The Story of Software

In this episode, Padraig Coffey, CEO at Zartis, is joined by Connor Murphy, CEO of Bridge, and a serial entrepreneur and investor, to discuss tech entrepreneurship and what he has learned from his involvement in more than thirty startups.

The world of tech startups is fraught with challenges as well as opportunities, and it can be difficult for company founders to navigate the risks. Connor sheds light on his perspective of tech entrepreneurship, which was gained through 20 years experience working in, setting up, and investing in technology companies.

From the mindset and the founding team selection, to the Venture Capital market, Connor Murphy shares his insights on the mistakes he observes startups often making. Find out what kind of company culture, team structure or investor relationship you need to favor, and how you can avoid the common pitfalls.

We hope you enjoy listening to this tech podcast and feel free to share any feedback with us: [email protected]

In this episode, Padraig Coffey, CEO at Zartis, is joined by Ronan Ryan, Co-Founder & President of  IEX Exchange and co-host of the Boxes & Lines podcast.

IEX Exchange is the eighth largest stock exchange operator globally in terms of the value of shares traded every day. To put this in context, on a daily basis, IEX Exchange processes more trades than the London stock exchange. 
 
Ronan Ryan walks us through the ins and outs of modern stock trading, high frequency trading, and the early days and evolution of IEX. He shares what it’s like to build an exchange from scratch - from a mindset, technical and business perspective.

We hope you enjoy listening to this tech podcast and feel free to share any feedback with us: [email protected]

In this episode, Padraig Coffey, CEO at Zartis and podcast host, is joined by James Lapic, Chief Technology Officer at Zipwhip, as they discuss the history and evolution of texting technology.

Note: The ‘History of Software’ podcast has been rebranded to The Story of Software since the recording of this episode.

The History of Texting Technology:
Messaging technology has changed our world in many material and unexpected ways. If we look back at the changes in communication technology, they have some significant societal impacts - the invention of paper in 2nd century BC China is linked to the dissemination of literacy, the invention of the printing press in 1440 brought the reformation and some massive social and cultural changes in Europe. More recently, we can talk about the electrical telegraph, the mobile phone and the focus of today’s episode - text messaging. 

The very first SMS was sent in the early 90s, as an engineer discovered that the data channel, which tells a cell phone it’s time to ring, can also be used to transmit small messages.

How has texting evolved since from a technological and user perspective? What are the fundamental differences between SMS and OTT messaging services, such as Facebook messenger, Whatsapp etc? How has texting changed the way people communicate today? How is texting changing business communication? Tune in to explore the world of messaging technology.

We hope you enjoy listening to our tech podcast and feel free to share any feedback with us: [email protected]

In this episode, Padraig Coffey, CEO at Zartis and podcast host, is joined by Jimmy Soni & Rob Goodman, authors of ‘A Mind at Play,’ a fascinating biography, exploring the life and work of Claude Shannon, considered the Architect of the Information Age. 

Note: The ‘History of Software’ podcast has been rebranded to The Story of Software since the recording of this episode.

Claude Shannon - His Life, Work and Legacy:

Claude Shannon laid the foundation for the digital and information age as we know it today. His insights are at the basis of how every digital computer is built, in how emails are sent, video is streamed, web pages are loaded.

Jimmy and Rob take us on a journey through the fascinating life of Claude Shannon - from his childhood, through his work on circuits and information theory, to his tinkerings - building a fleet of unicycles, the flame-throwing trumpet, rocket-powered frisbee. Tune in to join us on an adventure, as we explore a genius mind at play.

Claude Shannon’s work was largely inspired by the theoretical foundations laid by George Boole. For more of the backstory of George Boole, check out episode #7 of the History of Software podcast.

We hope you enjoy listening to our tech podcast and feel free to share any feedback with us: [email protected].

In this episode, Padraig Coffey, CEO at Zartis and podcast host, is joined by Brian Kelly, VP of Engineering at FlipDish, as they explore the history and evolution of the agile movement.

Note: The ‘History of Software’ podcast has been rebranded to The Story of Software since the recording of this episode.

Agile & The Challenges of Scrum:

The Agile Manifesto was published in 2001 and has largely taken the software industry by storm. 

A 2020 report found that 95% of participating companies are using Agile methodologies. While it’s largely debatable to what extent all these companies are actually agile in practice, rather than in theory, the impact and widespread use of Agile methodologies across the software sector today is undeniable.

Why is Agile so incredibly impactful and widely accepted as a way of organizing software development work?  How has the movement evolved since it first started? What are the areas in which it hasn’t evolved fast enough? What is Scrum? What are its advantages and limitations in comparison to other agile approaches such as Kanban, XP, etc? What is the future of the agile movement?

