Book Image

Developer, Advocate!

By : Geertjan Wielenga
Book Image

Developer, Advocate!

By: Geertjan Wielenga

Overview of this book

What exactly is a developer advocate, and how do they connect developers and companies around the world? Why is the area of developer relations set to explode? Can anybody with a passion for tech become a developer advocate? What are the keys to success on a global scale? How does a developer advocate maintain authenticity when balancing the needs of their company and their tech community? What are the hot topics in areas including Java, JavaScript, "tech for good," artificial intelligence, blockchain, the cloud, and open source? These are just a few of the questions addressed by developer advocate and author Geertjan Wielenga in Developer, Advocate!. 32 of the industry's most prominent developer advocates, from companies including Oracle, Microsoft, Google, and Amazon, open up about what it's like to turn a lifelong passion for knowledge sharing about tech into a rewarding career. These advocates run the gamut from working at large software vendors to small start-ups, along with independent developer advocates who work within organizations or for themselves. In Developer, Advocate!, readers will see how developer advocates are actively changing the world, not only for developers, but for individuals and companies navigating the fast-changing tech landscape. More importantly, Developer, Advocate! serves as a rallying cry to inspire and motivate tech enthusiasts and burgeoning developer advocates to get started and take their first steps within their tech community.
Table of Contents (36 chapters)
34
Other Books You May Enjoy
35
Index
36
Packt

Jennifer's tips for young people

Jennifer Reif: I think you need a combination of skills, going back to how developer relations touches many different aspects. You need to know the particular tech that interests you in depth. You need to be able to write applications and understand the internals.

Then, you need to be able to commit to projects and open-source work, where you're providing feedback or you're sharing. Basically, you need to have a technical presence to get a job in this field, whether that's GitHub, writing side projects and then publishing them, being active on Twitter, or however you get that word out there that you're a contributing resource to code.

A good idea is to connect with people. If you have an opportunity to go to a conference or to connect with other technical resources in some way, shape, or form, then take it. Places like local meetups are where you really start making connections and hearing about these types of job openings. At...