Keeping it Simple October 30, 2009
Posted by ccollins in Opinion, Software Engineering.Tags: keepitsimple
add a comment
Moleskine and Pen
George Bernard Shaw is quoted as saying, “The reasonable man adapts himself to the world; the unreasonable one persists in trying to adapt the world to himself. Therefore all progress depends on the unreasonable man.” While we all appreciate progress, I sometimes have to wonder at the way people look at the world.
Decisions, decisions, … October 8, 2009
Posted by ccollins in Software Engineering.Tags: game theory, human nature, loss aversion, psychology
add a comment
It is our choices. . . that show what we are, far more than our abilities.
So we’re beginning a new project, and it has come time to decide what we’re going to build. In many ways, we are spoiled for choice. There are many ways in which the existing software could be improved. Do we pay down some technical debt, include a new feature or support new hardware?
Pre-Merge Formatting October 7, 2009
Posted by ccollins in Eclipse, How To, Java, Languages, Software Engineering.Tags: branching, formatting, handy hints, merging, source control
add a comment
Merge Right
A problem with formatting code on a branch, is when you come to merge it back to the trunk, you end up having to work thorough lots of file changes which are really only formatting changes. The larger your project size, the more work this involves. I was faced with a similar task recently.
While editing file by file, I usually do the Ctrl-A Ctrl-Shift-F combo to ensure the file is formatted according to our corporate standards before saving any edits. Since much of the code I touched on the branch was formatted under a different standard, and I touched a lot of files while introducing log4j logging, the end result was heading for a hairy merge. What I really needed was a way to bulk format both the branch and the trunk versions of the code-base.
Luckily, I realised that that same formatter embedded in Eclipse can be used to bulk format Java source. Here’s how …
Howto: Pause a Shell Script July 20, 2009
Posted by ccollins in How To, Languages, Linux, Open Source, Software Engineering.Tags: bash, c shell, csh, korn shell, ksh, scripting, shell, unix
add a comment
Computer Data Output
File this one under “Another Nifty script-let”. The problem this time is getting a shell script to pause for user input. What I needed was a way to make a script stop, saying “Hit a key to continue..”, wait for the user to hit a key, then continue the script execution. Here’s how:
Risky Business July 15, 2009
Posted by ccollins in Database, Essays, Opinion, Software Engineering.Tags: development, engineering, estimation, project management, risk, risk assessment, software, software project management
3 comments
Project Management Porn
Anecdotally, I had always known that Software Engineers are terrible at estimation. I had never realised exactly how bad we are.
Some rules of thumb which seem to pop up now and again, is to take your engineers best estimates, and double them. Then you’re actually in the ball park.
(more…)
Swaying the Team to Innovate. June 7, 2009
Posted by ccollins in Change Management, Java, Opinion, Software Engineering.Tags: books, Change Management, group dynamics, innovation, loss aversion, Software Engineering, sway
add a comment
Innovation in Corporate America
As I mentioned in Between a Rock and a Hard Place, our team is currently on the horns of a dilemma. I likened our situation to racing on a flat tyre. Do you stop and fix, taking the hit of lost time, or do you make a best effort to keep pace, almost blindly disregarding the situation.
I’ve just finished reading Sway (Brafman & Brafman, 2008). It offers some additional insights into our situation. For example, all my engineering training has been around technology. How computers work, how software works, how to create good software, how software design works, how the software process works, etc. As far as I remember, no time was given to group dynamics. Since most non-trivial software requires a team to collaborate, one would think that taking the group into account would factor into software design and engineering.
(more…)
Installers Matter April 9, 2009
Posted by ccollins in Blogs, Opinion, Software Engineering.Tags: installers, usability, user problems
add a comment
InstallComplete
TG Daily reports that Mozilla have found that 50,000 people fail to install Firefox every day. On one hand, I find this surprising, but on another, not so much.
Between a Rock and a Hard Place April 8, 2009
Posted by ccollins in Blogs, Java, Software Engineering.Tags: refactoring, technical debt
1 comment so far
red car red rim black tire flat
Jeff Atwood makes some good points regarding paying down your technical debt. I certainly agree with many of his sentiments.
The problem is, refactoring takes time. The best option is a little now, a little later. Putting it off for long periods, will eventually come back to bite you.
I’m in the process of being bitten…
Life Lesson: The More You Write, The Less They Read February 27, 2009
Posted by ccollins in How To, Opinion, Software Engineering.add a comment
Fall-2006
Since I realised this, life has become somewhat easier. Being a Software Engineer means that I often have to communicate with people with non-software backgrounds, such as Clients, Management or Marketing. A difficulty we have in communication, are the multi-letter acronyms (MLAs) and other jargon which is prevalent in software, and other technical fields I imagine.
When it comes to documentation, the initial reaction of a reader who doesn’t understand what you’ve written, is to claim that insufficient information was present (whether this is true or not). The typical responce from the Engineer is to provide even more MLA and jargon loaded text. Essentially providing a larger maze of documentation for the reader to get lost in, resulting in a request for more documentation, and the cycle goes on …
The solution to this conundrum is not more documentation, but more consice and succinct documentation. Avoid MLAs and jargon where possible. Where this is not possible do your best to explain it simply. Know your audience, and speak in terms they can understand. Do your best to keep it short and to the point.
Finally if all else fails. Suggest a GIYF.
The Perfect Build Setup – Hudson November 13, 2008
Posted by ccollins in How To, Java, Open Source, Software Engineering, Windows.Tags: agile, continuous integration, developer tools, How To, HowTo, Java, Open Source, Software Engineering
4 comments
Introduction.
I have had a passing acquaintance with Hudson for some time, but it is only recently that I’ve had to get down and dirty with it. For one reason or another, much of the build infrastructure work for my current project has fallen on me. This has allowed me to become much more involved with Hudson on a daily basis, and I have to say I’m loving it.
Hudson is a continuous integration environment. We have configured it to check code out of our subversion repository on a regular basis, run the build scripts, gather the cobertura code coverage, junit test reports, findbugs reports, etc., and have these metrics published and trended over time. I think I can speak for my team when I say, we’ve found it a boon to be able to regularly build our system in a clean environment, and gain such insight into our code quality.
So without further ado, I present instructions to allow you to set your own build system up in 20 minutes or less.
(more…)
