When I first heard about the WeMakeDevs Delhi meetup, I was thrilled to join. And I'm so glad I did! As a first-time attendee of an in-person meetup, I found the experience to be truly enriching. After registering for the event I received an email just a few days later informing me that I had been selected to attend the meetup.
On May 7, 2023, I had the privilege of joining experts and enthusiasts from various fields as we came together to discuss emerging technologies and their impact on the industry.
So, let's explore what the experts had to say about the ever-evolving landscape of DevOps!
Opening Remarks Ceremony🌻
The event kicked off with a vibrant "Saraswati Vandana 🌻" and the organizers set the tone by reviewing the Code of Conduct and outlining the key points to keep in mind while enjoying the day's events.
Unfortunately, Kunal Kushwaha, the founder of WeMakeDevs, was unable to attend the event due to prior commitments. However, the team at WeMakeDevs did a fantastic job of carrying the event forward despite Kunal's absence. They kicked off the day with a virtual keynote from Kunal, where he shared the vision of WeMakeDevs to inspire, educate, and empower individuals who aspire to build a career in the tech industry.
The keynote speech set the stage for a day of inspiring talks and discussions.
Head-to-Head: DevOps vs. MLOps: Unraveling the Confusion😕
Subhasmita Swain, Site Reliability Engineer at CIVO, gave a fascinating presentation on DevOps versus MLOps.
She started by defining DevOps and why it is preferred over traditional software development life cycles. Subhasmita highlighted the never-ending DevOps cycle and how it continuously helps in achieving better software development.
She then explained MLOps and clarified that it's not just machine learning plus DevOps plus operations.
In btw, there's an amazing quote by Subhasmita: "While the soul is the same, the skeleton is different."
During her talk, Subhasmita presented a quiz question that intrigued the audience: which company uses DevOps and which one uses MLOps between Netflix & Airbnb? Surprisingly, Netflix uses DevOps, while Airbnb uses MLOps. Subhasmita explained the reasons behind this, Netflix is primarily focused on content streaming, which involves managing a massive infrastructure of servers to serve content to millions of users. Therefore, they use DevOps to optimize their infrastructure and streamline their software development process.
On the other hand, Airbnb's business model relies heavily on machine learning, as they use it to improve their search engine and personalize recommendations for their users. Therefore, they use MLOps to manage the machine learning lifecycle and ensure that their models are trained, deployed, and monitored efficiently.
Subhasmita wrapped up her session by sharing some helpful resources for MLOps enthusiasts: Resources
Grow with WeMakeDevs💹
The second session was by Kaiwalya Koparkar, CNCF ambassador and lead at CNCF Nashik, where he announced an exciting new program during the event called Super 25 by WeMakeDevs. He shared that the program is designed to provide exclusive benefits to only 25 selected individuals in every cohort. Through this program, participants will have access to expert-led webinars on a wide range of topics to help expand their knowledge and enhance their skills.
Don't miss out on this fantastic opportunity to accelerate your career growth!
Apply now: Super 25 by WeMakeDevs
GitOps: Just a Buzzword😲
Next Abhinav Dubey, a DevOps engineer at Devtron and a CNCF ambassador gave an interactive talk on GitOps. In his talk, he explained the significance of GitOps and why it has gained popularity among developers.
Abhinav started by defining GitOps as an operating model that facilitates continuous delivery by using Git as a single source of truth.
He emphasized that GitOps provides better version control, audibility, and security compared to traditional DevOps methodologies.
He elaborated on the various GitOps tools available in the market, such as ArgoCD, Flux, and Jenkins X. Abhinav highlighted how these tools could be used to manage Kubernetes clusters and automate application deployments.
Abhinav also discussed the security benefits that come with GitOps. He explained that by reducing the need for manual intervention in the deployment process, GitOps minimizes the risk of human error, thereby improving the overall security of the application.
Additionally, attendees may have had the chance to see a practical demonstration of GitOps using a Devtron instance, allowing them to gain hands-on experience with the tools and techniques used in GitOps.
