Software developers are a prideful group. They like to create things, figure out their own short cuts and come up with new ways to innovate on the fly. But sometimes, developers’ inner creativity can be the biggest thing holding them back. There are still times when relying on tried and tested tools can help get a project done more quickly and more efficiently.

We discuss how developers can optimize their own work by identifying a few key value-adds and admitting that, for many other tasks like observability and log-ins, outside vendors have better tools to get the job done. Shawn sums it up by saying we need to admit that “we’re entering the golden age of the SaaS product.”

We also talk about microservices – how The New York Times has committed to the practice in a big way, and how many in the organization are confused about how they work.

Finally, we explore the challenges of having to comply with a long list of regulations in a multi-cloud environment and Shawn’s observation that, after the introduction of containers, we’re “still waiting for the next game changer.”