Thursday, 11 August 2011
Monday, 10 May 2010
The importance of estimating in Scrum
I often hear business managers reject agile processes because they cannot accept vague estimates. These same managers are usually surprised to learn that agile estimation is far more accurate and disciplined than traditional methods.
Tuesday, 29 December 2009
Time for Linux users to get a life
I was bored this morning and spent some time idly browsing around slashdot. In amongst the usual collection of "Microsoft is Evil" posts I stumbled across this gem:
Many distros are ready for this and are intuitive, stable and easy for non technical users to sink their teeth into. The biggest shortcoming is documentation, or lack thereof. This is widely acknowledged in the community and there are initiatives to improve this.
There is still a widespread belief that Linux is for geeks and that these geeks won't help mere mortals. And while that belief persists Windows will continue to be the dominant desktop OS. The average user does not care how stuff works and does not need to; in the same way that a driver does not need to understand how an internal combustion engine works.
Like many others I use both Google and community forums as a resource. Unfortunately many Linux users perpetuate the stereotype. Comments like "Google is your friend", "this is documented elsewhere" or "go and try on your own for a few days before asking on here" are simply not helpful and will not convince new users that this is the way to go. I have happily dropped several open source projects for this very reason (and some of these were very good products).
As an IT pro I am happy to do the research, but if the information is not easily found I am simply not prepared to spend days trying to figure out simple problems. I can go onto a motorcycle forum and find 100 threads on recommended Tyre pressures. Not 100 posts saying that this has already been discussed.
Fortunately there are helpful Linux users out there and not all communities are made up of geek cliques - but for the rest of you:
You really can't criticize others for their choice of OS if you won't help them understand yours. A computer is just a tool for doing a job. Most modern operating systems are equipped to meet the needs of the average user. Its not really surprising they choose the one where other users don't treat them like fools.
Those who fear the CLI shouldn't even own a freaking computer. Crybabies and whiners. "Oh, I can't do ANYTHING, unless there is a pretty picture for it!!"Well I'm a Linux user and administrator. I personally happen to believe that the Linux desktop is ready for prime time. I am also an advocate of open source software and would love to see Linux more widely adopted.
Sit your sorry ass down with the manual for MSDOS 5, 6, or 6.22 and LEARN the basics of computing. Then, pick up another basic - it's called BASIC. From there, you can branch out to some scripting languages.
Run a machine for 6 months with absolutely NO GUI installed - then you might be competent to talk about how good, how bad, or how inconvenient any part of a computer might be. Including the CLI.
You probably can't operate a standard shift automobile, or roll a window down unless it is electrically powered.
Mindless putz.
How do you avoid putting your bra on backwards?
Many distros are ready for this and are intuitive, stable and easy for non technical users to sink their teeth into. The biggest shortcoming is documentation, or lack thereof. This is widely acknowledged in the community and there are initiatives to improve this.
There is still a widespread belief that Linux is for geeks and that these geeks won't help mere mortals. And while that belief persists Windows will continue to be the dominant desktop OS. The average user does not care how stuff works and does not need to; in the same way that a driver does not need to understand how an internal combustion engine works.
Like many others I use both Google and community forums as a resource. Unfortunately many Linux users perpetuate the stereotype. Comments like "Google is your friend", "this is documented elsewhere" or "go and try on your own for a few days before asking on here" are simply not helpful and will not convince new users that this is the way to go. I have happily dropped several open source projects for this very reason (and some of these were very good products).
As an IT pro I am happy to do the research, but if the information is not easily found I am simply not prepared to spend days trying to figure out simple problems. I can go onto a motorcycle forum and find 100 threads on recommended Tyre pressures. Not 100 posts saying that this has already been discussed.
Fortunately there are helpful Linux users out there and not all communities are made up of geek cliques - but for the rest of you:
You really can't criticize others for their choice of OS if you won't help them understand yours. A computer is just a tool for doing a job. Most modern operating systems are equipped to meet the needs of the average user. Its not really surprising they choose the one where other users don't treat them like fools.
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