The IT Guy Show - Episodes Tagged with “Techtips”

Episode 10: GitOps for the Linux Administrator

Eric Hendricks — Tue, 29 Jul 2025 06:00:00 -0500

GitOps can feel like buzzword soup, especially for seasoned Linux admins who’ve spent years mastering bash, cron, and config files. But what if it’s not as scary—or as different—as it sounds?

In this episode of The IT Guy Show, Eric is joined by Christian Hernandez, a longtime Linux administrator who “accidentally” became a Kubernetes and GitOps expert. Together, they break down what GitOps really is, how it compares to traditional sysadmin practices, and how Linux professionals can embrace this powerful approach to infrastructure automation without throwing away their shell scripts.

Whether you're Git-curious or deep in YAML fatigue, this conversation will give you practical context, real talk, and tips for making GitOps part of your day-to-day toolkit.

Welcome to The IT Guy Show, your go-to destination for all things tech with Eric, your friendly neighborhood IT guy! Join Eric as he shares his wealth of knowledge, insights, and experiences gained from years of working in the IT industry. From troubleshooting common tech issues to exploring the latest trends and innovations, each episode is packed with practical tips, skilled advice, and engaging discussions.

Connect with me: https://linktr.ee/itguyeric
Join our:
Discord: https://itguyeric.com/discord
Matrix: https://matrix.to/#/#podcast-itguyeric:matrix.org

Connect with Christian: https://chernand.io/
Akuiti: https://akuity.io
Buy Christian’s book! https://www.oreilly.com/library/view/argo-cd-up/9781098141998

OpenGitOps: https://opengitops.dev/
Kubernetes Kind: https://github.com/kubernetes-sigs/kind

Chapters:
00:00 Stream Start
00:13 Welcome
01:31 Christian Hernandez
04:14 What is GitOps?
12:29 GitOps Journey
18:40 Mindset Shifts
24:30 Why the hesitation?
30:02 Tools to Learn
40:04 Lightning Round
44:40 Wrap up

Graphics and bumpers by Free Hive Agency
Photo by GuerrillaBuzz on Unsplash Special Guest: Christian Hernandez.

Rebooting Eric the IT Guy: Where I’ve Been & What’s Next

Eric Hendricks — Thu, 01 May 2025 11:00:00 -0500

After a few months away from the mic, I’m back—and rebooting Eric the IT Guy not just as a brand, but as a mission.

In this short update, I share what I’ve been up to since leaving Red Hat, why I’m launching into a new season of my career, and what I’m hoping for next. Whether you’ve followed my journey through Linux, open source, or DevOps content creation—this is a personal, honest reset point.

📺 Watch the video version: https://youtu.be/3rtKr-pW-7Q
📬 Connect or hire me: https://itguyeric.com

Join our:
Discord: https://itguyeric.com/discord
Matrix: https://matrix.to/#/#podcast-itguyeric:matrix.org

Episode 8: The Art of Continuous Improvement

Eric Hendricks — Tue, 01 Oct 2024 05:00:00 -0500

We all seem to have this vision of “arriving” at some tech paradise where everything “just works”. After 17 years in IT, I’d say it's safe to say that will never happen. However, that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t strive for better. Teams that embrace the chaos can make huge strides towards improving their environment.

Connect with me! https://linktr.ee/itguyeric

Nathen Harvey: https://linktr.ee/nathenharvey
Dora: https://dora.dev/

Chapters:
00:00 Stream Start
00:48 Welcome
01:27 Meet Nathen
04:56 What is DORA?
09:03 What is Continuous Learning?
15:27 Organizational Continuous Learning
19:21 Improving via Automation
25:40 Starting your journey
41:11 Learning Resources
46:47 Wrap up

Graphics and bumpers by Free Hive Agency
Photo by Mason Wildfang on Unsplash

MoodMode. “Beautiful Acoustic Country Track.” Story Blocks, Songtrust, https://www.storyblocks.com/audio/stock/beautiful-acoustic-country-trailer-bboydaqyvkhf01l87.html. Accessed 28 Jan. 2022. Special Guest: Nathen Harvey.

Episode 7: Battling Burnout…with a Sword

Eric Hendricks — Tue, 17 Sep 2024 16:00:00 -0500

Stress and burnout come for all of us at one time or another. You may not even realize that is what is going on. Join Eric as he sits down with Jennifer and Bryan Horton, owners of Dull Made Daring, and learn the warning signs, recovery methods, and how to slash your anxiety away, with a sword, yeah, a literal sword!

