The Soul of Erlang and Elixir

GOTO Chicago 2019

Whether you're developing a small web site or a large-scale distributed system, Erlang and Elixir are great tools for building server-side systems. Both languages can help you start quickly and deal with highly complex problems at a large scale.

This talk aims to explain what makes Erlang and Elixir suitable for such tasks. We'll look past the syntax and the ecosystem, focusing instead on the concurrency model of these languages.

Combining a bit of high-level theory and a couple of demos, we'll examine some important properties of Erlang/Elixir concurrency, with a special emphasis on why these properties are very relevant when building highly available systems.

The talk targets experienced backend developers, but no knowledge of Erlang or Elixir is required. You will walk away from the talk with a better understanding of what distinguishes Erlang and Elixir from the rest of the pack, and why these languages are very compelling choices to power your next software system.

Who should attend this talk: This talk targets software development who are interested in building server-side systems. Some prior experience in building such software will be helpful, but no knowledge of Erlang or Elixir is required.

Academic level: Intermediate

What is the take away in this talk: After the talk the audience will be better informed about what makes BEAM languages, such as Erlang and Elixir, such a great fit for building server-side systems. This will help them make more informed decision when choosing a technology for their next project