Average rating: | Rated 4 of 5. |
Level of importance: | Rated 3 of 5. |
Level of validity: | Rated 4 of 5. |
Level of completeness: | Rated 4 of 5. |
Level of comprehensibility: | Rated 4 of 5. |
Competing interests: | none |
This article was written just over three years before this review and provides an interesting perspective onto some of the thinking around developing and maintaining computing infrastructure for a large scientific project - the Large Synoptic Survey Telescope (LSST). This telescope was one of the first automated astronomical survey telescopes commissioned and the rate in which data was acquired was quite different to predecessors. It is quite appropriate, with hindsight, that the DevOps culture should take hold in this organisation, given the scale and complexity of it.
The authors prioritise the scientific data when discussing the culture of DevOps. This makes the article interesting to others down the line who are developing infrastructure for other instruments. Although not the first adoption of its kind, the article captures the spirit of a moment and stands the test of time. Some of the tools and practices may have changed slightly, but the need to apply Agile and Open techniques to research data acquisition and the platforms that enable it are as valid today as three years ago.