Connect with me! https://linktr.ee/itguyeric

Dull Made Daring
https://www.dullmadedaring.com/eric

Gaming…unintentional professional development goldmine
https://www.linkedin.com/posts/jennifer-horton-lcsw-97068647_gaming-thats-my-unintentional-professional-activity-7229531726102847489-7K18?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop

Chapters:
00:00 Stream start
00:48 Welcome
01:26 Introductions
04:10 Relational dynamics
09:38 Need for change
21:26 Gaming and personality
30:33 Dull Made Daring
45:29 Signs of burnout
01:00:16 Closing thoughts
01:05:51 Wrap up

Graphics and bumpers by Free Hive Agency
Photo by Dingzeyu Li on Unsplash

Episode 6: A Quick Look at Ephemeral Environments

Eric Hendricks — Tue, 13 Aug 2024 16:00:00 -0500

In my days as a Systems Administrator, there weren’t any “non-production” environments. It was all about keeping all the systems running, all the time, even Dev for the developers. Here comes Ephemeral Environments, a concept to quickly build and test disposable systems to make building and testing easier for the entire enterprise.

Welcome to The IT Guy Podcast, your go-to destination for all things tech with Eric, your friendly neighborhood IT guy! Join Eric as he shares his wealth of knowledge, insights, and experiences gained from years of working in the IT industry. From troubleshooting common tech issues to exploring the latest trends and innovations, each episode is packed with practical tips, skilled advice, and engaging discussions.

Connect with me! https://linktr.ee/itguyeric
Natalie Lunbeck: https://www.linkedin.com/in/natalie-lunbeck-477b45114/

DevOpsDays KC 2024 - Natalie Lunbeck - Unblocking Your CI/CD With Ephemeral Environments
https://youtu.be/HWcQ_qUDAH4?si=akoMp3iNhvtjdPdF

DevOps Days
https://devopsdays.org/

Shipyard
https://shipyard.build/

Ephemeral Environments.io
https://ephemeralenvironments.io/
http://github.com/ephemeralenvironments/ephemeralenvironments

Minimum Viable CD
https://minimumcd.org

Dora.Dev
https://dora.dev

Chapters:
00:00 Stream Start
00:57 Welcome
02:16 DevOps Days
04:47 Meet Natalie
08:44 Ephemeral Environments Defined
14:49 What are the benefits?
19:30 DORA Metrics
26:04 Uber SLATE
30:43 EphemeralEnvironments.io
33:26 Minimal Viable CD
40:31 Learn more
45:19 Wrap up

Graphics and bumpers by Free Hive Agency
Photo by Joey Kyber on Unsplash

MoodMode. “Beautiful Acoustic Country Track.” Story Blocks, Songtrust, https://www.storyblocks.com/audio/stock/beautiful-acoustic-country-trailer-bboydaqyvkhf01l87.html. Accessed 28 Jan. 2022.

Episode 5: Understanding DevOps: Putting People Over Processes with Laura Santamaria

Eric Hendricks — Wed, 17 Jul 2024 06:00:00 -0500

Eric the IT Guy Hendricks interviews Laura Santamaria, a Developer Advocate at Dell Technologies, about her experience with DevOps and how to effectively implement it within organizations. She emphasizes the importance of prioritizing people over processes and tools, and shares insights on how to drive cultural change as an individual contributor.

Connect with me! https://linktr.ee/itguyeric
Laura Santamaria: https://linktr.ee/nimbinatus

DevOps Days: https://devopsdays.org/

DevOpsDays KC 2024 - Laura Santamaria - Understanding DevOps in Todays World
https://youtu.be/cUodBMlVbJ4?si=CV5q3tPCF1BFLQRp

The Phoenix Project: A Novel about IT, DevOps, and Helping Your Business Win
https://a.co/d/30J5nzM

Chapters:
00:00 Stream Start
00:50 Welcome
01:49 Introduction
03:29 Meet Laura
06:48 Safe Failure?
11:47 Affecting Change
18:12 Next Step
22:35 Wrap up

Graphics and bumpers by Free Hive Agency
Photo by Scott Graham on Unsplash https://unsplash.com/photos/person-holding-pencil-near-laptop-computer-5fNmWej4tAA

Episode 4: APIs Decoded: From Basics to Production-Ready

Eric Hendricks — Wed, 03 Jul 2024 06:00:00 -0500

In this interview, Eric the IT Guy Hendricks explores the world of APIs (Application Programming Interfaces) with Budha, a Developer Advocate at Tyk, an API management platform. The discussion covers the fundamentals of APIs, their growing importance in modern applications, the role of API gateways in managing and securing APIs, and considerations for building production-ready APIs.

