Content Moderation – Safe Social Media?

What type of speech can we control, allow and amplify? Today’s episode was about content moderation in social media. The issues here are nuanced, but absolutely critical for our functioning society to get right.

We discuss various interlocking issues, including what type of feedback loops we are creating and what the historical precedents for building safe systems are.

Transcript: otter.ai/u/197TTpOUZd8p2Y6RzDGltLq13i4
Image: www.pexels.com/photo/man-wearing…elephone-1587014/

Rob’s Hot Take:

In the May 12th Cloud 2030 discussion on social media and content moderation, Rob Hirschfeld highlights the need to make these systems safe for users and societies. The analogy of social media being like cars without seatbelts prompts questions about incorporating protective measures into these platforms. The discussion delves into the challenges of serving the users versus the current purposes of social media and emphasizes the importance of governance in shaping the future of these systems. Join the ongoing conversations at the2030.cloud and explore the insightful May 12th episode for a deeper understanding of content moderation in social media.

Governance As Code (pt 1 – identity)

Our discussion about governance as code today is one of a series that we’re going to be starting. In today’s episode, we started out discussing what is Governance as Code. Then we dug into identity and how important it is to know who is doing what in a governance process.

Special Guest: Kapil Thangavelu twitter.com/kapilvt

Along the way, we touch on topics such as Infrastructure as Code, trust, logging, and audit – all essential components for governance.

If this is your first time hearing about Governance as Code, you will learn a lot here. Even if you already know the topic, the back half of today’s podcast poses some fantastic conversations and questions.

Transcript: otter.ai/u/X5xXz3Gw0ot23jFsccZr_k9w-D4
Image: www.pexels.com/photo/gray-airpla…ol-panel-3402846/

Rob’s Hot Take:

In the May 9th Cloud 2030 discussion on “Governance as Code,” Rob Hirschfeld emphasizes the significance of building automation as code for creating resilient infrastructure. The conversation focuses on the challenge of tracking identity in automated systems to understand who initiated specific changes. Recognizing the importance of untangling transitions and identifying contributors becomes a foundational component of governance as code efforts. Join the insightful discussions at the2030.cloud and explore the in-depth May 9th episode of DevOps Lunch and Learn with Cloud 2030.

Green Data Centers

What’s going on with green data centers, why does it matter, and how do we think about it in a wider context? In this short conversation, we discuss green data centers and creating carbon neutral infrastructure.

This isn’t just about servers using electrons – the actual conversation about making our infrastructure carbon neutral includes thinking about all of the components that go into our infrastructure.

We also have an upcoming series of conversations on green data centers and carbon neutral infrastructure.

Transcript: otter.ai/u/IYsPlr4r570MmOOW3WWLjenDlWk
Image: www.pexels.com/photo/clear-light…ray-rock-1108572/

WTF My MFA is MIA

How do authorization systems need to be built and made resilient for distributed infrastructure? We discuss how having a single centralized authorization system is incredibly fragile compared to distributed edge infrastructure.

Everything we build has some element of distributed component tree and resiliency in it, and we need to make sure that the authorization systems are included in that analysis.

We explored how you can make MFA more resilient and how you can improve the security of authentication by building additional layers of trust based on behaviors.

Transcript: otter.ai/u/KTg3WSqSKuswLIypoBwD4HyMzcA
Image: www.pexels.com/photo/hand-holdin…sh-drive-5474298/

Rob’s Hot Take:

In the April 28th Cloud 2030 Podcast, Rob Hirschfeld delves into the challenges of implementing two-factor authentication (2FA) in distributed infrastructures with centralized authentication. The critical problem revolves around creating resilient systems that don’t solely rely on external factors for authentication, considering the potential impact on every service and component in the infrastructure. The discussion emphasizes the importance of behavioral analysis in authentication, scrutinizing user behavior to ensure trustworthiness, especially in scenarios where full authentication is not available. The full conversation explores these aspects in depth, providing valuable insights for building resilient infrastructure. Join future discussions at the2030.cloud.

OSS, Promotions, and Lava Lamps

How can promotion boards be hostile or hurtful to open source technology? We talk about the dynamics of corporate support in open source technology, and if being rewarded for internal work at companies translates into challenges for open source technology.

This discussion starts to peel apart what makes open source technology sustainable, and what it works for. We bring up an analogy of a lava lamp where things heat up and then cool down as part of a natural cycle, which can be a normal cycle for all software, and that led us back to how promotion boards work.

We covered a lot of ground through the dynamics of corporate software governance and open source and interweaving those together.

Transcript: otter.ai/u/nZS6rtcam88JUuqMctOiEyWq5G4
Image: www.pexels.com/photo/food-cold-d…nk-glass-5677999/

Rob’s Hot Take:

In the Cloud 2030 podcast on April 19th, Rob Hirschfeld discusses the challenges of sustaining open source projects and the dynamics of job review boards. The conversation highlights the common evolution of software projects, where initial excitement and rapid development give way to stabilization, increasing complexity, and less excitement. The key takeaway is the need to recognize and reward individuals contributing to the maintenance and extension of existing projects, emphasizing the importance of such work for communities, companies, and society. Join the discussion at the2030.cloud for diverse opinions and insights.

APIs With Composable State

What makes API’s complex? In this episode, we talk about how we compose APIs into higher level systems, and how we think about the design elements that go into building durable, reusable API’s.

This is a classic topic for us, and in this discussion we looked beyond the API itself and started talking about the state of the system and how you manage that state.

