Roy Tomeij and Ali Krynitsky join us at Rails World Amsterdam to discuss the European Ruby community's revival and the growing landscape of Ruby conferences across the continent.

• Roy shares his Ruby journey starting in 2005 when his team switched from Java to Rails 0.12
• AppSignal co-founder explains their approach to community sponsorship beyond just recruitment
• Ali details how COVID decimated many Ruby meetups, creating the need for fresh initiatives
• Baltic Ruby conference travels to different locations to revitalize local Ruby communities
• Ruby Europe Foundation connects approximately 20 meetup organizers across European countries
• Both guests emphasize the need for new blood in the mature Ruby community
• RubyEvents.org serves as a central hub for all Ruby conference recordings
• Practical advice for new conference organizers: secure sponsors first and share the workload
• The "Euruko effect" - how hosting the traveling conference often inspires organizers to create their own events
• AppSignal's famous Stroopwafels have become a beloved Ruby community tradition

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Adam McCrea shares how he turned a side project into JudoScale, a Ruby-focused auto-scaler now powering thousands of apps. We discuss his origins in the Ruby community, how he (mostly) bootstrapped the company, and admits he's pretty much living the dream. We also look ahead at new potential features like DinoSniper and proactive scaling.

• Judoscale

Rocky Mountain Ruby is coming up, on October 6th, in Boulder, Colorado. It's a single-track, community-focused conference that always draws an amazing group of people. Tickets are on sale now, so if you're in the area, or if you're just looking for an excuse to spend some time in the Rockies, you should definitely check it out.

Sean Marcia, founder of Ruby for Good, takes us behind the scenes of an organization that's transforming how developers contribute to social impact. What began as a way to help nonprofits with their software needs has blossomed into a thriving community where coders of all experience levels build sustainable, open-source solutions for organizations serving vulnerable populations.

• RubyGems funding model post (part of intro before Sean joins)
• Ruby for Good
• Upcoming event, Sept 11-14

Rocky Mountain Ruby is coming up, on October 6th, in Boulder, Colorado. It's a single-track, community-focused conference that always draws an amazing group of people. Tickets are on sale now, so if you're in the area, or if you're just looking for an excuse to spend some time in the Rockies, you should definitely check it out.

Sarah Mei, a longtime Ruby community leader and former Ruby Central board member, shares her journey from co-founding RailsBridge to advocating for diversity and human-centered software development.

• Co-founded RailsBridge in 2009 to help thousands from underrepresented backgrounds enter tech
• Reflects on the evolution of RailsConf and Ruby Central's future focus on Ruby
• Shares memories of the early internet era before "the internet had cats"
• Explains how representation and diversity at conferences influenced her journey
• Discusses how code design should be contextual, evolving, and focused on clarity
• Describes the connection between team communication patterns and code quality
• Explores why people, not code, are the most valuable asset in software development
• Compares AI programming assistance to the transition to garbage collection in the 90s
• Celebrates the resurgence of local Ruby meetups and community events

Rocky Mountain Ruby is coming up, on October 6th, in Boulder, Colorado. It's a single-track, community-focused conference that always draws an amazing group of people. Tickets are on sale now, so if you're in the area, or if you're just looking for an excuse to spend some time in the Rockies, you should definitely check it out.

In this episode of the Ruby Gems Podcast, hosts David Hill and Marty Haught sit down with Evan Phoenix, a notable figure in the Ruby community. They discuss Evan's contributions in the Ruby space, including the development of Rubinius and Puma, his role in solving scalability issues for Rails developers, and his tenure on the Ruby Central Board since 2011. The conversation also delves into Evan's journey with Ruby and his fascination with how things work. Additionally, Evan shares insights on the importance of maintainership in open source projects, the evolution of Ruby Central, and the impact of the pandemic on the community and conferences. Evan wraps up with his current ventures and thoughts on the future of tech and AI in coding.

• Rubinius repo
• Puma
• benchmark-ips

Rocky Mountain Ruby is coming up, on October 6th, in Boulder, Colorado. It's a single-track, community-focused conference that always draws an amazing group of people. Tickets are on sale now, so if you're in the area, or if you're just looking for an excuse to spend some time in the Rockies, you should definitely check it out.

In this inaugural episode of the Ruby Gems Podcast, hosted by Marty Haught and David Hill, guest Chad Fowler shares the founding story of Ruby Central and the development of Ruby Gems. Fowler, a key figure in the Ruby community, discusses the early days of Ruby conferences, the creation of Ruby Central as a nonprofit, and the collaborative effort to build Ruby Gems. The conversation also covers the rise of Ruby on Rails, community dynamics, and the importance of the 'MINASWAN' philosophy.

00:00 Podcast Intro

00:46 Meet Chad Fowler: A Ruby Central Founder

01:42 The Humble Beginnings of Ruby Central

03:03 The First RubyConf: A Small but Impactful Start

04:17 Establishing Ruby Central as a Nonprofit

05:17 The Evolution of RubyConf

09:09 The Birth of RubyGems

15:12 The Rise of Ruby on Rails

19:14 Rails vs Ruby: The Early Days

20:11 The Rise of Ruby in the Job Market

21:05 The Rails Revolution: 2005-2006

26:57 O'Reilly's Influence on RailsConf

30:16 The Merb vs Rails Conflict

32:06 The Impact of Matz on the Ruby Community

37:29 Ruby Roundup: Rapid Fire Questions

41:02 Closing Thoughts and Farewell

Rocky Mountain Ruby is coming up, on October 6th, in Boulder, Colorado. It's a single-track, community-focused conference that always draws an amazing group of people. Tickets are on sale now, so if you're in the area, or if you're just looking for an excuse to spend some time in the Rockies, you should definitely check it out.

Get to know the people and stories shaping the Ruby community. Hosted by David Hill and Marty Haught, The Ruby Gems Podcast shares conversations with developers, maintainers, and leaders making an impact. Subscribe and catch our first episode soon!