July 2009

Quick Code Reviews

July 30, 2009

D’Arcy has a good take about how fast you can do code reviews. As he himself says, the example is a bit contrived, but the point remains: You don’t have to spend a lot of time to do code reviews. Many mistakes can be identified within a few seconds of looking at the code. If […]

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The Problem with the Software Craftsmanship Concept

July 23, 2009

The idea of software craftsmanship is very appealing. It elevates the art of programming and sends a message that programming is a lifelong dedication to improving one’s skill and aspiring towards perfection. All that is good and noble about programming is embodied in the term “software craftsmanship”. But the history behind the term “craftsmanship” troubles […]

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Tom DeMarco on Software Engineering

July 19, 2009

Tom DeMarco has written a thoughtful and introspective article on software engineering (PDF). In that, he questions some of his early work on metrics, wondering if it is still relevant. He suggests that there was too much focus on time and budget deadlines when the more important goal should have been making great software. strict […]

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Understand Free Software First

July 18, 2009

It is now official that WordPress themes are GPL, which creates problems for the business models of the design companies which were offering “premium” themes. A few weeks before this happened, a few premium theme developers such as Revolution decided to release their themes under the GPL and Alex King called them on it to […]

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Laptop Hunting

July 16, 2009

I was amused to read the story of how somebody from Apple wanted Microsoft to stop the Laptop Hunter ads. Because last week, I was with my friend providing moral support while he was hunting for a laptop at BestBuy. Yes, he bought a Windows laptop, though not for cost — he needed a PC […]

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Stretching Software Development Skills

July 15, 2009

While conducting interviews, I keep running into programmers who seem to be very specialized, but know little outside that zone, even if that knowledge is very related to their work. That is, they know a programming language and framework and they can program all day in that, but they are not very knowledgeable in databases, […]

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Google as Pirates?

July 12, 2009

Bruce Eckel, one of my favorite book authors, has a thinly disguised anti-Microsoft screed titled “The Cathedral and the Pirate” with Google Chrome OS used as a bludgeon. Apparently, Microsoft is a cathedral and Google is the pirate which can run rings around the cathedral — oops, mixed metaphor — galleons. Eckel also compares Microsoft […]

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Why Google Chrome OS is Overrated

July 11, 2009

Farhad Manjoo of Slate takes down the upcoming Google Chrome OS: But here’s the crucial sticking point for Chrome: Because it’s based on a Web browser, every app developed for Chrome will also run perfectly on Windows or the Mac. By definition, then, Microsoft and Apple machines will always be able to do more than […]

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Forgotten Products

July 10, 2009

I was reading Ryan’s post on WolframAlpha when I realized that this was the first time in weeks that I have thought about WolframAlpha. There was a big burst of PR during its release  — the mainstream media, the technology blogs and so on. After that, I never heard anything about it. Of course, the […]

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The Non-Delegation Trap

July 9, 2009

A project operates most efficiently when the division of labor within the project is done effectively. In simple terms, this means Every person works on tasks that will maximize the benefit to the team. Even if they are good at other tasks, they focus on tasks that bring the greatest value. They delegate those other […]

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