Short Take: Security as a Tradeoff
We often treat security as an absolute, "that which must be done, and done perfectly, or is of no value at all." It's time to take this myth head on, and think about how we
Short Take: Death of the Seven Layer Model
Is the seven-layer OSI model really all that useful any longer? Before you answer, it's worth listening to my latest short take over at the Network Collective.
Short Take: Side Channel Attacks
In this short take, recently posted over at the Network Collective, I discuss what a side channel attack is, and why they are important.
Engineering versus Metaengineering
In my latest short take over at the Network Collective, I explain the difference between engineering and metaengineering.
On Breaking Things
On this short take over at the Network Collective, I talk about the importance of breaking things.
Short Take: The Broadcom SDKLT Announcement
My first short take at The Network Collective is up discussing the Broadcom SDKLT announcement. Does this really mean the end of vendors or network engineering? You can guess my answer, or you can watch
Learning to Ask Questions
A lot of folks ask me about learning theory—they don't have the time for it, or they don't understand why they should. This video is in answer to that question.
One Weird Trick
I'm often asked what the trick is to become a smarter person—there are many answers, of course, which I mention in this video. But there is "one weird trick" many people don't think
Macrotasking
How do I get so much done? One way is to macrotask—the topic of this video.
Is Networking a Commodity?
Is networking becoming a commodity? Do we all need to worry about losing our jobs as network engineers because no-one cares about how a commodity is created or provided? Maybe it is time
The Humble API
Network Engineering and coding, like many other things in the information technology world, share overlapping concepts—even if we don't often recognize the overlap because we are too busy making up new names to
Do What You Love?
If you do what you love, will you make it to the "big time?" A lot of people have tried this path, and failed. So what is the real secret to success in
Growing and Selling
A lot of people say just to save money, and watch it grow. There is more to life than just growing, though—you need to figure out what to sell, as well.
One Throat to Choke?
Do you really have one throat to choke? I seriously doubt it.
What is a Tunnel
It's a bird! It's a plane! It's a... tunnel? In this video, I take on the age old question: what is a tunnel? Is it a protocol, or is it something else? This
What Kind of Design?
In this short video I work through two kinds of design, or two different ways of designing a network. Which kind of designer are you? Do you see one as better than the
Master of None
Should you be a johnny do-it-all, or so deep that no-one understands what you are saying? It's time to talk about the shape of knowledge—and how important it is to be intentional about
Thoughts on Grey Failures
Grey failures happen on a regular basis in all networks, but in larger networks the law of large numbers can take over and cause additional redundancy to actually reduce availability. This video considers some of aspects of grey failures.
The Knowledge Mortgage
One of the common questions I get is this: I need to study to get a job, and I do not see how learning all this theory stuff is helpful. It's time to
Disaggregated, Hyperconverged, and Composed
The future of network is a big topic; while I have written about this, and spoken about it, in other venues, I thought it would be useful to make a two part video sharing some
Microloops Explained (in video)
This is the blog post by Ivan I discuss in the video, and this is an older post here on Rule11 about the same topic, if you prefer your explanations written.
Managing Attention
This is Ethan's post I talk about in the video on value and social media.
What Skill Should I Learn Next?
The perrienial question in network engeineering—or any engineering, really—is "what skill should I learn next? I take a shot at answering this question in this week's video.