August 2021 Summaries

In 2018, Observe recognized the challenges associated with fragmented data in modern, stateless applications that rely on microservices, leading them to explore the potential of OpenTracing for improved observability. Despite initial enthusiasm, they found limited adoption of distributed tracing libraries among customers, as most companies prioritized new features over implementing tracing due to the time investment required. To address customer dissatisfaction with existing logging and metrics tools, Observe focused on creating a system that treats all telemetry data as events, allowing seamless movement between logs and metrics while retaining context. By transforming incoming data into understandable formats called Resources, Observe provides real-time insights without requiring customers to completely overhaul their logging systems. Although distributed tracing remains an important future goal, the company currently emphasizes enhancing observability through dynamic data structuring and incremental improvements, aligning with the needs of most engineering teams that start their observability journey with logs and metrics.

Observe has undergone significant updates to enhance user navigation and workflow, making it more intuitive and user-friendly. The removal of its proprietary tab management in favor of modern browser capabilities has streamlined the user experience, allowing for right-click navigation and more predictable back button functionality. The introduction of the "Explore" page consolidates datasets, worksheets, and resources with advanced filtering and grouping options, facilitating easier access to logical groupings such as Kubernetes or AWS content. New features like Bookmarks and improved Notifications and Quick Search functions have been added to organize workspaces and enhance search efficiency, while auto-refresh options for time pickers and seamless transitions between boards and worksheets improve troubleshooting workflows. Additionally, the platform now tracks recently used time ranges and has enabled Y-axis by default on visualization cards. These updates, driven by user feedback, aim to deliver a more efficient and engaging experience for Observe users.

Complete AWS observability involves collecting data from any AWS service or workload, regardless of format or storage location, and integrating this data with external sources to form a comprehensive view of the cloud environment. The process requires correlating multiple data sources to understand the overall performance and relationships between services, as well as tracking historical states to analyze past performance trends. Effective observability extends beyond mere monitoring to involve analytics that help determine causation and impact, necessitating tools that can collectively analyze data while also allowing detailed examination of individual services. Additionally, data ingestion should be straightforward and efficient, enabling a focus on data analysis rather than collection.