Behind the scenes at Scala eXchange 2018
Scala eXchange London 2018 is just around the corner! Don’t worry, there are still tickets available. As Scala has continued to grow in its use across some of the world’s biggest companies, so has ScalaX, which is now held in London’s Business Design Centre. We asked one member of the ScalaX Programme Committee, Richard Dallaway from Underscore, about his expectations for this year and where he sees the language going in the future.
How did you get involved with the ScalaX Programme Committee?
I’ve dug through my emails, but I can’t find out how it first happened. I was part of the first London Scala User Group, so perhaps because of thar or it could have been when I arrived late for a Scala eXchange one year. Wendy was looking for someone to introduce and host a panel discussion, and I walked through the door at just the wrong time. Or right time.
Can you share some of your personal highlights for this year’s ScalaX and let us know why these have jumped out at you?
I’m looking forward to seeing Rob Norris’ keynote. I find that his talks push my thinking forward. They’re so well explained, so useful, so well presented. I also love that we have Jessica Rose talking about health and well-being. It’s not a topic I’ve seen discussed at enough tech conferences.
In the 45 minute talks, Danielle Ashley’s ‘Cobind and Chill’ was an instant “Yes, want that talk!” We’re going to learn about the comonad, via processing analogue TV signals. This from the speaker who has written a Scala real-time MP3 decoder and a Gameboy emulator.
Very happy that Bodil Stokke is a speaker. She’s worked with so many languages, not just Scala, that we can get her experience in something as important as fundamental data structures.
I also want to highlight the lightning talks. I love the format of having 15 minutes to get an idea across. I find I get a broader impression of what people are using Scala for.
Do you see Scala having particular potential in any specific industries or applications in the near future?
I suspect a large proportion of Scala code is deployed in enterprise-ish places. With Scala Native on the way (and with Scala.js already out), there’s potential for Scala to appear in more places. Looking forward to seeing what Trond Bjerkestrand’s talk will cover in that regard.
Do you have any blog posts, podcasts, articles or books about Scala that you would like to share with the community?
I have to mention Dave and Noel’s ‘Scala with Cat’ and our ‘Essential Slick’ which are both free online. But aside from those, although not Scala-Specific, ‘Type-Driven Development with Idris’ is invaluable for how to approach programming. And if you’re building applications, ‘Design for Real Life’ is vital for treating users as people.
