Barry Key - Galileo (Observer)
The AFP Consortium Q&A series brings a fresh perspective from a new type of member: Observer. See what the Consortium's first Observer member has to say about the experience -- and what he sees for the future of AFP.
Q: What made you want to become an Observer member of the AFP Consortium?
Barry: I’ve worked for several major printing vendors on the marketing side. During that time, I had a few coworkers who attended Consortium meetings, and they would come back and tell me about it. These were useful insights, too, indicating the direction AFP was heading, what functions users might be able to expect coming down the pike. When I left those companies, I still saw the value in those insights, but I no longer had the access. Having that inside track helps me plan, and it helps me help customers plan, too. As an Observer, instead of waiting around for new advancements to be published, I can get ahead of the curve and see what the Consortium wants to do.
Q: What was your first Consortium meeting like? What did you learn? How did you participate?
Barry: I enjoyed my first Consortium meeting – although it was even more technically oriented than I had imagined, if you could believe it! Given my history with AFP, I had a strong grasp on most of the conversations, but as a marketer and educator, some of the deeper backend discussions were more challenging to follow But it was truly interesting to see how deep those members with more technical backgrounds got into certain aspects, how many different things there are to consider with every change. I did meet my goal of learning a bit about what the Consortium is working on and what to expect, and I also learned more about the precision and expertise needed to bring new AFP features and functionalities to go from thought to implementation. Everyone is looking to cross the T’s and dot the I’s to make sure new additions are usable and viable as part of the data stream.
Q: What were 2-3 of your key takeaways from this meeting? Will they affect your outlook for the next meeting, if you attend?
Barry: Attending this meeting really drove home the amount of thought – and collaboration – that goes into continually updating AFP. It was interesting to see different ideas and proposals at different stages of development and discussion. This helped more accurately set my expectations for the next meeting.
Q: What changes, if any, do you think would help make your participation more productive?
Barry: This question is somewhat difficult to answer. I unfortunately caught a cold midway through the week’s meetings, so I sat in the back of the room and tried to avoid infecting anyone else by interacting with them.
With that said, I did participate, especially when members asked for the marketing perspective. It was clear my contributions were well-received, and as a first-time attendee who is not as technical as most in the room, that was appreciated.
Q: How would you say your participation as an Observer benefits you? How does it benefit the Consortium?
Barry: Attending Consortium meetings as an Observer helps my company and me have a clearer picture of the future of AFP, which we can in turn use to better position our efforts and our customers’ operations to be ready for these changes. I think my participation benefits the Consortium because I bring a different skillset to the table in terms of trying to relate what they’re talking about to what a user or customer can understand and use. I’m hoping we could possibly put that interplay to work, perhaps in the form of educational programming in conjunction with the Consortium or some of its members, with webinars, online courses, and so on. Many of today’s engineers – and especially the younger engineers – don’t really know much about AFP, instead focusing on PDF, the current big boy on the block. However, AFP is still an incredibly useful architecture and will be for years to come. I believe that by explaining the power of AFP to a wider audience, we can help AFP truly thrive going forward into the next decade.
Q: What advice would you give to those considering pursuing an Observer membership?
Barry: Understand what the Consortium is: It is a technically oriented, engineering body, working to develop new features and functionality for the architecture. It’s not a marketing meeting or focus group. If you don’t have a very strong technical background, you may find it challenging to participate in all aspects of the meeting. But, with all that said, attending is incredibly useful. It’s fascinating to get insights into not only what to expect from the future of AFP but also into how these enhancements come to be.
Q: Is there anything else you would like to add?
Barry: I’d add that I think the Observer program is a good one. I think having other perspectives will strengthen the Consortium. People like me – less technically minded people who still understand the industry – can provide valuable insight into what features and functionalities best serve their user base. I want to give the Consortium the tools to have a greater understanding of what the market’s really asking for from AFP.
Q: What made you want to become an Observer member of the AFP Consortium?
Barry: I’ve worked for several major printing vendors on the marketing side. During that time, I had a few coworkers who attended Consortium meetings, and they would come back and tell me about it. These were useful insights, too, indicating the direction AFP was heading, what functions users might be able to expect coming down the pike. When I left those companies, I still saw the value in those insights, but I no longer had the access. Having that inside track helps me plan, and it helps me help customers plan, too. As an Observer, instead of waiting around for new advancements to be published, I can get ahead of the curve and see what the Consortium wants to do.
Q: What was your first Consortium meeting like? What did you learn? How did you participate?
Barry: I enjoyed my first Consortium meeting – although it was even more technically oriented than I had imagined, if you could believe it! Given my history with AFP, I had a strong grasp on most of the conversations, but as a marketer and educator, some of the deeper backend discussions were more challenging to follow But it was truly interesting to see how deep those members with more technical backgrounds got into certain aspects, how many different things there are to consider with every change. I did meet my goal of learning a bit about what the Consortium is working on and what to expect, and I also learned more about the precision and expertise needed to bring new AFP features and functionalities to go from thought to implementation. Everyone is looking to cross the T’s and dot the I’s to make sure new additions are usable and viable as part of the data stream.
Q: What were 2-3 of your key takeaways from this meeting? Will they affect your outlook for the next meeting, if you attend?
Barry: Attending this meeting really drove home the amount of thought – and collaboration – that goes into continually updating AFP. It was interesting to see different ideas and proposals at different stages of development and discussion. This helped more accurately set my expectations for the next meeting.
Q: What changes, if any, do you think would help make your participation more productive?
Barry: This question is somewhat difficult to answer. I unfortunately caught a cold midway through the week’s meetings, so I sat in the back of the room and tried to avoid infecting anyone else by interacting with them.
With that said, I did participate, especially when members asked for the marketing perspective. It was clear my contributions were well-received, and as a first-time attendee who is not as technical as most in the room, that was appreciated.
Q: How would you say your participation as an Observer benefits you? How does it benefit the Consortium?
Barry: Attending Consortium meetings as an Observer helps my company and me have a clearer picture of the future of AFP, which we can in turn use to better position our efforts and our customers’ operations to be ready for these changes. I think my participation benefits the Consortium because I bring a different skillset to the table in terms of trying to relate what they’re talking about to what a user or customer can understand and use. I’m hoping we could possibly put that interplay to work, perhaps in the form of educational programming in conjunction with the Consortium or some of its members, with webinars, online courses, and so on. Many of today’s engineers – and especially the younger engineers – don’t really know much about AFP, instead focusing on PDF, the current big boy on the block. However, AFP is still an incredibly useful architecture and will be for years to come. I believe that by explaining the power of AFP to a wider audience, we can help AFP truly thrive going forward into the next decade.
Q: What advice would you give to those considering pursuing an Observer membership?
Barry: Understand what the Consortium is: It is a technically oriented, engineering body, working to develop new features and functionality for the architecture. It’s not a marketing meeting or focus group. If you don’t have a very strong technical background, you may find it challenging to participate in all aspects of the meeting. But, with all that said, attending is incredibly useful. It’s fascinating to get insights into not only what to expect from the future of AFP but also into how these enhancements come to be.
Q: Is there anything else you would like to add?
Barry: I’d add that I think the Observer program is a good one. I think having other perspectives will strengthen the Consortium. People like me – less technically minded people who still understand the industry – can provide valuable insight into what features and functionalities best serve their user base. I want to give the Consortium the tools to have a greater understanding of what the market’s really asking for from AFP.