Overall, Abhinav's talk provided valuable insights into GitOps and its significance in modern software development.
Containerizing - How and When?🙄
Next, there was a session by my personal favorite Apoorv Goyal, founder of Virtual Tech School and a web developer. The session offered me a fresh outlook on containers and highlighted their numerous advantages, as well as a few disadvantages, to consider before implementing them in our own projects.
Before diving into containers, he explained the motivation behind their use, emphasizing the need for efficient and scalable systems that can be easily deployed and managed.
Then he went on to describe what containers are and why they have become so popular and beneficial.
He explained the advantages of using containers over traditional deployment methods, such as portability, resource isolation, and reduced overhead costs.
However, he also cautioned that containers may not be the best fit for every use case and highlighted the importance of evaluating the requirements and limitations of each project before deciding to containerize.
He emphasized the need to prioritize security and monitoring when working with containers and provided tips on how to ensure that the containers are secure and compliant.
Overall, the session proved to be extremely beneficial for individuals seeking to expand their knowledge of containerization.
Path from a Novice to a Seasoned Techie:👨💻
The panel discussion on the path from a novice to a seasoned techie, featuring Siddhnat Khisty, Aakasnha Priya, Bhavya Sachdeva, & Rakshit Gondwal, was one of the most anticipated talks of the event.
During the discussion, the panelists shared their perspectives on various aspects of the journey toward becoming a skilled technologist.
Open Source:
Beginners should look for beginner-friendly and good first issues.
Start with the documentation when contributing to open-source projects.
GSoC:
Contribute to the project early on.
Take initiatives within the community of those projects, such as Slack or Discord channels, and interact with the maintainers directly.
Aim to become the project maintainer instead of just aiming to crack GSoC for the stipend.
Communities:
Learn in public by sharing whatever you learn.
Learning in public can lead to newer opportunities and meeting new people.
Blogging:
Document your learning journey to create a proof of work about your learning and you will get noticed by potential employers without putting any extra effort.
By writing out your experience and learnings, you can't imagine how many folks you are helping with.
During the Q&A session that followed, the panelists provided valuable insights and answered questions related to their respective areas of expertise. The session was interactive and insightful, and the audience left with a better understanding of the journey toward becoming a seasoned techie.
Sponsor Messages✉
During the sessions, we received several insightful sponsor messages from Hashnode, Flux Ninja, Metabob (VS Code extension), Armo, Boot.dev, and Rawkode Academy.
In btw, I was particularly interested in Boot.dev as I am considering learning Golang from them.
Networking, Pizzas & Swags🍕
It's impossible to forget about the amazing food and swag we received at the event! The organizers truly outdid themselves.
For lunch, they provided us with mouthwatering pizzas and refreshing drinks, knowing that techies just can't resist a good slice of pizza.
There were several giveaways happening throughout the day, with a table filled with GitHub and other stickers for us to grab during lunch. The sponsors also provided some incredible swag. And last but not least, we were all gifted a beautiful "WeMakeDevs T-shirt".
Although I missed out on some of the swag because I was busy interacting with the wonderful speakers and looking out for medicine for my sick friend, I still walked away with an awesome t-shirt and more importantly, valuable knowledge gained from talking to the speakers.
To top it all off, I even managed to snap some photos with the amazing speakers and fellow attendees.
Wrap-up🎁
The WeMakeDevs meetup was an incredibly enriching experience, one that will undoubtedly have a lasting impact on my journey in technology. I left the event feeling inspired and motivated, having gained a deeper understanding of a range of topics from GitOps to MLOps, and having had the opportunity to connect with other passionate individuals in the tech community.
The event was a testament to the immense value of in-person gatherings and the power of networking and learning in a shared space. I was blown away by the knowledge and insights shared by the speakers, and the opportunities to connect with like-minded individuals were truly invaluable.
Huge thanks to the organizers and Kunal Kushwaha for putting together such a fantastic event, full of enriching experiences and valuable takeaways. I'm looking forward to attending future events and continuing to learn and grow alongside the tech community.
"A day spent with amazing people!!!"