Oracle Groundbreakers Podcast

Chris Hermansen: Don't be Afraid to Create Summary Jim Grisanzio from Java Developer Relations talks with Chris Hermansen, a Java developer, consultant, and data analyst from Canada. Chris discovered Java in the 1990s and was drawn to its free accessibility and object-oriented design. He particularly appreciated Java's straightforward single inheritance model over C++'s complexity. But Chris's path to technology came through mathematics rather than computer science. He identifies streams as Java's most transformative feature for data analysis work and praises how it improved code readability and maintainability. On consulting, Chris cautions against Silicon Valley mantras like "fail often" when applied outside prototyping contexts, and he observes cultural differences in how engineers approach problem-solving with some preferring abstract discussion while others focusing on concrete data. Chris emphasizes that technology work remains fundamentally human and stresses the importance of listening, maintaining hu

Jim Grisanzio from Java Developer Relations talks with Barry Burd, a computer science teacher, an author, and the co-leader for two Java User Groups (JUGs). Barry is based in New Jersey and he's taught at the undergraduate level for decades. His journey with Java began in 2004 when he attended small user group meetings of just five or six people. Those gatherings, once part of the Amateur Computer Group of New Jersey, have evolved into the Garden State Java User Group and the New York Java SIG, which now regularly feature Java Champions and prominent speakers from the Java development community. The transformation of the two JUGs on the East Coast of the U.S. reflects the broader growth of the entire Java ecosystem globally.  Barry's teaching philosophy centers on passion, enthusiasm, and visualization. He works to help students see programming concepts as complete mental pictures rather than just syntax. His classroom approach emphasizes active interactions with as many questions as possible. He tries to cre

Jim Grisanzio from Oracle Java Developer Relations talks with Mattias Karlsson, Java Champion and prominent developer in the Java community who was also honored with the Java Community Lifetime Achievement recognition at Jfokus in February 2024.  “I was shocked and honored — very humbled!” Mattias said about being recognized for his lifetime of achievements in the Java community by Sharat Chander of Oracle’s Java Developer Relations Team. Mattias, a Stockholm-based engineer and long-time leader of the Stockholm Java User Group, shares his journey with Java, from its early days to its current role in modern tech ecosystems. He also talks about the evolution of Jfokus, a leading annual Java conference he organizes, which has grown from a small Java user group into a major gathering of over 2,000 developers from diverse backgrounds around the world.  Mattias highlights Java’s enduring appeal, driven by its robust JVM, backward compatibility, and vibrant community. He also reflects on the six-month release cycle,

Jim Grisanzio from Java Developer Relations talks with Venkat Subramaniam who was recognized with the Java Community Lifetime Achievement honors by Oracle’s Sharat Chander at Devoxx UK in May 2024. Venkat is a Java Champion, author, speaker, founder of Agile Developer, co-founder of the dev2next conference, and teacher at the University of Houston. In this conversation, which is part of an ongoing series honoring Java pioneers, Venkat expresses profound humility about his accomplishments and credits industry giants and his passion for learning and sharing technical knowledge. He reflects on leaving his own company years ago to focus on teaching and technology, writing books like Cruising Along with Java, and speaking at over 45 conferences and 30 Java User Groups — every single year! Venkat has one of the most impressive global speaking schedules of anyone in the Java community. Venkat praises Java User Group leaders as “unsung heroes” for their organizational efforts and highlights Java 25’s evolving feature

Jim Grisanzio from Java Developer Relations talks with Bruno Souza, who is a Java Champion, leader of the SouJava User Group in Brazil, and a member of the JCP Executive Committee. Bruno received the first Java Community Lifetime Achievement recognition in October 2022 at JavaOne in Las Vegas. "I was totally surprised! I was jumping up and down! I was so honored! It’s an honor to be a member of that group." he said. Bruno Souza is known as the "JavaMan" from Brazil and that nickname started back at Sun when Java was announced and Bruno started evangelizing the technology. Bruno's message to the community was "Open Standards and Open Source" as he began his community building efforts around Java. He continually brought to Brazil FOSS and Standards experts for community discussions, and he advocated for a standards-based Open Source implementation of Java that would pass the TCK. Bruno left Sun and then returned, and he also joined the JCP (Java Community Process). Now all these years later we have OpenJDK, and

Jim Grisanzio from Java Developer Relations talks with Trisha Gee, an author, a Java Champion, and a Developer Advocate at Gradle. In February 2025 at Jfokus in Stockholm Trisha received the Java Community Lifetime Achievement Award from Sharat Chander from Oracle Java Developer Relations. Trisha has been a Java developer for 25 years, and since 2011 she’s been actively blogging, presenting technical sessions at conferences, and evangelizing Java globally. Recently, Trisha has moved from a traditional developer advocate role to more of a facilitator of developer advocacy internally at her company as well as externally. She works with engineering teams, marketing, teams, and sales teams to ensure the voice of the developer resonates throughout the organization and the community. Trisha is always evolving, she’s constantly growing. In this conversation we talk about the JVM, the six month Java release cycle, writing code, the unique features that make Java special as a technology and as a community, Generative

