Interviews

Richard Yen

1. How did you first get involved with PostgreSQL?

   I got started with PostgreSQL when there was a shortage of resources at my startup. The previous PostgreSQL expert had left to start a new software engineering job at a bigger company, so volunteered to be trained up and take on the responsibilities of a DBA.

2. How did you get interested in the area that is the subject of your talk?

   In my time working as a database support engineer, I've encountered several situations with customers who had trouble deciphering EXPLAIN output, so I wanted to gather, organize, and share my experiences with others.

3. What is one feature of PostgreSQL that more people should use?

   I think people could benefit from using auto_explain more — it's super-simple to set up, and helps with debugging tremendously.

4. What future area of PostgreSQL development are you most excited about?

   I'm pretty excited about seeing zheap develop further, and all the performance and administration benefits that will come out of it.