Lean/Agile production techniques applied to Software development
Mary Poppendiek says if you can't make a desicion about what technology to use then try them all! and dont make irreversible decisions until the last possible moment. This lecture comes from a deep understanding of project management. Essential viewing before you commit to the New Year's resolutions
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-5105910452864283694
Thanks Charles, I finally got to watching this video. I knew it would be interesting and it sure was.
As I watched it, all I could do was think about OOP and how it addresses the issues so well.
Having a unit that works, is consistent, you can make a change to it and it won't break code down the line.
I am having a big hummmmmm moment now as I think about this.
I think it makes the argument for those of us who find the quiet attitude at PowerBASIC as not being a good model.
They named it nice "no vaporware", but that doesn't really address the issue.
I really like Eros's approach with thinBasic and he seems to get what this video is about!
So many interesting and valuable points are made in this video. Involving clients closely in every stage of the development process is one of them.
I also like the idea of making code testability the priority. The code itself is transient, and will almost certainly get rewritten several times, as the project evolves. But a regime of frequent automated testing catches errors very rapidly - they don't get buried in the code so it makes them easy to trace.
Rewriting code is encouraged. Adding new features will often necessitate a rewrite to maintain clarity and efficiency. Just as specifications evolve during the course of a project, you can't expect to write code that is future-proof.