Yukihiro Matsumoto now works at Heroku



    Today, July 13, Ruby language developer Yukihiro Matsumoto joined the cloud-based startup Heroku (a division of Salesforce ). In this article, matz answers a few questions regarding the future of Ruby.

    (Note: this translation is based on the English text from the New Bamboo blog , which in turn is based on a Japanese article by Junichi Niino .)

    “I'm getting ready to speed up Ruby development” - Interview with Yukihiro Matsumoto about joining Heroku as chief architect


    Date: July 13, 2011.

    Introduction


    As I mentioned in a previous article, it became known that Yukihiro Matsumoto (Matz) joined Heroku as the chief architect of Ruby. I asked him a few questions about the reasons for this decision and his future tasks by e-mail.

    My goal is to improve the quality and functionality of the Ruby core.


    PublicKey (hereinafter Q): Tell us how this happened.


    Y. Matsumoto (hereinafter Matz): In our last meeting with Marc Benioff [Executive Director Salesforce.com], he asked how he could support the development of Ruby.

    I explained that I wanted to improve the situation in which most Ruby kernel developers find themselves: they either work in their free time, or have to worry about not losing their jobs.

    He said that he could offer us help, and so I joined Salesforce through Heroku. (Note: We are currently discussing the possibility of hiring several more Ruby kernel developers at Heroku).

    So, our main work will remain the same. Our goal is to develop the Ruby core, improving its functionality and quality. I now have a stable job, and feedback on Ruby from its most active users, such as Heroku, will speed up Ruby development. Otherwise, it would not make sense to accept this proposal.

    However, my joining Heroku as the chief architect does not mean that I promise the loyalty of Heroku or Salesforce.com. This does not affect my relationship with NaCl or Rakuten , which, as before, will support me; in addition, I remain chairman of the Ruby Association .

    If we talk about the position, then I chose the “Chief Architect” from several proposed options, as it sounds the most neutral in relation to business. In the future, I am not going to make any business decisions related to Heroku.

    Q: What do you expect from your position at Heroku?


    Matz: As I said, nothing will change in general, but Ruby development will be faster. In addition, I would like to work more closely with the Heroku team to fix everything that prevents Ruby from being used in cloud environments.

    I would like to maintain good relations with other companies, such as Engine Yard and VMware, and maintain their trust in Matz Ruby even after I started working at Heroku.

    Q: What are your thoughts on using Ruby in the cloud?


    Matz: To be honest, most of the Ruby kernel developers (including myself) are not very interested in Internet technologies, but for us it is obvious that cloud computing is becoming more and more important, so I would like to get more information about using Ruby in cloud environments and use it for the future development of Ruby.

    Q: Are you going to work in Silicon Valley, or remotely from Matsue ?


    Matz: I don’t want to change my lifestyle (however, my work style may change), so most likely I will work remotely from Matsue.

    Now it does not seem to me that moving to Silicon Valley should make me happier.

    Despite this, I would like to communicate several times a year directly with colleagues from the San Francisco / Silicon Valley (including Heroku).

    (Note: To be precise, Heroku's main office is located in San Francisco, not Silicon Valley, but the press release says “Silicon Valley Company”).

    Q: Anything else?


    Matz: I heard that a lot of people (outside of Japan) do not know that the Ruby kernel development team so far has not had a sustainable development model. I hope that my example will be a model for Japanese software developers, also published in Japan.

    Q: Thank you.

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