Screaming in the Cloud

Latest Episodes:

Learnings From A Lifelong Career in Open-Source with Amir Szekely Nov 07, 2023

Show notes

Amir Szekely, Owner at CloudSnorkel, joins Corey on Screaming in the Cloud to discuss how he got his start in the early days of cloud and his solo project, CloudSnorkel. Throughout this conversation, Corey and Amir discuss the importance of being pragmatic when moving to the cloud, and the different approaches they see in developers from the early days of cloud to now. Amir shares what motivates him to develop open-source projects, and why he finds fulfillment in fixing bugs and operating CloudSnorkel as a one-man show.

About Amir

Amir Szekely is a cloud consultant specializing in deployment automation, AWS CDK, CloudFormation, and CI/CD. His background includes security, virtualization, and Windows development. Amir enjoys creating open-source projects like cdk-github-runners, cdk-turbo-layers, and NSIS.

Links Referenced:

CloudSnorkel: https://cloudsnorkel.com/
lasttootinaws.com: https://lasttootinaws.com
camelcamelcamel.com: https://camelcamelcamel.com
github.com/cloudsnorkel: https://github.com/cloudsnorkel
Personal website: https://kichik.com

How Tech Will Influence the Future of Podcasting with Chris Hill Oct 31, 2023

Show notes

Chris Hill, owner of HumblePod and host of the We Built This Brand podcast, joins Corey on Screaming in the Cloud to discuss the future of podcasting and the role emerging technologies will play in the podcasting space. Chris describes why AI is struggling to make a big impact in the world of podcasting, and also emphasizes the importance of authenticity and finding a niche when producing a show. Corey and Chris discuss where video podcasting works and where it doesn’t, and why it’s more important to focus on the content of your podcast than the technical specs of your gear. Chris also shares insight on how to gauge the health of your podcast audience with his Podcast Listener Lifecycle evaluation tool.

About Chris

Chris Hill is a Knoxville, TN native and owner of the podcast production company, HumblePod. He helps his customers create, develop, and produce podcasts and is working with clients in Knoxville as well as startups and entrepreneurs across the United States, Silicon Valley, and the world.

In addition to producing podcasts for nationally-recognized thought leaders, Chris is the co-host and producer of the award-winning Our Humble Beer Podcast and the host of the newly-launched We Built This Brand podcast. He also lectures at the University of Tennessee, where he leads non-credit courses on podcasts and marketing. He received his undergraduate degree in business at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga where he majored in Marketing & Entrepreneurship, and he later received his MBA from King University.

Chris currently serves his community as the President of the American Marketing Association in Knoxville. In his spare time, he enjoys hanging out with the local craft beer community, international travel, exploring the great outdoors, and his many creative pursuits.

Links Referenced:

HumblePod: https://www.humblepod.com/
HumblePod Quick Edit: https://humblepod.com/services/quick-edit
Podcast Listener Lifecycle: https://www.humblepod.com/podcast/grow-your-podcast-with-the-listener-lifecycle/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/christopholies

Solving the Case of the Infinite Cloud Spend with John Wynkoop Oct 24, 2023

Show notes

John Wynkoop, Cloud Economist & Platypus Herder at The Duckbill Group, joins Corey on Screaming in the Cloud to discuss why he decided to make a career move and become an AWS billing consultant. Corey and John discuss how once you’re deeply familiar with one cloud provider, those skills become transferable to other cloud providers as well. John also shares the trends he has seen post-pandemic in the world of cloud, including the increased adoption of a multi-cloud strategy and the need for costs control even for VC-funded start-ups.

About John

With over 25 years in IT, John’s done almost every job in the industry, from running cable and answering helpdesk calls to leading engineering teams and advising the C-suite. Before joining The Duckbill Group, he worked across multiple industries including private sector, higher education, and national defense. Most recently he helped IGNW, an industry leading systems integration partner, get acquired by industry powerhouse CDW. When he’s not helping customers spend smarter on their cloud bill, you can find him enjoying time with his family in the beautiful Smoky Mountains near his home in Knoxville, TN.

Links Referenced:

The Duckbill Group: https://duckbillgroup.com
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jlwynkoop/

Making an Affordable Event Data Solution with Seif Lotfy Oct 19, 2023

Show notes

Seif Lotfy, Co-Founder and CTO at Axiom, joins Corey on Screaming in the Cloud to discuss how and why Axiom has taken a low-cost approach to event data. Seif describes the events that led to him helping co-found a company, and explains why the team wrote all their code from scratch. Corey and Seif discuss their views on AWS pricing, and Seif shares his views on why AWS doesn’t have to compete on price. Seif also reveals some of the exciting new products and features that Axiom is currently working on.

About Seif

Seif is the bubbly Co-founder and CTO of Axiom where he has helped build the next generation of logging, tracing, and metrics. His background is at Xamarin, and Deutche Telekom and he is the kind of deep technical nerd that geeks out on white papers about emerging technology and then goes to see what he can build.

Links Referenced:

Axiom: https://axiom.co/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/seiflotfy

Keeping Workflows Secure in an Ever-Changing Environment with Adnan Khan Oct 17, 2023

Show notes

Adnan Khan, Lead Security Engineer at Praetorian, joins Corey on Screaming in the Cloud to discuss software bill of materials and supply chain attacks. Adnan describes how simple pull requests can lead to major security breaches, and how to best avoid those vulnerabilities. Adnan and Corey also discuss the rapid innovation at Github Actions, and the pros and cons of having new features added so quickly when it comes to security. Adnan also discusses his view on the state of AI and its impact on cloud security.

About Adnan

Adnan is a Lead Security Engineer at Praetorian. He is responsible for executing on Red-Team Engagements as well as developing novel attack tooling in order to meet and exceed engagement objectives and provide maximum value for clients.

