In this episode, Nate Berkopec, the proprietor of Speedshop, a Ruby on Rails performance consultancy, author of several books including the Complete Guide to Rails Performance, and a maintainer of Puma, joins the podcast. Nate discusses his journey into Rails performance optimization, starting from his early career at startups and his breakthrough talk at the Gotham Ruby Conference. He outlines his 'Three S' framework—Speed, Scalability, and Stability—for tackling performance issues. The discussion includes practical advice for Heroku users on optimizing 'dynos' for better request queuing and performance, as well as insights on using tools like JudoScale and PG Analyze for better Sidekiq job management and database optimization. Nate also touches on the importance of setting proper performance thresholds to balance system efficiency and operational costs.

00:00 Introduction to Nate Berkopec and Speedshop
00:45 Nate's Early Career and Interest in Performance
03:36 The Impact of Nate's Conference Talk and Book
04:40 Challenges in Diagnosing Performance Issues
10:22 Framework for Tackling Performance Problems
17:27 Understanding Heroku's Load Balancing
27:39 Understanding TCP Open Failures
28:10 Optimizing Dynos on Heroku
29:16 Setting Performance Thresholds
31:12 The Importance of Monitoring and Automation
34:25 Challenges with Sidekiq and Data Processing
36:24 Best Practices for Sidekiq Queues
44:48 Ensuring Job Idempotency and Efficiency
49:26 Rapid Fire Tips for Indies
52:41 Conclusion and Final Thoughts

LINKS

- Speedshop

- Nate's X/Twitter

- The Complete Guide to Rails Performance Book

- Sidekiq in Practice Book

- High Availabillity Wikipedia Article

- Ryan's Website

- Brendan's X/Twitter

- Brendan's Bluesky

Questions or comments, email us at railsbusinesspod@gmail.com

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In this episode, we tackle the nuances of communicating project requirements within development teams. From managing user stories and acceptance criteria to balancing control and flexibility, we explore best practices for ensuring clarity and efficiency. We share real-world experiences, including the effectiveness of detailed videos and spikes in guiding team members.

01:24 Communicating with Different Levels of Expertise
06:06 The Role of Videos in Communication
14:45 Challenges in Estimating and Scoping Projects
30:52 Using AI to Assist in Writing Tickets

LINKS

- Ryan's Website

- Brendan's X/Twitter

- Brendan's Bluesky

Questions or comments, email us at railsbusinesspod@gmail.com

Send us a text

In this episode, we welcome Stephen Anderson, founder and owner of Bendyworks, a Madison, Wisconsin based Ruby on Rails consultancy. Stephen shares his journey from corporate Java consulting to building a values-driven software shop, discussing his philosophy of constantly seeking 10x productivity improvements and the pivotal moments that led him to entrepreneurship.

LINKS

- Bendyworks

- Ryan's Website

- Brendan's X/Twitter

- Brendan's Bluesky

Questions or comments, email us at railsbusinesspod@gmail.com

Send us a text