Connect with me! https://linktr.ee/itguyeric
Budhaditya Bhattacharya: https://www.linkedin.com/in/budha-b/

Tyk: https://tyk.io/

Chapters:
00:00 Stream start
00:50 Welcome
02:34 Budhaditya Bhattacharya
03:04 Application Programming Interface (APIs)
05:51 Learning more about APIs
08:21 Eric's use of APIs
14:36 API Gateways
18:34 Closing thoughts
20:13 Wrap up

Photo by Walkator on Unsplash
https://unsplash.com/photos/text-klMii3cR9iI Special Guest: Budha Bhattacharya.

Episode 3: Unmasking AI: The Drive for Open and Transparent Development

Eric Hendricks — Wed, 19 Jun 2024 06:00:00 -0500

In this interview, the host Eric provides a detailed introduction to his guest JJ Asgar from IBM, who is deeply involved with the open-source AI project called InstructLab. JJ passionately discusses the importance of open and transparent AI development for societal benefit. He explains the distinction between true AI and the current language models, and emphasizes the need for open data and models to counteract biases and ensure ethical AI advancement for the greater good.

Connect with me! https://linktr.ee/itguyeric
JJ Asghar: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jjasghar

Hugging Face - https://huggingface.co/
Instruct Lab on Hugging Face https://huggingface.co/instructlab
IBM’s Granite Model https://huggingface.co/ibm-granite

What is InstructLab? https://www.redhat.com/en/topics/ai/what-is-instructlab

Chapters
00:00 Stream start
00:50 Welcome
01:40 Introduction
03:51 Meet JJ
04:47 What is AI?
08:09 What is an LLM?
09:42 Open Source AI
15:50 Instruct Lab
23:26 The Real Reality
28:05 The IT Community
31:15 Wrap up

Graphics and bumpers by Free Hive Agency
Photo by @steve_j on Unsplash

Episode 2: Get a Return on Your IT Investment

Eric Hendricks — Wed, 05 Jun 2024 06:00:00 -0500

Are you an individual contributor looking to convince your boss its time to buy a product or pursue a new project? How do you structure your proposal? How do you calculate ROI? In this episode, I’ll discuss these concepts and more with JT Perry from VMware!

Connect with me! https://linktr.ee/itguyeric
JT Perry: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jtperry/

DevOpsDays KC 2024 - JT Perry - Platform ROI: Why should your company invest?
https://youtu.be/0IQp5xNidvo?si=50YIWshTqDGEo8c9

Chapters:
00:00 Stream start
00:50 Welcome
04:28 Meet JT Perry
08:15 Identifying a Need
13:45 Building the request
22:05 Return on Investment (ROI)
30:55 CapEx vs OpEx
34:36 Prove Your Assumptions
40:15 Applying ROI to Careers
44:08 Closing thoughts

Graphics and bumpers by Free Hive Agency

Episode 1: Get Into Your Element

Eric Hendricks — Wed, 27 Mar 2024 05:00:00 -0500

In this interview, Eric the IT Guy Hendricks kicks off his new show, "The IT Guy Show," by inviting Karl Abbot, a product manager at Element, to discuss the Matrix protocol, its open-source nature, and its decentralized communications platform.

The Office of the IT Guy is a show published to celebrate the people and talk about the technology that is changing our world! Our mission is to share our love for open source and build a stronger community.

Eric's Website https://itguyeric.com
YouTube Channel https://itguyeric.com/youtube
Sponsor the IT Guy https://patreon.com/itguyeric

Free Hive Agency: https://freehive.com
Element: https://element.io
Matrix: https://matrix.org

Karl Abbott (LinkedIn): https://www.linkedin.com/in/karl-abbott/
Karl on Matrix: @kabbott:matrix.org

XKCD on Standards: https://xkcd.com/927
Get Started with Element: https://itguyeric.com/beginners-guide-how-to-get-started-with-element-matrix/
Finally Time to Ditch Email: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/finally-time-ditch-e-mail-karl-abbott/
Are We Peer2Peer Yet? https://arewep2pyet.com/

Chapters
00:00 Countdown
00:50 Welcome to the Office
03:24 Meet Karl Abbott
17:42 What's different about Matrix
24:44 Matrix Bridges
32:34 Element client
44:22 Location sharing, video, and more
01:00:19 Closing Thoughts

Graphics and bumpers by Free Hive Agency

Episode 0: The Big Announcement

Eric Hendricks — Sun, 17 Mar 2024 20:30:00 -0500

Eric's Website - https://itguyeric.com

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