His past experience as a software engineer gives him a deep understanding of where developers are likely to make mistakes, and has applied this knowledge to become an expert in attacks on organization’s CI/CD systems.

Links Referenced:

Praetorian: https://www.praetorian.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/adnanthekhan
Praetorian blog posts: https://www.praetorian.com/author/adnan-khan/

When Data is Your Brand and Your Job with Joe Karlsson Oct 12, 2023

Show notes

Joe Karlsson, Data Engineer at Tinybird, joins Corey on Screaming in the Cloud to discuss what it’s like working in the world of data right now and how he manages the overlap between his social media presence and career. Corey and Joe chat about the rise of AI and whether or not we’re truly seeing advancements in that realm or just trendy marketing plays, and Joe shares why he feels data is getting a lot more attention these days and what it’s like to work in data at this time. Joe also shares insights into how his mental health has been impacted by having a career and social media presence that overlaps, and what steps he’s taken to mitigate the negative impact.

About Joe

Joe Karlsson (He/They) is a Software Engineer turned Developer Advocate at Tinybird. He empowers developers to think creatively when building data intensive applications through demos, blogs, videos, or whatever else developers need.

Joe's career has taken him from building out database best practices and demos for MongoDB, architecting and building one of the largest eCommerce websites in North America at Best Buy, and teaching at one of the most highly-rated software development boot camps on Earth. Joe is also a TEDx Speaker, film buff, and avid TikToker and Tweeter.

Links Referenced:

Tinybird: https://www.tinybird.co/
Personal website: https://joekarlsson.com

Tinybird: https://www.tinybird.co/
Personal website: https://joekarlsson.com

Storytelling Over Feature Dumping with Jeff Geerling Oct 10, 2023

Show notes

Jeff Geerling, Owner of Midwestern Mac, joins Corey on Screaming in the Cloud to discuss the importance of storytelling, problem-solving, and community in the world of cloud. Jeff shares how and why he creates content that can appeal to anybody, rather than focusing solely on the technical qualifications of his audience, and how that strategy has paid off for him. Corey and Jeff also discuss the impact of leading with storytelling as opposed to features in product launches, and what’s been going on in the Raspberry Pi space recently. Jeff also expresses the impact that community has on open-source companies, and reveals his take on the latest moves from Red Hat and Hashicorp.

About Jeff

Jeff is a father, author, developer, and maker. He is sometimes called "an inflammatory enigma".

Links Referenced:

Personal webpage: https://jeffgeerling.com/

Making a Difference Through Technology in the Public Sector with Dmitry Kagansky Oct 05, 2023

Show notes

Dmitry Kagansky, State CTO and Deputy Executive Director for the Georgia Technology Authority, joins Corey on Screaming in the Cloud to discuss how he became the CTO for his home state and the nuances of working in the public sector. Dmitry describes his focus on security and reliability, and why they are both equally important when working with state government agencies. Corey and Dmitry describe AWS’s infamous GovCloud, and Dmitry explains why he’s employing a multi-cloud strategy but that it doesn’t work for all government agencies. Dmitry also talks about how he’s focusing on hiring and training for skills, and the collaborative approach he’s taking to working with various state agencies.

About Dmitry

Mr. Kagansky joined GTA in 2021 from Amazon Web Services where he worked for over four years helping state agencies across the country in their cloud implementations and migrations.

Prior to his time with AWS, he served as Executive Vice President of Development for Star2Star Communications, a cloud-based unified communications company. Previously, Mr. Kagansky was in many technical and leadership roles for different software vending companies. Most notably, he was Federal Chief Technology Officer for Quest Software, spending several years in Europe working with commercial and government customers.

Mr. Kagansky holds a BBA in finance from Hofstra University and an MBA in management of information systems and operations management from the University of Georgia.

Links Referenced:

Twitter: https://twitter.com/dimikagi
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dimikagi/
GTA Website: https://gta.ga.gov

Ask Me Anything with Corey Quinn Oct 03, 2023

Show notes

In this special live-recorded episode of Screaming in the Cloud, Corey interviews himself— well, kind of. Corey hosts an AMA session, answering both live and previously submitted questions from his listeners. Throughout this episode, Corey discusses misconceptions about his public persona, the nature of consulting on AWS bills, why he focuses so heavily on AWS offerings, his favorite breakfast foods, and much, much more. Corey shares insights into how he monetizes his public persona without selling out his genuine opinions on the products he advertises, his favorite and least favorite AWS services, and some tips and tricks to get the most out of re:Invent.

About Corey

Corey is the Chief Cloud Economist at The Duckbill Group. Corey’s unique brand of snark combines with a deep understanding of AWS’s offerings, unlocking a level of insight that’s both penetrating and hilarious. He lives in San Francisco with his spouse and daughters.

Links Referenced:

lastweekinaws.com/disclosures: https://lastweekinaws.com/disclosures
duckbillgroup.com: https://duckbillgroup.com

Using Empathy to Solve Customer Challenges with David Colebatch Sep 28, 2023

Show notes

David Colebatch, CEO of Tidal, joins Corey on Screaming in the Cloud to discuss Tidal’s recent shift to a product-led approach and why empathizing with customers is always their most important job. David describes what it was like to grow the company from scratch on a boot-strapped basis, and how customer feedback and challenges inform the company strategy. Corey and David discuss the cost-savings measures cloud customers are now embarking on, and David discusses how constant migrations are the new normal. Corey and David also discuss the impact that generative AI is having not just on tech, but also on creative content and interactions in our everyday lives.

About David

David is the CEO & Founder of Tidal. Tidal is empowering businesses to transform from traditional on-premises IT-run organizations to lean-agile-cloud powered machines.

Links Referenced: