AIOUG Oracle Community Yatra 2024 … I’m excited, are you?

I started my career in IT back in 1995 when I joined the United States Military (Army). As an eighteen-year-old with no clue of the world at that time, I dove into a “Network Systems Administrator” position. Throughout my time in the service, I learned from people of different ages and at various points in their careers and multiple technologies, specifically Oracle Database 8i. These experiences encouraged me to keep going in IT as I transitioned out of the service in late 2001.

In 2003, I picked the first enterprise database for a huge US Government project supporting multiple government organizations. This platform started on Sybase Anywhere and then migrated to Oracle 9i EE. Later, I transitioned the 9i database to Oracle 10g (10.1.0.1) EE RAC cluster on Windows 2000 (what was I thinking then?). The resulting architecture was Oracle 10g RAC using Oracle Gateways to replicate data to Sybase Anywhere handhelds. You can say this was my introduction to “data integration.” (At some point, an old manager told me it ran for 17 years with no patches or upgrades (not my choice)).

In 2005, I left the project previously mentioned and moved into the financial sector as a Senior DBA. At this point, I had no clue about the diversity within the industry. As I bounced around the industry for the next six years, I learned a lot about Oracle technology and the diversity within the industry.

In 2011, I was provided the opportunity to take up a manager/team lead role at BIAS, an Atlanta-based consulting firm that focused on Oracle technology. At this point, my career started to expand with the introduction of many people from many different cultures and beliefs.

Here is where things become interesting! 2012 BIAS encouraged its consultants to submit for Oracle Open World (OOW). If you were accepted, BIAS would pay for the trip to San Francisco. To this date, I still claim the presentation I did at OOW 2012 has been the worst I’ve ever done! The good thing that came out of 2012 and the OOW 2012 trip, professionally, was the chance to meet with others in the Oracle ACE program.

Through the Oracle ACE program, I not only began to be exposed to a wider Oracle Community; the people you are exposed to are truly a global experience. Many of my Oracle Community friends come from the Oracle ACE program and have become valuable resources for discussion, growth, and challenges. I’m often reminded of the bible verse “Proverbs 27:17 – As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another”.

As an Oracle ACE Director (2013-2017) and an Oracle ACE Pro (2022-Present), I view my abstracts and presentations as sharing knowledge and sharpening peoples’ understanding of the tools they use daily and for the larger Oracle Community. Throughout the countless conferences and webinars I’ve given over the years, I’ve always tried to provide some information that someone could take back and use in their workday.

How does all this long-winded explanation tie into AIOUG OCYatra 24?

As I previously mentioned, I started my conference speaking in 2012 at Oracle Open World that year (I couldn’t have picked a bigger stage to start on). Since then, I have given countless presentations across the United States (before Oracle and with Oracle), EMEA, Australia (as an Oracle employee), and recently in Canada. Being able to have these opportunities is not lost on me.

Being asked to come and speak at this year’s All India Oracle User Group (AIOUG) Oracle Community (OC) Yatra is an opportunity that I was not expecting but welcome – both professionally and personally. For a person to grow, they must travel and experience the world around them – a trip to India is an exciting example of this!

At this year’s AIOUG OCYatra, I’ll be presenting on the following:

Oracle GoldenGate 23ai – Python, REST APIs, and AI (11 am)

In the realm of data integration and replication, Oracle GoldenGate 23ai stands as a powerhouse, offering robust capabilities for real-time data movement and transformation. With the introduction of REST APIs in earlier versions and the current rise of AI, Oracle GoldenGate has evolved into an even more versatile solution. This presentation aims to explore the transformative power of combining Python, REST APIs, and AI to automate and enhance Oracle GoldenGate data pipelines.

AI Vector Search Indexes: Unlocking the Power of Vector Data (4:30 pm)

Oracle Database 23ai introduces AI Vector Search Indexes, a groundbreaking feature that transforms how vector data is searched and analyzed. With the ability to index and search high-dimensional vector data, organizations can now unlock valuable insights and enhance decision-making processes. AI Vector Search Indexes are designed to handle complex data types, such as word embeddings, image features, and document vectors, enabling advanced similarity searches and semantic queries

If either abstract seems interesting, I encourage you to register today and attend the AIOUG OCYatra 24 in a city near you! Register here -> aioug.org/ocyatra/2024.

At events like AIOUG OCYatra 24 and others worldwide, take the chance, submit an abstract, speak to a broader audience, and see where your career can go! As an eighteen-year-old, I had no clue where my career would take me. Nearly thirty years later, I’ve met many people and visited many different countries. India is the next stop, and I’m excited and looking forward to seeing everyone in July!

As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another
Proverbs 27:17

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