Why software patents are a joke, literally
August 18th, 2010It’s a well known fact that most individual software developers detest software patents. Maybe detest isn’t a strong enough word; how about loathe, dread, hate, despise, resent, and abhor? You get the picture. We dislike them almost as much as weekly status reports, deadlines, and conference calls.
So left on our own, most programmers won’t write patents. This was the situation in Sun’s early history, according to one of its most famous former employees, James Gosling. Sun engineers were asked to write as many patents as they could.
Ed Burnette
http://www.zdnet.com/blog/burnette/why-software-patents-are-a-joke-literally/2039
201008 information architecture software patentsSix Behaviors to Consider for an Agile Team
August 17th, 2010Are agile team members different from people on other teams? Yes and no. Successful agile team members exhibit certain behaviors more often than non-agile project team members, because agile requires these behaviors to create a successful team and product. If you’ve been tasked with creating an agile team, what qualities should you look for? Below are six key behaviors people on successful agile teams exhibit.
Johanna Rothman
http://www.stickyminds.com/sitewide.asp?Function=edetail&ObjectType=COL&ObjectId=16277&tth=DYN&tt=siteemail&iDyn=2
201008 agile peopleDIY developer tools to boost apps market
August 17th, 2010Building mobile apps is typically perceived to be difficult and tedious, and a skill that requires programming knowledge. Market players, however, are introducing new tools to enable anyone to exercise their creativity toward improving smartphone usability.
Google’s App Inventor for Android, for instance, aims to ease the barrier of entry into app development. Currently in beta, the developer tool is designed for people with little or no computer programming experience and knowledge.
Tyler Thia
http://www.zdnetasia.com/diy-developer-tools-to-boost-apps-market-62201816.htm
The Impact of Test Automation on Development
August 17th, 2010It seems obvious that automation will affect the test organization. Less obvious—but no less real—is that it will also affect the development organization. In fact, when you choose to automate the testing for an application, your relationship with development changes completely.
Automated test tools have to interact with the software at a deeper level, thus exposing the inner workings of the code and perhaps uncovering problems that prevent or complicate automation. If you’re not careful, developers might think you have suddenly transformed into an interfering busybody who is sticking your nose into their business.
Linda Hayes
http://www.stickyminds.com/sitewide.asp?Function=edetail&ObjectType=COL&ObjectId=16296&tth=DYN&tt=siteemail&iDyn=2
201008 testingTen rules for the design of successful software
August 17th, 2010Some software designers treat their users like they are all Homer Simpson. But if that is how you see your customers, you have a big problem. Do not treat them like Homer Simpson, treat them like intelligent people. Design for who your customers are, not who you want them to be.
In this talk, the author of ‘The Design of Everyday Things’ addresses ten rules for the design of succesful software products. (And, on the side, he explains why some people think the ‘up’ button should mean ‘next slide’ and others are equally convinced that it should be the ‘down’ button and why both opinions are correct.)
Don Norman
http://blip.tv/file/3346703
201008 psychology user interfaceCMMI Representations: Past and Future
August 17th, 2010CMMI Version 1.3 models will be released in November 2010. This latest release of CMMI models includes changes to the high maturity material and other improvements that will better meet the needs of organizations that use CMMI models.
The decision to improve the coverage of high maturity was central to the Version 1.3 update. The decision to eliminate the high capability goal structure adds value for process improvement more than simply maintaining the legacy approach. Some will find these changes challenging; however, most will see that the advantages of a multi-constellation environment outweigh the risks that come with any change.
Mike Phillips
http://www.sei.cmu.edu/newsitems/CMMI_focus_073010.cfm
201008 cmmiFive Second Test
August 17th, 2010Landing page optimization for your mocks and wireframes.
Fivesecondtest helps you fine tune your landing pages and calls to action by analyzing the most prominent elements of your design. It presents your mock up to a group of randomly chosen visitors who give feedback on what they see, recognise or remember.
http://fivesecondtest.com/
201008 test user interfaceWhat is HTML 5
August 17th, 2010Contributing to Open Source Projects
August 17th, 2010Prior to joining Google I always joked that Google was the black hole that swallowed up open source programmers. I’d see awesome, productive hackers join Google and then hear little to nothing from them afterwards. When I joined I decided I’d solve this mystery and post about it but it’s been over 2.5 years and I’ve been busy and somewhat forgot. Fortunately a discussion at work last week reminded me of this again, and a bunch of us got to talking about the phenomenon. Here are the main reasons for open source programmers sometimes disappearing.
Brad Fitzpatrick
http://brad.livejournal.com/2409049.html
201008 development process open sourceA DSL in 5 Languages
August 17th, 2010We provide client libraries in 5 programming languages: Ruby, Python, PHP, C# and Java. Maintaining 5 libraries means writing essentially the same functionality in 5 languages. In many cases this just means differences in syntax. However, some features are complicated enough to warrant a slightly different approach in each library.
One example is transaction searching. Because searching can be a bit complex, we decided to create a Domain Specific Language (DSL) in each of the five libraries. This article explains all five of them.
Bryan Johnson, Dan Manges
http://www.braintreepaymentsolutions.com/devblog/a-dsl-in-5-languages
201008 c# java php python rubyArs Magna: the revolution is overdue
August 11th, 2010The past sixty years have seen numerous “revolutions” in the realm of software development: ‘structured,’ ‘CAD,’ ‘objects,’ ‘SOA,’ and most recently, ‘Agile.” Despite these advances, our ability to successfully complete software projects has improved only marginally. The time for a real revolution is overdue, and this essay introduces and outlines a direction that such a revolution might take - the establishment of a Great Art (Ars Magna).
Dave West
http://www.infoq.com/articles/arsMagna-agile-essay
201008 software developmentStashboard: The open source status dashboard
July 21st, 2010Stashboard is a status dashboard for APIs and software services. It’s similar to the Amazon AWS Status Page or the Google Apps Status Page. Stashboard is designed to provide a generic status dashboard for any hosted service or API. The code can be downloaded, customized, and run on any Google App Engine account.
201008 dashboard statusMetadata
July 19th, 2010Bedrijven die zichzelf respecteren, hebben hun metadata op orde. Metadata vormen immers het hart van de onderneming. Het zijn de kernentiteiten van een onderneming, het DNA zo u wilt. Wie daar onzorgvuldig mee omgaat, komt in de problemen. In dit themanummer een aanzet tot het op orde brengen van uw datamodel plus een aantal voorbeelden vanuit de praktijk.
201007 metadataHave you met Apache Pivot?
July 19th, 2010The all-volunteer Apache Software Foundation (ASF) develops, stewards, and incubates nearly 150 Open Source projects and initiatives, many of which power mission-critical applications in financial services, aerospace, publishing, government, healthcare, research, infrastructure, and more. Did you know that 50% of the Top 10 downloaded Open Source products are Apache projects? Did you know that most Enterprise Java solutions are built using Apache? We are pleased to showcase Apache Pivot, the full-featured, professional-grade Java development platform for Rich Internet Applications (RIAs).
https://blogs.apache.org/foundation/entry/the_asf_asks_have_you
201007 development rich internet applications web application web applications