SOFTware is HARD

I've been using Fiddler ( http://www.fiddler2.com/ ) for sometime now. It attaches to the web browser and intercepts browser requests and reponses. Fiddler is very useful for inspecting and debugging HTTP roundtrips. Recently, I found something to supplement Fiddler. Stresstimlus (( http://stresstimulus.stimulustechnology.com/ ) is useful for HTTP load testing together with Fiddler.

  Skills & Qualities of a Good Manager A role model A manager of oneself & awareness of oneself A learner A change agent A visionary Is aware of current situation/ reality Is ethical & holds values A systemic thinker A good communicator A positive thinker Is enthusiastic Is real   Purpose of a Manager Coach the team to bring them to becoming self-sufficient by supporting & guiding them Instil pride & passion in their work Eliminate impediments Facilitate work progress Negotiate resources Enable meeting goals   Change A manager views change as a positive force & makes it work to one’s advantage.   Communication Instead of asking why something happened, ask what happened (to produce the results)   Attributes of a Learner Enthusiastic Interested Exploring Experimenting Having fun Wanting to learn more   True Attention Listen to words Listen to meaning behind words, hesitations, emphases Watch bo...

A mindmap review of this book. Flash version can be found here

A mindmap review of this book. Flash version can be found here

Innovation Traps Project-related Overspending too soon Prioritising “can we” over “should we” Pursuing unattainable perfection Analysis paralysis Using traditional market-forecasting tools Fixating on core competencies Company-related Unbalanced innovation portfolio (e.g. mostly low-risk, low-hanging) Too many lingering projects that should have been “killed” Negative influence of the core business Use wrong decision-making criteria Time is Scarce for Innovation Core operations take up too much time Not setting up time for innovation guarantees it won’t happen Can we “take some time away from our core operations and it won’t suffer” but “what would happen if we didn’t set aside time for innovation?” Choices 1) should staff dedicate a portion of their time to innovate or 2) should a small group of people focus all their time on innovation? Choice is 2) Principles of Disruptive Innovation Overshooting creates conditions for disruption – “good enough” is great! Disruption com...

I chanced upon an article on agile estimation that I read with interest in InfoQ. Many of the techniques are not new with the exception of the WAG generator. I find such estimation techniques to be very useful even if the subject matter is not software-related. Check out InfoQ: Estimation Toolkit

Software is hard by Honza