Fibonacci Spirals and 21 Ways to Contribute to Postgres—Beyond Code | FOSDEM'20 Postgres devroom

Slides for the talk I gave in the Postgres devroom at FOSDEM'20 in Brussels, Belgium. Abstract: Postgres is growing like gangbusters: in popularity, in adoption, and in the size of the ecosystem. And over 400 developers contribute code to Postgres today: their expertise, design chops, and skill are big factors in the increasing popularity of Postgres. But what if you’re not a developer? Are there things you can do to help grow the usage and popularity of Postgres? And are these non-code ways to contribute to Postgres important? Valued? Will they make a real difference?

If you love Postgres and want to help drive Fibonacci growth of the Postgres community, this talk is for you. I’ll walk through 21 different (and important) ways to contribute to Postgres—along with tips and resources for getting started.

Transcript

1. @clairegiordano FIBONACCI SPIRALS & 21 WAYS TO CONTRIBUTE TO POSTGRES—BEYOND CODE Claire Giordano @clairegiordano • @citusdata • @microsoft
2. @clairegiordano Leonardo Pisano Bigollo (1170–1240) Source: Wikimedia Commons [Public Domain]
3. @clairegiordano 1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 21, 34, 55, 89... FIBONACCI SEQUENCE Source: Wikimedia Commons [Public Domain]
4. @clairegiordano 2 3 5 8 13 21 FIBONACCI SPIRAL: 1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 21, 34, …
5. @clairegiordano What does Fibonacci have to do with contributing to Postgres?
6. @clairegiordano
7. @clairegiordano
8. @clairegiordano Source: Reddit
9. @clairegiordano @clairegiordano 21 WAYS TO CONTRIBUTE TO POSTGRES— BEYOND CODE
10. @clairegiordano Why ”Beyond Code”? What if… you’re not a developer? @clairegiordano
11. @clairegiordano Source: Josh Berkus on Slideshare.net: 50 Ways to Love Your Project @clairegiordano Turns out, Josh Berkus gave a similar talk in 2013
12. @clairegiordano 12 Attend conferences. Learn, participate, share 1 Source: fosdem.org/2020
13. @clairegiordano 13 Source: @PostgreSQLNL, @OptimaDataBV z Lots of ways to support local meetups 2
14. @clairegiordano Source: pgibz.io Share your expertise—give a conference talk 3
15. @clairegiordano Post your slides online # of digital views can > # attendees • speakerdeck.com • slideshare.net • conference sites 4 @clairegiordano Source: speakerdeck.com/clairegiordano
16. @clairegiordano @clairegiordano Source: 2020.pgday.paris 5 > Single-track, 1-day, local > More affordable > Easy access Start a local PGDay in your area > Single-track, 1-day, local > More affordable > Easy access
17. @clairegiordano @clairegiordano Source: pgday.cl/2019/ 5
18. @clairegiordano @clairegiordano 5 Source: pgdaysf.org
19. @clairegiordano 6 @clairegiordano Write a blog Publish an article Share learnings & expertise Shine light on value of Postgres
20. @clairegiordano 7 Syndicate to Planet Postgres to increase reach of your posts @planetpostgres on Twitter, too @clairegiordano
21. @clairegiordano 7 Syndicate to Planet Postgres to increase reach of your posts @planetpostgres on Twitter, too @clairegiordano Source: postgresql.org
22. @clairegiordano Write Books make it easier for newcomers to use Postgres 8 @clairegiordano CLAIRE15 ~ a 15% off discount on any edition Source: theartofpostgresql.com
23. @clairegiordano Write Books make it easier for newcomers to use Postgres 8 @clairegiordano Source: sql-performance-explained.com
24. @clairegiordano @clairegiordano Interview your users & tell their stories 9 • Story • Headlines • Diagrams • Big Metrics • “Pull quotes”
25. @clairegiordano 10 @clairegiordano Use Video to show what Postgres can do Some people learn better via video Source: youtube.com/watch?v=-cbT64D9KFk
26. @clairegiordano 10 @clairegiordano Title Thumbnail Description Bookmarks Links Good video metadata will help your video get discovered Some people learn better via video
27. @clairegiordano 11 @clairegiordano If you build it, they will NOT come. PROMOTE.
28. @clairegiordano 12 Promote on Twitter learnings, ideas, talks, meetups, TIL, QOTD, OH, how-to @clairegiordano
29. @clairegiordano Say thank you. If you like someone’s work, praise it. • Privately. Publicly. Both. • Especially junior & new people • Not just luminaries & friends 13 @clairegiordano
30. @clairegiordano Help with message translations Mailing list: pgsql-translators More info: babel.postgresql.org Instructions in Postgres docs: “Native Language support” 14 @clairegiordano
31. @clairegiordano @clairegiordano 15 Source: postgresql.org Report bugs with Postgres When you find a bug with Postgres we want to hear about it.” “ “ Your bug reports play an important part in making PostgreSQL more reliable.”
32. @clairegiordano @clairegiordano 15 Source: postgresql.org WHERE to report bugs When you find a bug with Postgres we want to hear about it.” “ “ Your bug reports play an important part in making PostgreSQL more reliable.”
33. @clairegiordano Submit corrections to documentation Clarify Disambiguate Help new people understand 16 @clairegiordano Source: postgresql.org
34. @clairegiordano Submit corrections to documentation Clarify Disambiguate Help new people understand 16 @clairegiordano Source: postgresql.org
35. @clairegiordano Stickers are a thing Promote your Postgres projects too Spark unexpected conversations 17
36. @clairegiordano @clairegiordano Use your design skills • Citus elicorn • Louise Grandjonc’s crocodile • Postgres Activity Book Graphics & visuals pull people in Source: Citus “sharded” elicorn 18
37. @clairegiordano @clairegiordano Use your design skills • Citus elicorn • Louise Grandjonc’s crocodile • Postgres Activity Book Graphics & visuals pull people in 18 Source: www.Instagram.com/zimmoriarty/
38. @clairegiordano @clairegiordano Use your design skills • Citus elicorn • Louise Grandjonc’s crocodile • Postgres Activity Book Graphics & visuals pull people in 18
39. @clairegiordano Use “Sketchnotes” to share your learnings Combine words, lettering styles, color, sketches, bullets 19 @clairegiordano Source: twitter.com/reverentgeek
40. @clairegiordano Source: Twitter @DevrimGunduz, FOSDEM’19 @clairegiordano Evangelize at your local university (or alma mater) 20
41. @clairegiordano Make people feel welcome Being “welcoming” is one step further than being “open” 21 @clairegiordano
42. @clairegiordano 21 Ways to Contribute to Postgres—Beyond Code @clairegiordano 1. Attend Conferences 2. Meetups & User Groups 3. Give a Talk 4. Post Slides online 5. Start a PGDay 6. Blogs & articles 7. Syndicate to Planet Postgres 8. Write a book 9. User Stories 10. Bite-sized videos 11. Promote 12. Twitter 13. Say Thank You! 14. Translations 15. Report Bugs 16. Doc Feedback 17. Stickers 18. Design skills 19. #sketchnotes 20. University outreach 21. Welcome people in
43. @clairegiordano
44. @clairegiordano Merci / Dank u @clairegiordano • @citusdata • @microsoft