2025 FOSS4G NA | Unity in Code - Tim Steward
In this session from FOSS4G NA 2025, Tim Steward presents Unity in Code: The Power of Community. Tim explores the shift between commercial entities and open-source projects, emphasizing the critical role that a vibrant "village" or community plays in the long-term success of software projects like PostgreSQL and PostGIS.
Drawing from his early career in the Oracle ecosystem to his global travels with the PostgreSQL community, Tim discusses how open-source collaboration fosters professional growth, diversity, and innovation. He highlights the ubiquity of PostgreSQL—often hidden behind the scenes of major ride-sharing, banking, and betting applications—and details how its flexibility, high-transaction performance, and spatial capabilities through PostGIS make it the database of choice for modern enterprise environments.
Highlights:
🛰️ The Meaning of Community: Moving beyond mere "user groups" to a true open-source community centered on trust, responsiveness, and collective help
🔄 Lessons from the DBA Quest: A storytelling look at a DBA’s journey through Oracle and MySQL before finding reliability and community at the gates of PostgreSQL
🧩 The Successful Village: Why a powerful community is the defining factor behind every successful open-source project and how it empowers individuals
⚙️ Bridging Corporate & Community: Using customer feedback to drive improvements in open-source software that benefit both businesses and the greater good
🌐 PostgreSQL Trend: A look at how major hyperscalers (Azure, Google, AWS) and startups alike are migrating to PostgreSQL for its extensible, high-transaction power
🏢 Hidden Geospatial Power: Real-world examples of PostgreSQL and PostGIS powering ATM services, ride-share routing, and state-regulated sports betting apps
🏗️ The Future of Leadership: Why leaders of the future are those who support others and the importance of active participation in the FOSS community
For more content like this check out www.projectgeospatial.com
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