Joe's Nerdy Weekend Reads #3
It's the weekend, so time to unwind. Pour a cup of coffee (or many) and enjoy some interesting reading.
Happy Saturday!
Got some cool things happening.
First
and I have a new course about leveling up from practitioner to data and AI executive. All too often, we see data professionals toiling in the shadows, frustrated they can’t break through to an influential career. Sol is one of the smartest, most experienced, and battle-hardened data executives I know. We’re on a mission to help people level up in their data careers. Imagine shaving years or decades of frustration and angst from your career and getting a blueprint to move forward from people who’ve done it. I’m not usually this forward with an offer, so trust me, this is a very smart and inexpensive investment in your career. For 3 days, you’ll get live coaching from Sol and me in a group setting where we’ll help level each other up. Check out our course here, with a special 25% discount - only $561 USD!Second, the Practical Data Modeling community had its first group discussion about analytical data modeling approaches. Needless to say, there were as many correct answers as there were people in attendance. Everyone’s situation differs, and there’s not a truly one-size-fits-all approach to analytical data modeling. Have a listen here.
I also changed the link format in the Cool Weekend Reads. There are now more links with comments and some with less pontificating.
Have a great weekend.
Thanks,
Joe
If you haven’t done so, please sign up for Practical Data Modeling. There are lots of great discussions on data modeling, and I’ll also be releasing early drafts of chapters for my new data modeling book here. Thanks!
Cool Weekend Reads
Here are some cool things I read this week. Enjoy!
Our chat with Matt Turck about the 2024 MAD Landscape (YouTube)
Me and the Matts (Turck and Housley) did a special live show on Thursday to discuss the 2024 MAD (ML, AI, and Data) Landscape. There are a few things I look forward to reading every year, and this is one of them. Matt Turck and the FirstMark team do an incredible job dissecting the insanely complex and vast data and AI scene.
We also ask the most important question - does Matt Turck write his own memes?
What we know about the xz Utils backdoor that almost infected the world (ArsTechnica)
Imagine you wanted to create a backdoor into Linux that would grant you access to any machine, anywhere in the world. And suppose that over a long period of time, you sweet-talked your way to getting permission to create this backdoor. Your overlords were none the wiser. And then you created this backdoor to be released into the wild…only to be caught at the very last second, seemingly by coincidence, when a researcher “felt a disturbance in the SSH force”.
Sometimes, stories seem stranger than a spy thriller. In this case, this crazy event had the potential to bring the world to its knees—no joke. Since the story broke, I have read bits and pieces about it. This week, I learned more about it while recording a podcast with my friends Jarod and Adam from the ChangeLog. To call it insane is an understatement. It has all the elements of a well-thought-out plan to take over the world’s vital computer infrastructure. The world dodged a very serious bullet—no joke.
How do you build a Center of Excellence for Data, Analytics, and AI! (Sol Rashidi)
Center of Excellence is a four-letter word in some places, and they’re often centers of mediocrity, at best. Sol lays out some hard-won lessons on what it takes to establish a true center of excellence.
Enough said…
No Showers, No Sleep: Van Life Isn’t as Cool as Instagram Makes It Seem (WSJ)
I occasionally did van (and car) life way before it was cool (the 1990s). Back in the day, when I was a climbing bum, you lived in your vehicle because you were a broke degenerate. I’ll never forget spending a season in Hueco Tanks, TX with the best climbers in the world. My friend and I slept in a crappy Ford Econoline van on freezing nights because we couldn’t afford to stay inside (they later let me stay in their place). Other times I rented the crappiest place you could afford. I worked odd jobs, mostly construction, eventually becoming a floor installer (that actually pays good money). The notion of living in a vehicle was always top of mind, and I’ll still do it if I have to, mostly because I know how.
When van life became “cool” during the pandemic, I felt a mix of nostalgia and dread. Certainly, vans are much nicer than back in the day. Still, it’s a van. These poor saps bought into some weird social media dream they’d later regret. The long times between showers, your vehicle smelling unspeakably bad, terrible food on the road, etc. For some, reality hits, and it hits hard.
Fundamentals of Data Engineering : A Podcast Session with Joe Reis (YouTube)
If you want a glimpse into my ideas on data careers, writing, and my own career trajectory, check out this new interview that dropped. As usual, I don’t mince words.
Other cool reads…
The Inside Tale of Tesla’s Fall to Earth (WSJ)
The Business Side of the Modern Data Stack (SDF)
Avoid blundering: 80% of a winning strategy (A Smart Bear)
He Turned 55. Then He Started the World’s Most Important Company (WSJ)
Americans’ use of ChatGPT is ticking up, but few trust its election information (Pew)
New Content, Events, and Upcoming Stuff
Monday Morning Data Chat
Coming up…
Katharine Jarmul, David Yaffe, and more…
In case you missed it…
Matt Turck - The 2024 MAD Landscape (Special Show) (YouTube)
Cedric Chin & Sam Taylor - Communicating Sophisticated Stuff to Stakeholders (Spotify, YouTube)
Martin Musiol - Martin Musiol - Generative AI: Navigating the Course to the AGI Future (Spotify, YouTube)
Tony Baer - The Outlook for Generative AI in 2024 (and Beyond) (Spotify, YouTube)
Ethan Aaron - Is Data a Skill or a Job? (Spotify, YouTube)
The Joe Reis Show
Coming up…
Keith Belanger, and many more!
This week…
5 Minute Friday - Your Mileage WILL Vary With Analytical Data Modeling (Spotify)
Kishore Aradhya - Kishore Aradhya - Teaching Tech and Data in a FAST Moving World (Spotify)
Toby Mao - SQL Mesh, Simplifying Data Transformations, and more (Spotify)
In case you missed it…
Angel Narciso - Live From LEAP Riyadh, Saudi Arabia! (Spotify)
5 Minute Friday - The Inverse Relationship of Talking About Value vs Adding Value (Spotify)
Jess Haberman - How to Negotiate a Book Deal (Spotify)
5-Minute Friday - How I Write and Why You Should Write (Spotify)
5-Minute Friday - Learning To See (Spotify)
Sadie St. Lawrence - (Spotify)
Bill Inmon - History Lessons of the Data Industry. This is a real treat and a very rare conversation with the godfather himself (Spotify) - PINNED HERE.
Events I’m Speaking At
Matillion - Deep Dish (Virtual) - April 23. Register here
J On the Beach (Malaga, Spain) - May 6-10. Register here
GenAI Conference (London) - May 20-22 Register here
DAMA Days (Vancouver, BC) - June 14th, TBA
(Taking the Summer off)
Big Data London - September, TBA
DataEngBytes (Australia) - Late September/Early October, TBA
Dubai - Fall, TBA
Lots of stuff in Europe - Fall, TBA
Asia - Fall, TBA
Thanks! If you want to help out…
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You can also find me here:
Monday Morning Data Chat (YouTube / Spotify and wherever you get your podcasts). Matt Housely and I interview the top people in the field. Live and unscripted. Zero shilling tolerated.
The Joe Reis Show (Spotify and wherever you get your podcasts). My other show. I interview guests, and it’s unscripted with no shilling.
Practical Data Modeling. Great discussions about data modeling with data practitioners. This is also where early drafts of my new data modeling book will be published.
Fundamentals of Data Engineering by Matt Housley and I, available at Amazon, O’Reilly, and wherever you get your books.
Be sure to leave a lovely review if you like the content.
Thanks!
Joe Reis
My wife and I just bought a van. No intention of full-time van life, just the odd weekend away or maybe longer trips to locations with all mod-cons and facilities, maybe even some working on the road.