Jim Grisanzio from Java Developer Relations talks with Cay Horstmann, a professor, author, and Java Champion. In April in Cologne, Germany at JCON Cay received the Java Community Lifetime Achievement recognition from Sharat Chander on the Oracle Java Developer Relations Team. This conversation covers the evolution of Java, the constant polishing of the library, the upcoming Java 25 release, the six-month release cycle, improvements in the Java language to make the technology more beginner friendly, teaching methodologies, conferences vs unconferences, and also timeless task-driven learning methods for students and developers to keep their skills sharp. Also, Cay has been writing books about Java for decades and years ago he was instrumental in initially getting Java integrated into the curriculum for the computer science AP exam in the United States. “One of the reasons why Java is still so vibrant 30 years in is that there is a constant stream of low-level innovation going on. It’s pretty amazing.” Cay Horst

Jim Grisanzio from Java Developer Relations talks with Heinz Kabutz from the Island of Crete in Greece. Heinz has a PhD in Computer Science, publishes the The JavaSpecialists' Newsletter, and runs the JCrete Unconference. Heinz is also a Java Champion and a teacher, and he cares deeply about the technology and the community. Recently, Heinz was recognized for his Lifetime Achievement by Sharat Chander from Oracle Java Developer Relations. “I was on cloud nine! I was so honored,” Heinz said. In this conversation Heinz previews some JEPs in the upcoming Java 25 release, he comments on the value of the 6-month Java release cycle, he outlines how he’s contributed code to OpenJDK (and how others can too!), he offers some detailed advice to students getting involved in software development for the first time, and he talks at length about the opportunities for developers who participate at the JCrete Unconference. “I have seen people whose entire careers got revolutionized just by coming to JCrete once. It’s really

Jim Grisanzio from Java Developer Relations talks with Nate Schutta, an author, a teacher, a software architect, and Java Champion. Nate lives in the United States and teaches computer science to university students. He loves teaching and he loves learning, and he specializes in exploring the big picture of complicated systems in his career as a software architect. The conversation covers the Java community, the value for developers if they contribute to Java User Groups (JUGs), the benefits and some possible drawbacks of AI, and the engineering feat that is the Java Virtual Machine (JVM). Nate has a passion for learning and here’s his advice for young developers and engineering students. “The fundamentals can’t be skipped! And they take time to learn! You just have to put in those hours to understand the basics, and then you can graduate to the more complicated stuff.” Nate tripped over Java a bit in school and joined his first Java project right in his first job. Once he heard about this new Java project, h

Jim Grisanzio from Java Developer Relations talks with Francisco Contreras, who is a Java developer and a co-organizer at Nicaragua JUG. Francisco has been a Java developer for over 15 years and he runs his own consulting business with customers around the world. He's passionate about Java the technology and also Java the community. "When I learned Java at university I felt like I could do anything with that," he said, talking about how Java enables him to engage developers, write really great software, and also grow a business. But Java goes well beyond just technology. When Francisco had some personal challenges in his life, he was happy that many community members immediately offered to help him. "The sense of community in the Java environment is just awesome!"  Francisco Contreras https://x.com/Frank_JCG https://www.linkedin.com/in/fjcontrerasg https://www.youtube.com/shorts/5OlzVJbnuQc https://www.youtube.com/shorts/rhAe6zqxC34 JUG Nicaragua https://x.com/jugnicaragua   Java User Groups https://

Jim Grisanzio from Java Developer Relations talks with Ivar Grimstad, who is a Java Champion, a JCP Executive Committee Member, and a Jakarta EE Developer Advocate. Ivar is based in Sweden but travels to over 40 events a year talking about Java and Open Source with thousands of developers. He feels passionately about contributing to Java projects as the best way for young developers to learn Java and connect with the community, especially at Java conferences. Ivar has been working with Java professionally since 2000, but he's been solving problems with code since he was a little kid around 12 or 13 years old. "Java has been my go-to language for everything!" he says. "It's been here for 30 years and it'll probably be around for 30 more!"  Ivar Grimstad https://x.com/ivar_grimstad https://bsky.app/profile/theguywiththeduketattoo.com https://www.linkedin.com/in/ivargrimstad/ Duke's Corner https://dukescorner.libsyn.com https://bsky.app/profile/dukescorner.bsky.social Jim Grisanzio https://x.com/jimgris

The Duke’s Corner Java Podcast contributed an 11 minute segment to the Community Keynote at JavaOne 2025 in California in March. Jim Grisanzio from Oracle Java Developer Relations hosted the program with special guests Cay Horstmann, Marit van Dijk, and Lize Raes. The panel covered the latest bits in Java, how to contribute to the community, and the best bits from JavaOne. Everyone had a great time!  Here’s the full Community Keynote session from JavaOne in March 2025: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GwR7Gvi80Xo&t=1838s

