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The Human Dimension of Software Engineering

The Human Dimension of Software Engineering

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Avoid Design by Committee: Generate Apart, Evaluate Together

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The tech industry thrives on innovation. Building innovative software products requires constant design and architecture of creative solutions. In that context, I am not a fan of design by committee; in fact, I believe that it is more of a disease than a strategy. It afflicts teams with no leadership or unclear leadership; the process is painful, and the results are abysmal.

Usability issues plague software products designed by committee. Such products look like collections of features stuck together without a unifying vision or a unique feeling; they are like onions, built as a series of loosely connected layers. They cannot bring emotions to the user because emotions are the product of individual passion. ... 

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The Software Product “Issue Cycle” Phenomenon

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In the software industry, the average engineer, designer, project manager or product manager stays with the same company for about three years.

This short longevity creates cycles that you can observe if you remain in the same job for at least four or five years. I tend to be loyal to the companies I work for, and my average time in an organization is much longer than the average. That is, I have seen a lot of people coming and going and many cycles go around in a full loop.

Any software that was written more than three years ago is regarded as “legacy stuff,” built by people who are no longer around. When a body of work was created by individuals that nobody remembers, a funny thing happens. That work is automatically considered flawed in some way. At that point, people no longer remember or understand the original vision, the product grew away from it, nobody feels ownership or attachment to it, and a strong desire to throw it away and rebuild it grows slowly but incessantly. ... 

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Only three numbers matter: zero, one, and more-than-one.

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This entry is part 2 of 8 in the series principles

Imagine the following situation

Three friends are thirsty. They decide to drink some water from a nearby fountain.

The first friend scoops water using his hands. He starts drinking without delays and is done before the others have started. However, it takes him a while, and the process is messy. When he is done he is all wet and his hands are freezing.

The second one goes to buy one single sheet of paper, then he folds it into a paper cup. It takes a while to do it right, but when he is done he fills it with water and drinks. In the end he is dry, his hands are warm, but the cup is soaked and ruined. ... 

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