To gauge the growth of the Docker software containerization platform’s popularity in the development community, look at attendance to the three DockerCon events that have happened so far. The first event two years ago hosted 200 attendees. The second event drew a crowd of 2,000. This year, 4,100 people attended DockerCon. Docker, Inc. has successfully democratized containers and opened up access to development, and the ball just keeps rolling forward. Where is it all taking us?

The takeaway to this year’s event is that, “DevOps is now mainstream,” said John Furrier (@furrier), cohost of theCUBE, from the SiliconANGLE Media team. He said that this is going to change the game for operations, conferring a huge win on some and “a world of hurt” on others who are not well outfitted to adapt.

Stealing the VMware playbook

Many have noted that Docker seems to be taking plays from the VMware, Inc. book, but Brian Gracely (@bgracely), theCUBE cohost, said there is one important difference between the two companies. “VMware on day one was, ‘I will save you money.'” However, he said, “In Docker’s case, you’ve got to change. And change takes time. Change costs money. It’s not as simple a value proposition.”

Surf’s up

The hosts agreed that the mainstreaming of DevOps will cause a tsunami of application development. Furrier went as far as to say the application boom will be “unprecedented” in the history of IT.

The hosts noted that Docker will be an easy choice for those developing in the cloud because of its agnostic model. “The trend with Docker is, ‘Hey, put your stuff wherever you want,'” said Furrier.

Stay tuned for the full video interview, and be sure to check out more of SiliconANGLE and theCUBE’s coverage of the DockerCon 2016. Plus, join in on the conversation by CrowdChatting live with theCUBE hosts.

Photo by SiliconANGLE