Jim Grisanzio from Java Developer Relations talks with Tom Cools, an engineer from Belgium, a conference speaker, a Java Champion, and the leader of the Belgian Java User Group. "I make it my mission to spread Java all over Belgium," says Tom as he describes how he runs the BeJUG as an Open Source project that takes contributions from the community. Here in this conversation Tom also talks about how the recent evolution of Java with rapid release cycles and new innovations attracted him to the language he loves. Tom is also a certified teacher so we discussed learning strategies, stress management, social media, managing change, AI, burnout, and other life experiences developers must deal with as they navigate through their careers in software development.  Tom Cools https://x.com/TCoolsIT https://x.com/BeJUG https://bsky.app/profile/tomcools.be Duke's Corner https://dukescorner.libsyn.com Jim Grisanzio https://x.com/jimgris

Jim Grisanzio from Java Developer Relations talks with François Martin, a full stack developer from Switzerland who loves teaching Java to students and contributing to the Java community. This conversation ranges from teaching students Java from scratch, the value of test driven development, the lessons from NASA's Apollo project, the benefits — and surprises — of contributing to open source projects, and so much more. Even open source marketing and The Cluetrain Manifesto came up! François is passionate about coding in Java and sharing his experiences with other developers at JUG meetings and conferences. Java was the first language he learned and that seems to made all the difference in the world.  François Martin https://x.com/fmartin_ Duke's Corner https://bsky.app/profile/dukescorner.bsky.social https://dukescorner.libsyn.com Jim Grisanzio https://x.com/jimgris

Jim Grisanzio from Java Developer Relations talks with Marit van Dijk, a Java Champion and also a Java Developer Advocate at JetBrains. Marit will present on developer productivity with IntelliJ IDEA at JavaOne March 18-20 in California.   Go to javaone.com and register and we'll see you there!  Marit van Dijk https://x.com/MaritvanDijk77 JavaOne 2025 https://javaone.com Duke's Corner https://dukescorner.libsyn.com Jim Grisanzio https://x.com/jimgris

Jim Grisanzio from Java Developer Relations talks with Venkat Subramaniam, who is a Java Champion, professor, programmer, and a conference organizer. The conversation ranges from the upcoming JavaOne conference in California in March 2025 to building the Java community, engaging the next generation of Java developers, the importance of going to Java user groups, career building, the evolution of Java technology, agile development, release models, and his upcoming book — Cruising Along with Java. This is a jam packed episode that has something for everyone.  Here's quick bit from the interview from Venkat: "One of the biggest contributions Java has made is to truly show to us the developers what agile development really should be!" Venkat Subramaniam https://x.com/venkat_s Jim Grisanzio https://x.com/jimgris Duke's Corner https://bsky.app/profile/dukescorner.bsky.social https://dukescorner.libsyn.com JavaOne 2025 https://javaone.com

Jim Grisanzio from Java Developer Relations talks with Richard Fichtner as he previews his upcoming session at JavaOne in March and offers his perspective on what makes JavaOne special! Go to javaone.com and register and we'll see you there!  Richard Fichtner https://x.com/RichardFichtner JavaOne 2025 https://javaone.com Duke's Corner https://dukescorner.libsyn.com Jim Grisanzio https://x.com/jimgris

Jim Grisanzio from Java Developer Relations talks with Venkat Subramaniam as he previews his upcoming session at JavaOne in March and offers his perspective on what makes JavaOne special! Go to javaone.com and register and we'll see you there!  This is just a short JavaOne preview with Venkat. Later this week we'll release the full podcast where we cover many topics about software development — and more JavaOne too! Venkat Subramaniam https://x.com/venkat_s JavaOne 2025 https://javaone.com Duke's Corner https://dukescorner.libsyn.com Jim Grisanzio https://x.com/jimgris

Jim Grisanzio from Java Developer Relations talks with Sharat Chander, Senior Director, Java Product Management and Community Engagement. Shar and Jim summarized some community development achievements for 2024 and gave a peek into what's coming for 2025 — JavaOne! That's right, JavaOne 2025 will be held in March 18-20 in California and you can register right now at https://javaone.com. Sharat Chander https://x.com/sharat_chander https://bsky.app/profile/sharatchander.bsky.social Oracle Java Developer Relations Team https://x.com/i/lists/1613949551718862848 JavaOne 2025: Registration now Open! https://inside.java/2024/12/11/javaone-2025/ Duke's Corner https://bsky.app/profile/dukescorner.bsky.social https://dukescorner.libsyn.com Jim Grisanzio https://x.com/jimgris

Jim Grisanzio from Java Developer Relations talks with Ted M. Young from the San Francisco Bay Area about all things Java and test driven development. Ted streams his coding sessions and builds community around his passion for excellence in software development. His first JavaOne was the first JavaOne! And he's been coding in Java ever since. His mantra is to "reduce the suffering and increase the joy of software development" and he's made Java his career. Ted also deeply appreciates the JVM: "It's one of the wonders of the software world." Can't beat that.  Ted M. Young https://x.com/jitterted https://bsky.app/profile/ted.dev Duke's Corner https://bsky.app/profile/dukescorner.bsky.social https://dukescorner.libsyn.com Jim Grisanzio https://x.com/jimgris