July 16, 2005
J & R Productivity Tips
In an effort to discover the most productive methods of work, I asked every consultant at J&R Consulting, Inc. the same question, "What productivity habits do you use regularly?"
Posted by Jeff Vannest at 11:11 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)
June 20, 2005
Why Structure?
Did you know that all J&R consultants write PL/SQL code identically? In fact, new employees are told to mimic the style of any other senior consultant. I remember once asking a java developer from another company to use a specific standard for object and variable nomenclature. You would have thought I asked him to slap his mother. But this article isn’t just about coding, it’s about implementing structure in general....
Posted by Jeff Vannest at 12:08 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)
May 18, 2005
Where Does Quality Come From? (The Stunning Conclusion Continued)
Over the past couple of weeks, I have been building a case for the source of quality. The first in this series stated, "I am the only standard of quality." I later qualified that the individual (any individual, not just me), is the source of quality, and that the world is broken down into things (subjects) and ideals (archetypes). In the second part of this conclusion, I will explain my own thoughts on how individuals use things and...
Posted by Jeff Vannest at 02:37 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack (1)
May 15, 2005
Where Does Quality Come From? (The Stunning Conclusion)
I finished last week's article with these words, "Having fully shown that I am the only standard of quality, read next week's stunning conclusion." With words such as those, I'm certain you expect me to start this article with some kind of recantation. You're wrong. I still maintain that I am the only standard of quality, but not in the way you might think because I also maintain that you are the only standard of quality. I will explain....
Posted by Jeff Vannest at 12:15 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)
May 12, 2005
Where Does Quality Come From? (A Preposterous Introduction)
So, I was writing this software design specification today and thinking to myself, "This is a really great design." I got all goose-fleshy, patted myself on the back, and thought of all the ways that my document showed quality. It...uh... It has…uh… I had to face the truth: I don't know why I think this document is any good, I just do.
Posted by Jeff Vannest at 08:38 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)
April 25, 2005
Tools and Methodology
I had an interesting discussion with John about tools and methodology. The discussion centered on the question, "Does the methodology choose the tool, or can a tool choose the methodology?" I had never seriously considered this question, but my gut reaction was that tools - software or hardware - should have some bearing on methodology. I will take this time to...
Posted by Jeff Vannest at 08:44 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)
March 25, 2005
Failure, Failure, Burning Bright
Every successful consultant has to sit and wonder when that great, next failure will occur. You know the one where you tell a customer you can do this one thing only to find you can't deliver because the technology isn't ready, resources didn't pan out, or the vision was too grand to fit into the timeline or budget. See, great consultants are like Rock Stars; they get paid handsomely to put themselves out for everyone to see, then bear the...
Posted by Jeff Vannest at 03:41 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)
