Connotations of "evangelist"

Geertjan Wielenga: There's some debate over whether the word "evangelist" is too political to use. Is it all one and the same to you?

Heather VanCura: The word "evangelist" condenses down to the same thing as the word "advocate." But I think that both can be seen as being politically charged in some way.

"Evangelical" has a religious aspect for some people and "advocacy" can relate to politics. I don't really have a preference. Obviously, both titles are related to being passionate and speaking on behalf of a constituency. I'm passionate about the Java developer community and I definitely see my role as bringing the community in and ensuring that it's heard within the JCP. Both terms would apply to me.

Geertjan Wielenga: Do you see yourself as having been a spin doctor at Sun Microsystems and now at Oracle?

Heather VanCura: No, I don't see it that way. I think the intentions of the JCP were always good. The JCP was a formalization of the process that Sun Microsystems used from the very beginning to bring in that real-world developer feedback, so I think that's always been the intent. My job was more to explain it than to spin it.

The majority of developers don't understand how Java has developed. It's just one of those things that some developers don't care about or see as unnecessary. We tend to see a certain percentage of developers all around the world who do care passionately and know all the intricate details of how Java has developed. The majority of the 12 million Java developers don't fall into this category, however. Part of what I still do, even 18 years later, is explain how Java developed and how people can participate.

There is a need to reach more developers. Much of the time, you can be more effective with that within JUGs themselves versus the conferences.

At the conferences, you will often see the same people coming again and again, but with JUGs, you reach more developers and get a broader base of developers.

Geertjan Wielenga: Oracle is not an uncontroversial organization. How do you deal with a situation where you want to be authentic, but you may not agree with decisions made by your colleagues?

Heather VanCura: I've struggled with many of the same issues as I did at Sun Microsystems. Fortunately, I'm in a position where I'm not charged with representing my company. It's expected that I balance the needs of the community.

Being a developer advocate can be like walking on a tightrope. At Oracle, it helps that I'm in the standards organization, so I can take a broader view. I may not always agree with everything that's being done and, if that's the case, I'll convey it in a more factual way. I'll say, "I didn't make this decision. I'm not saying whether I think it's the right decision or not, but this is the decision, so what can we do to move forwards?"

The acquisition of Sun Microsystems by Oracle has been complete now for eight years, but in the early days, people would ask me all the time what I thought about that acquisition. It was challenging for me, but in the end, it was a good thing for Java.

Oracle becoming the steward of Java was a good thing in terms of reinvigoration. Oracle hadn't done much work with developers in the past, but it was willing to learn.

In some ways, advocacy requires some cognitive dissonance and being flexible mentally. That's often a skill people don't have or they don't feel comfortable with. You have to keep it all in perspective: what your role is, what influence you have, and how to use it to the best advantage for the community.

Geertjan Wielenga: What would the 20-year-old you think of the person you are today and the work that you do?