How did you become familiar with GeneXus?
I came across GeneXus before it was out in the market. I was working at IBM on the launch of a new generation of systems — AS/400 — while at Artech they had already developed the basis for their technology and had to decide on a production environment to make it operational. So I came in from both the business side of it, analyzing the compatibility of both technologies, and the operational side of it, sharing machines and manuals with Gustavo, in order to enable the generation of specific code for the new platform. Since then and for several years, my job description included the operational coordination with Artech.
What are your memories of the I GeneXus Meeting?The need for the first meeting arose from performance issues with the SQL/400 version and the decision to generate programs that ran on the AS/400 native database platform. I have two visions regarding the Meeting: one is very operational-like and the other comes from the perspective of time. Operationally, the Meeting provided the context to solve a specific issue, which was difficult and had to be solved quickly. Meeting was critical to this purpose. In a wider context, I think the decision to have an event where the problem and its solution could be discussed with everyone concerned — distributors and first customers — was the big leap towards the creation of what’s probably the most significant pillar GeneXus has today: its Community.
Over the years, what has it meant to you to be part of the GeneXus Community?On the one hand, I’d stress the room for action that’s generated within certain corporate fields in order to support the development of the domestic industry — Fernando Brum has some very good theories about this. On the other hand, my most personal memories have to do with the human interactions behind each initiative. That is, from the dialog with labs that have no idea where Uruguay is on the map, in the struggle to have GeneXus analyzed and certified, to the execution of unlikely projects — born from a conversation over a cup of coffee — that contributed to the experience and products introduced during the first events.