Why Are Distributed Systems So Hard?

Wednesday, October 30, 2019 - 4:45 pm5:30 pm

Denise Yu, Pivotal

Abstract: 

Distributed systems are known for being notoriously difficult to wrangle. But why? This talk will cover a brief history of distributed computing, clear up some common myths about the CAP theorem, dig into why network partitions are inevitable, and closeout by highlighting how a few popular consensus algorithms mitigate the risks of operating in a distributed fashion. We'll also take a look at how to design systems for greater adaptability by human factors, which can help reduce the impact of programmatic uncertainty.

Denise Yu, Pivotal

Denise is a Senior Software Engineer at Pivotal who occasionally wears a product management hat. Denise has previously delivered conference talks on topics ranging from continuous delivery to functional programming to scaling company culture. She enjoys learning about distributed systems, release engineering, and low-level Linux kernel programming, and when she's not coding, she is often doodling sketch notes that break down technical concepts into digestible pieces at deniseyu.io/art.

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BibTeX
@conference {240894,
author = {Denise Yu},
title = {Why Are Distributed Systems So Hard?},
year = {2019},
address = {Portland, OR},
publisher = {USENIX Association},
month = oct
}

Presentation Video