Progressive Development

Zany Adventures in Software Engineering with Maven and Motley

Motley says: “Agile doesn't change testing - developers can just throw code 'over the wall' to the test team”

Summary Motley: Developers should just throw the completed code "over the wall" to the test team...

Author: James Waletzky Date: 04/12/2011

Motley says: “Just build the features, and they will come. Who needs a goal?”

Summary Motley: A successful development iteration does not need a goal. Just deliver some features...

Author: James Waletzky Date: 03/01/2011

Motley says: “Story points? Is that the new name for sports highlights?”

Summary   Motley: Story points provide no value over using plain units of time for estimates....

Author: James Waletzky Date: 10/31/2010

Motley says: “Kinect is where he’s at”

Motley: Man, I have not seen that James guy around in months. I think he must have left us. Maven:...

Author: James Waletzky Date: 06/14/2010

Motley says: “To prepare for an interview, just make sure you can code on a whiteboard (Part 2)”

Summary [This entry is a follow-up to "To prepare for an interview, just make sure you can code on a...

Author: James Waletzky Date: 10/29/2009

Motley says: "Where has James been hiding?"

Motley: Where has that lazy piece of work, James, been hiding? Maven: I was just wondering that...

Author: James Waletzky Date: 07/14/2009

Motley says: “Slow down to go fast? Do I look like a tortoise?”

Summary Motley: There is no harm shortcutting a few steps of development to meet a deadline. Some...

Author: James Waletzky Date: 04/22/2009

Motley says: “"Vertical Slices"? Sounds like something you do to salami”

Summary Motley: Build an application according to architectural layers, from the bottom-up. Maven:...

Author: James Waletzky Date: 03/27/2009

Maven and Motley have Faces!

Thanks to the brilliant work of a coworker and friend, Fred Chao, Maven and Motley now have faces!...

Author: James Waletzky Date: 02/23/2009

Point for Maven - Wideband Delphi Estimation works!

Summary Motley: I admit it - Wideband Delphi works! It helped us generate fairly accurate estimates...

Author: James Waletzky Date: 01/06/2009

Happy New Year from Maven and Motley!

Hello all, Happy New Year! Hope you had an enjoyable and restful holiday season with your friends...

Author: James Waletzky Date: 01/04/2009

Maven and Motley on hiatus through November

Hello faithful readers! I just wanted to say that Maven and Motley will be on hiatus through the...

Author: James Waletzky Date: 10/17/2008

Motley says: "Developing international software is really, really hard. We need a brand new version."

Summary Motley: Developing international software is really, really hard. We need brand new binaries...

Author: James Waletzky Date: 09/16/2008

Motley says: "I must conform to the wishes of the management team, even if they are wrong"

Summary Motley: I must conform to the wishes of the management team, even if they are wrong. I need...

Author: James Waletzky Date: 09/03/2008

Motley says: "James is slacking off, yet again"

Motley: James, that slacker, is not in the office again. That guy spends so much time outside of...

Author: James Waletzky Date: 08/05/2008

Motley says: "Milestones are useless for agile development"

Summary Motley: Milestones are useless for agile development. Our feature team can ship at the end...

Author: James Waletzky Date: 06/24/2008

Progressive Development Moving to Biweekly Publication

Hello faithful readers! A small announcement: I have decided that with the summer months approaching...

Author: James Waletzky Date: 05/29/2008

Motley says: "Spend less time in OneNote and more time in Visual Studio"

Summary Motley: OneNote is just like Microsoft Word, and is not a place where a developer should be...

Author: James Waletzky Date: 05/20/2008

Motley says: "Too many assertions make debugging very annoying!"

Summary Motley: Too many assertions make debugging very annoying! Maven: Lots of assertions are...

Author: James Waletzky Date: 05/13/2008

No Blog Entry This Week (05/06/2008)

Unfortunately, life got in the way this week and I didn't have time to put together a decent blog...

Author: James Waletzky Date: 05/06/2008

Motley says: "Management suffers from the "Crystal Ball Syndrome" when it comes to project planning"

Summary Motley: Management wants clear predictability of all the features we will be delivering in a...

Author: James Waletzky Date: 04/29/2008

Motley says: "The management team refuses to change. I give up."

Summary Motley: I cannot get management to accept our "new" way of executing. They are stuck in...

Author: James Waletzky Date: 04/22/2008

Maven and Motley slacked off this week (3/25/2008)

Unfortunately, work, a small vacation, and personal stuff (but mostly work) got the better of me...

Author: James Waletzky Date: 03/25/2008

Maven and Motley say: "Happy Anniversary Progressive Development!"

Maven: Motley, I just wanted to wish you a Happy Anniversary! Motley: In case you haven't noticed, I...

Author: James Waletzky Date: 03/18/2008

Motley says: "Affinity exercises? How do I work that sideways "8" into brainstorming?"

Summary Motley: Affinity exercises? How do I work that sideways "8" into design brainstorming?...

Author: James Waletzky Date: 03/11/2008

Motley says: "If computers can efficiently multi-task, so can I!"

Summary Motley: I ultimately finish my tasks sooner by doing multiple things at once. If Microsoft...

Author: James Waletzky Date: 02/26/2008

Motley says: "What are we burning down? Your house?" (Scrum Part V)

Summary Motley: A burndown chart? What are we burning down? Your house? Maven: Track time remaining...

Author: James Waletzky Date: 02/19/2008

Motley says: "Reflection is for mirrors" (Scrum Part IV)

Summary Motley: Reflection is for mirrors. We just finished a sprint. Why open up old wounds? Maven:...

Author: James Waletzky Date: 02/12/2008

Motley says: "The Daily Scrum meeting is way too much overhead" (Scrum Part III)

Summary Motley: We don't need the daily meeting. Very few people got any value out of them, and...

Author: James Waletzky Date: 02/05/2008

Maven says: "I need a vacation"; Motley says: "Slacker"

Maven: You know what, Mot? I'm taking a vacation. It's been a great year, but I need a bit of time...

Author: James Waletzky Date: 12/25/2007

Motley says: "Human Performance Technology? I guess I better brush up on my robotics." (HPT Part 3)

Summary Motley: Training is the best solution to most problems. If a developer doesn't know how to...

Author: James Waletzky Date: 12/18/2007

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