Tune in as Padraig and Brian explore this fascinating topic.

We hope you enjoy listening and feel free to share any feedback with us: [email protected].

In this episode, Padraig Coffey, CEO at Zartis and podcast host, is joined by Joshua Forman, Director of Engineering at Shapeshift, as they explore the evolution of cryptocurrencies and bitcoin. 

Note: The ‘History of Software’ podcast has been rebranded to The Story of Software since the recording of this episode.

From the very first examples of digital currencies, through the evolution of Bitcoin and subsequent cryptocurrencies, to where it’s all headed - this episode explores the technical, social and economic factors that have enabled and driven the adoption of cryptocurrencies. 

What is bitcoin and how did it come about? What are the limitations of blockchain and how did that drive the evolution of other cryptocurrencies? What are the security considerations and the infrastructure of technologies around cryptocurrencies? What is the ecological impact? What is next for the cryptocurrencies from an adoption and technical perspective? 

Tune in for the answers to those and many more questions, as Josh Forman, shares his insights into this fascinating space.

We hope you enjoy listening and feel free to share any feedback with us: [email protected].

In this episode, Padraig Coffey, CEO at Zartis and podcast host, is joined by Colm Lyon, founder of Fire and Realex Payments, as they explore the history of online payments.

Note: The ‘History of Software’ podcast has been rebranded to The Story of Software since the recording of this episode.

In 1871, Western Union authorized the ability to send money via wire transfer, which marked the dawn of Fintech and technology-driven payments. And yet, the defining moments of the evolution of online payments will follow towards the end of the 20th and beginning of the 21st century. As with many aspects of life as we know it today, the internet played a key role in shaping the demand and the technology at the base of it. From the way we interact with banks to the emergence and growth of e-commerce - the last few decades marked an increased need for payment technology that enables the changing economy.

What were and what are the technological challenges of building online payments technology? How has the sector evolved in the past decades, as the demand has increased exponentially? Is open banking the future? And what is the opportunity for the up and coming entrepreneurs in the sector? Tune in to hear Colm share his insights.

We hope you enjoy listening and feel free to share any feedback with us: [email protected].

In this episode, Padraig Coffey, CEO at Zartis and podcast host, is joined by Alec Turnbull, VP of Product at Dotdash. They explore how the internet has changed how we seek out and learn new things with specific focus on the 1990s and early 2000s. 

Note: The ‘History of Software’ podcast has been rebranded to The Story of Software since the recording of this episode.

In 1993, there were only about 130 websites on the internet. A bit more than a year later, as the first browsers appeared, that number had grown to over 23 000. In 1997, that number was 1.1 million, and today, an estimated 1.7 billion websites exist.

This episode explores how this exponential evolution has impacted the way we look for and consume content, the way we understand and consume media. From the first ad on the internet to the impact of digitalization on the journalistic practice and profession - the episode covers a lot of ground. Tune in for more details!

We hope you enjoy listening and feel free to share any feedback with us: [email protected].

In this episode, Padraig Coffey, CEO at Zartis and podcast host, is joined by JP Beaudry, Vice President of Engineering at edX, as they explore the history of educational technology.

Note: The ‘History of Software’ podcast has been rebranded to The Story of Software since the recording of this episode.

In 2012, edX published their very first online course called ‘Circuits and Electronics’. More than 155 000 learners signed up and over 7200 passed this rigorous MIT course. To fully understand this number - it would take an MIT professor over 35 years to teach this many students in person. This course alone has reached nearly half a million learners since.

The internet brought in a watershed moment by lowering the barrier of entry to education and allowing world-wide access to information. Education technology has seen an unprecedented rise since, and the Covid crisis seems to have only amplified the demand.

Tune in for this episode, as JP and Padraig explore the evolution of educational technology - from the invention of the printing press to the first iterations of distance learning to the highly complex technology at play today.

We hope you enjoy listening and feel free to share any feedback with us: [email protected].

This week Padraig Coffey, CEO at Zartis and podcast host, is joined by Aidan Donnelly, a technologist who spent many years in the online poker business.

Note: The ‘History of Software’ podcast has been rebranded to The Story of Software since the recording of this episode.

When and what was the first online poker game? As many other platforms have appeared in the market since, what made some of them succeed and others fail?

Building an online poker platform means 24/7 availability, 100% accuracy when tracking money and the capacity to handle tens of thousands of players at the same time. What are the technical challenges when building an online poker system? What are the architecture and infrastructure considerations? How do you test it? What are the legal issues to consider?

Listen in for the answers to those questions and much more from the world of online poker.

We hope you enjoy listening and share any feedback with us: [email protected].