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Ever wondered how to design a cost-effective cloud network? Buckle up as the Cables2Clouds team, along with the ever-insightful William Collins, shed light on the labyrinth of cloud pricing. We'll dissect the costs associated with data, requests, and additional resources, providing you with tools to anticipate and contain expenses. More than just cost, we delve into the resources your applications are using and the implications of scaling. Our aim? To save your budget, while ensuring smooth sailing for production applications.

Keeping tabs on cloud costs, especially for larger businesses adopting the cloud, can often feel like acing a mind-boggling puzzle. Don't worry, we’ve got you covered. Alongside our guest, we tackle the challenges of being cost-conscious in network design, and explore the necessity of understanding how applications communicate to optimize costs. We discuss the pros and cons of various models and delve into the emerging automation tools and cost calculators that can help you become more cost aware. With over-engineering in cloud networking design being such an easy thing to do – is it really necessary, or just an expensive habit?

Venture with us as we explore the differences between how the different CSP's handle high availability and disaster recovery, and the associated cost implications. We’ll also take a look at the ever-changing landscape of compliance requirements in cloud networking. Spoiler alert: these can significantly bump up costs. Arm yourself with insights about understanding cloud documentation and communicating requirements and solutions to your business. Join us for an enlightening, no-nonsense discussion on cost optimization in cloud network design

Links:
Infracost- https://www.infracost.io/
Nick Matthews Twitter thread about VPC Lattice- https://twitter.com/nickpowpow/status/1645493575189430272?s=20

Where to find William Collins:
Twitter: https://twitter.com/WCollins502
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/william-collins/
Blog: https://wcollins.io/
Previous episode with Will: https://www.cables2clouds.com/2129055/12609925-ep-7-terraform-for-the-network-engineer

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What if you could delve into the intricate world of technology and networking with an expert in the field? Welcome to an episode filled with insights from our special guest, Peter Jones, a renowned engineer in Cisco networking hardware and the chair of the Ethernet Alliance. Peter throws light on a variety of fascinating subjects - from the competitive landscape of Ethernet technology to the dynamics of different Ethernet speeds, revealing unique perspectives on the risk-reward balance in this area.

Elevating the conversation, we embark on an exploration of large language model (LLM) training clusters and their future implications in computing. Peter shares his views on the delicate balance between the necessity for dedicated, specialized resources and more traditional compute, storage, and acceleration networks. We also ponder on the concept of smaller companies renting out space for LLM training, breaking down the potential business models and the profitability of such ventures.

In the final part of our discussion, we plunge into the limitless potential of large language models and their role in shaping the future of computing. Together with Peter, we contemplate the scalability of LLMs, their effectiveness in solving specific problems, and how big corporations could monetize these models. We also scrutinize the potential implications of acquiring large quantities of these models and the impact it could have on future pricing. Don't miss this enlightening episode, rich in information and insights, as we navigate the captivating world of technology and networking!

Links:

Peter Jones:
https://about.me/petergjones
https://linktr.ee/petergjones

Aquila: https://www.nextplatform.com/2022/04/12/with-aquila-google-abandons-ethernet-to-outdo-infiniband/

SmartNIC Summit: https://smartnicssummit.com/2023proceedings/

Ultra Ethernet Consortium: https://ultraethernet.org/

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Welcome back to Cables2Clouds! Today, your hosts Tim, Alex, and Chris dive into the "Economy of Scale" concept preached by major cloud providers like AWS and Azure. But, have these cost savings really come to fruition? Let's see!

The economy of scale savings hasn't lived up to the hype, leaving many businesses finding cloud services still expensive.

Despite this, competition among cloud providers like Google Cloud, Azure, and AWS remains fierce, driving innovation in the industry.

COVID and silicon shortages played a part in hindering cost reductions, disrupting supply chains and increasing demand for remote work solutions.

Chris has a funny story comparing this to buying the cheapest 2-liter soda at the store. Sometimes, the economy of scale isn't all it's cracked up to be, just like cloud services.

Tune in to this eye-opening episode as we dissect the elusive economy of scale and how cloud providers are adapting to challenges.

Thanks for listening! Don't forget to subscribe and leave a review on your favorite podcast platform. Stay curious and connected!

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Join Tim, Chris, and Alex as they dive into some responses to questions fed into ChatGPT. The point of this discussion was to feed it some simple and some more complex scenarios and then break down what the responses looked like. There are definitely some interesting takes and approaches. Come listen and see how well we think it fared!

Prompts and answers document:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/19NGBziqE7OgVvA_FPXHhAdCDevX_j20kNjRIKML7JPg/edit

ChatGPT:

https://openai.com/chatgpt

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In this podcast episode, the hosts bring Eyvonne Sharp in to discuss transitioning from traditional infrastructure engineering to working at GCP as a Customer Engineer/Tech Transformation Lead. Eyvonne has a long history with the networking community and used to be a co-host of the Network Collective.

