Docker and containers are about software

Over the next year I will create several courses about containers and Docker. I’m wrapping up my first course and I wanted to share some of the analogies I used.

  • Docker simplifies using software. If you already understand software then you already understand Docker.
  • When you hear container think process or application.
  • When you hear image think of the file you download to install software.

I find it helpful to relate traditional software management to Docker and containers:

  • Find software = Docker Hub
  • Download software = Pull an image
  • Install software = Create a container (from a downloaded image)
  • Start software = Start the container
  • Stop software = Stop the container
  • Uninstall software = Destroy the container

Last, thinking about Docker in terms of virtualization is often counter-productive. Especially if it’s the first comparison you try to make. Focus instead on the software aspect. Then, learn about the isolation. When you conquer all of that the virtualization perspective will be plain as day. And then stop trying to explain Docker to neophytes in terms of virtualization.