The list of reasons folks want to become a manager is varied. I think it looks like this: I want to have more influence over product development. I wanted to try something new and I get along with people. I’m never going to be a great programmer, but I sure know what programmers are talking… more
… in my own house. And a big version.
There’s an article somewhere in my head which dissects the intense knee jerk reaction a lot folks have regarding managers. The question is, “Why do so many of us automatically assume that our managers are boobs?” The follow-on question is, “Even if we don’t think our managers are not boobs, why do we constantly ridicule… more
Morning. I wanted to go on the record and think out loud regarding the Google + Sun announcement which is is landing in about 41 minutes… so, I gotta keep this brief. I see two scenarios here both of which don’t make much initial sense. I’m very much looking forward to being proven wrong. Scenario… more
There’s a never ending battle going on in your software development team right now. It’s the battle between the Organic Engineers and the Mechanical Engineers and it sounds like this: Organics: “Software is art!” Mechanics: “Software is logic! It’s fact! And it’s a lot of work.” Organics: “You’re right! It’s work but it’s artful work.”… more
At the first whisper of school starting, Californians lose their fucking minds during the morning commute. What was a leisurely 20 minute commute to Cupertino turns into an hour of frustration. It’s not just that a large demographic of people are suddenly on the same schedule, it’s that they’re panicking because they’re late for work.… more
Lunch at Don Giovanni’s with Phillip. He’s amped. We haven’t even seen our waiter and he’s already cleared the table and is scribbling furiously on the white paper table cloth. “See, we needed to speed up our release cycle which is, of course, insane, but we figured out a way! We call it Train releases.… more
Back in my Netscape days, I was fuming that AOL had actually stumbled upon a bright idea in the guise of Instant Messaging. They only furthered my frustration by shoving their bright idea into my beloved Netscape Communicator. The question was, “How can a company whose target market are people who type with one finger… more
California housing prices blow, our Governor has been taking it on his industrial-sized chin, and there’s a good chance that we’ve fucked up the planet permanently. Still, the early morning view from the new house does not suck… 20 minute commute to the Silicon Valley or 15 minutes to the beach. Can’t really beat California.… more
Pet peeve — a name which do a poor job of describing an idea. A good name’s job is to elegantly wrap an idea in a single word because a name is going to travel. It’s going to leave one person’s mouth and go to another… and another… and another. Each time the name jumps… more