Eyvonne on Twitter:  https://twitter.com/SharpNetwork
Network Collective YT Channel: https://www.youtube.com/c/NetworkCollective
Networking Field Day: https://techfieldday.com/nfd/
Eyvonne's Blog Post: https://www.esharp.net/twitter-and-what-im-learning-about-myself/

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In this episode, we are joined by Mersedes, aka @blkwomenread.  We talk about her journey from working at one of the countries busiest Dominos, to call center, to today. These days Mersedes works as a Systems Engineer/Monitoring Engineer which lines up very nicely with her strong interest in the field of Site Reliability Engineering (SRE). We dive into the nitty gritty about her transition from fast food worker to network engineer and learn about what her day-to-day looks like in her current role. This was a great roundtable discussion, suitable for anyone wondering about or currently working in the cloud!


How to connect with Mersedes:
Twitter: [https://twitter.com/blkwomenread]
YouTube: [https://www.youtube.com/@blkwomenread]
Twitch: [https://www.twitch.tv/techsavvysadie]
Linkedin: [https://linkedin.com/in/mersedeshenderson]


Topics:
Site Reliability Engineering (SRE)-
https://sre.google
Books to look out for-
Building Secure and Reliable Systems
The Site Reliability Workbook
Site Reliability Engineering

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In this podcast episode, the hosts discuss the rise of tech scams during the pandemic, particularly in relation to people looking to transition into tech careers. They offer advice on avoiding these scams, including red flags to look out for and the importance of doing research. The hosts also discuss the value of certifications in the tech industry and caution against pursuing them just for the sake of collecting them. They emphasise the need to be realistic when it comes to transitioning into a tech career and to be cautious of scam companies that prey on vulnerable individuals.

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Welcome to the Cables2Clouds Podcast! In today's episode, hosts Chris Miles, Alex Perkins, and Tim McConnaughy are joined by special guest Will Collins, Principal Architect at Alkira and LinkedIn Learning Instructor. The topic of discussion is "Terraform for the Network Engineer."

The conversation begins with a brief overview of Terraform and its benefits, as well as its relevance to network engineers in the cloud. Will explains how Terraform allows network engineers to automate infrastructure deployment and management, saving time and reducing the risk of human error.

The hosts and guest discuss the fundamentals of Terraform, including its declarative language and infrastructure-as-code approach. They explore how Terraform compares to other automation tools and the role it plays in cloud infrastructure management.

Will shares his experience teaching Terraform to network engineers and how it can revolutionize their day-to-day operations. The group also discusses the importance of proper planning and testing when implementing Terraform and the potential pitfalls to avoid.

As the episode wraps up, the hosts and guest share their final thoughts and recommendations for network engineers interested in implementing Terraform.

Join us for this insightful discussion on Terraform for the Network Engineer with Will Collins on the Cables2Clouds Podcast. Don't forget to subscribe and leave a review!

How to connect with Will:

1. Twitter: [https://twitter.com/WCollins502]
2. Blog: [https://wcollins.io/]
3. LinkedIn: [https://www.linkedin.com/in/william-collins/]

Show Links:

1. Will's LinkedIn Learning Course "Terraform: Managing Network Infrastructure" : [https://www.linkedin.com/learning/terraform-managing-network-infrastructure]
2. Hashicorp links:
   1. Terraform: [https://www.hashicorp.com/products/terraform]
   2. TF Cloud: [https://developer.hashicorp.com/terraform/cloud-docs]
3. IaC, Patterns and Practices by Rosemary Wang: [https://www.oreilly.com/library/view/infrastructure-as-code/9781617298295/]

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In this episode, we are joined by Shala, aka @GiftedLane.  Shala is currently a Cloud Associate Architect and has held multiple cloud positions over the last 12 months. We dive into the nitty gritty about her transition from network engineering into DevOps and learn about what her day-to-day looks like in her current and past cloud roles. We also explore the importance of salary negotiation within the industry and how she used certain methods to assure she was getting paid properly.  This was a great roundtable discussion, suitable for anyone wondering about or currently working in the cloud!

FYI: Unfortunately in the middle of this episode Alex got hit with a nasty power outage and he was not able to return. Don't worry, he'll be back on in full swing on the next episode.

How to connect with Shala:
Twitter: [https://twitter.com/giftedlane]
Twitch: [https://www.twitch.tv/giftedlane]
YouTube: [https://www.youtube.com/@giftedlane]
Instagram: [https://www.instagram.com/giftedlane/]


Topics:

Shala's AONE Episode (Ep11): [https://podcast.artofnetworkengineering.com/2127872/12179006-ep-11-gifted-lane]
AONE Salary Negotiation Episode (Ep83): [https://podcast.artofnetworkengineering.com/2127872/12178934-ep-83-salary-negotiation]
Free AWS Cloud Project Bootcamp: [https://aws.cloudprojectbootcamp.com/]

 

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In this episode, we talk with Hank Preston, one of the lead creators of the new Cisco Enterprise Hybrid Cloud Connectivity exam. We cover why the exam is needed, what role it plays as part of Cisco's larger certification ecosystem, and what the blueprint means.

How to connect with Hank:
Twitter: [https://twitter.com/hfpreston]
LinkedIn: [https://www.linkedin.com/in/hpreston/]
Cisco Blogs: [https://blogs.cisco.com/author/hankpreston]


ENCC Exam Topics
https://learningcontent.cisco.com/documents/marketing/exam-topics/300-440-ENCC-v1.0.pdf

Cisco Certification Roadmap
https://learningnetwork.cisco.com/s/cisco-certification-roadmaps

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