Saturn Cloud, discuss why human beings are always at the center of data, questioning "could" vs. "should," and why requiring a data scientist to have a PhD is "bananas."

Welcome to episode five of More than a Refresh, with Joshua "JD" Drake. Listen in as he and Heimdall Data Founder, Erik Brandsberg, discuss demonstrating value to potential clients, visiting 40 countries in 40 years, and how automated caching and read/write split are really one in the same.

Welcome to episode four of More than a Refresh, with Joshua "JD" Drake. Listen in as he discusses Open Source licensing, "humble" drivers, photography, and the nature of adapt or die with Daniele Varrazzo, Creator of Python Driver Psycopg3.

Welcome to episode three of More than a Refresh, with Joshua "JD" Drake. Listen in as he chats with Karinn Chambers, Breast Cancer Oncologist and Surgeon, about how data complexities affect patient care in our healthcare system.

Welcome to episode two of More than a Refresh, with Joshua "JD" Drake. Listen in as he chats with Ben Rogojan, better known as the Seattle Data Guy, about being a digital nomad, how small businesses can manage their data, Wall Street Bets, and his path from chef to data consultant.

Welcome to episode one of More than a Refresh, with Joshua "JD" Drake. Listen in as he has an honest discussion with Karthik Ranganathan about Yugabyte, PostgreSQL, Open Source, and the best surf movie ever made.