Transcript: otter.ai/u/Oae5e_ay0d_l48TmWk3PO3lpIDU
Image: www.pexels.com/photo/a-nacho-chi…ng-sauce-5848731/

Rob’s Hot Take:

In the Cloud 2030 podcast on April 21st, Rob Hirschfeld delves into the complexity of APIs, emphasizing the layered and nested nature of API systems. The discussion unveils the challenges of managing distributed state within APIs, where each layer needs to be aware of and interact with the state of adjacent or underlying APIs. The key insight is that without a well-understood distributed state model at the architectural level, building resilient APIs becomes inherently complex. Join the conversation at the2030.cloud for a comprehensive exploration of API design challenges and solutions.

Musk, Twitter and Web3 Social Media

Will Elon Musk take over Twitter? What are the tech and societal motivations for creating distributed social media?

In today’s episode, we discuss the future of social media and if we can create distributed social media and distributed user interactions. We also question how these systems could be monetized and controlled, and who would benefit from those changes.

This is a fascinating discussion about how we will build human interaction in the future.

Transcript: otter.ai/u/J2B4oRO5WTohJI1KqqNobfyZsdE
Images: www.pexels.com/photo/a-group-of-…num-foil-7105799/

Rob’s Hot Take:

In the April 14th episode of the Cloud 2030 Podcast, Rob Hirschfeld explores the potential implications of Elon Musk taking over Twitter and delves into the broader questions about the future of distributed systems, regulation, monetization, and centralized control. The discussion contemplates the evolving landscape of social media, distributed ledger technology, and infrastructure. While no definitive answers are provided, the conversation highlights the ongoing shift toward decentralized systems and the impact it may have on the market in the coming decade. Join the discussion at the2030.cloud for a deeper exploration of these complex and significant topics.

Can Kubernetes Prevent Vendor Lock In?

How does Kubernetes create lock in versus how could Kubernetes be used to prevent lock in?

Lock in is not always a bad thing. When you avoid committing to a single vendor, you may have to work to the lowest common denominator or deal with heterogeneity in your infrastructure. Heterogeneity is pretty normal, and you might have to do this work regardless, but when you commit to a vendor you get to focus on using the vendor’s strengths.

In this episode, you’ll pick up some great tips on how to reduce your lock in when using Kubernetes.

Transcript: otter.ai/u/vIo1p15bb6VmcrWjwgOLbM25nq4
Image: www.pexels.com/photo/silhouette-…door-knob-792032/

Rob’s Hot Take:

In the April 12th episode of the Cloud 2030 Podcast, Rob Hirschfeld delves into the nuanced discussion of whether Kubernetes prevents or exacerbates vendor lock-in. The key takeaway is that lock-in is not inherently negative, and there’s a need to balance risks and consider the inertia associated with established systems and practices. The podcast encourages listeners to think intentionally about using Kubernetes as an abstraction layer and to recognize the value and challenges of inertia in platform development efforts. For further insights and discussions on DevOps and future strategies, visit the2030.cloud and join the conversation.

Orchestration Automation Workflow [with Terraform]

Building reliable automation at scale for infrastructure presents challenges. In this episode, we discuss orchestration, workflow automation, and the reconciler pattern in the context of Terraform.

We refer to the pattern of Terraform, automation, and orchestration systems as “TACOS” and today we dig into how you test it and check it against drift. These are real topics of operational concern for anybody building any type of infrastructure.

Transcript: otter.ai/u/w-NA0HBsTc5NRaqWQQwlWUj4Whw
Image: www.pexels.com/photo/person-hold…ith-food-8448079/

Rob’s Hot Take:

In the April 5th Cloud 2030 Podcast episode, Rob Hirschfeld discusses orchestration, automation, and workflow, focusing on Terraform and introducing the “Terraform Automation and Orchestration” (TACO) pattern. The conversation emphasizes that while Terraform is a valuable tool, the broader patterns of reconciliation, GitOps, and event-driven automation are crucial for building and maintaining complex systems over time. Hirschfeld encourages listeners to view tools like Terraform and Ansible as initial steps in a journey, prompting consideration of scaling, building orchestration systems, and understanding the importance of comprehensive system development. For more in-depth discussions, explore the full episode on orchestration, automation, and workflow from April 5th, and join the ongoing conversations at the2030.cloud.

Does Your Metaverse Take MasterCard or Visa

How are Metaverse environments built? Today we talk about how we use intellectual property to build these Metaverse environments, and who has access to what and who’s going to create it. That turns into a discussion on how you’re going to pay for it.

Typically, Metaverse is framed as a platform, but we got interested in the content, media wars, and streaming platforms. Since we started the conversation at streaming media, that led us to payment platforms and transactions. It was fascinating that we couldn’t talk about intellectual property without also talking about payment and purchase transactions.

Transcript: otter.ai/u/Be5ZKdeQvvubwQhCFzhFAHTdtak
Image: www.pexels.com/photo/girl-wearin…lden-hour-166055/

Rob’s Hot Take:

In the April 7th Cloud 2030 Podcast episode, Rob Hirschfeld explores the complex dynamics of intellectual property in the metaverse. The discussion delves beyond the ownership of intellectual property itself, emphasizing the crucial role of payment platforms and how transactions for content will be facilitated. Hirschfeld highlights the intersection of payment platforms, cryptocurrencies, and microtransactions, underscoring the potential influence of jurisdiction within the Metaverse on the acquisition, usage, and transactions related to intellectual property. For an in-depth exploration of these topics, tune in to the full episode on April 7th, available on the2030.cloud.