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Corporate Gaming Is Good For Business
The Economist is running a story about how gaming is on the rise in corporate environments, and how games are also becoming a popular tool for advertising. From internally developed games to commercial offerings to simply creating a framework in which employees can interact, game-based competitions and community building are leading to increased productivity, even for Fortune 500 companies. Quoting:
"Take Microsoft's own experience. Before it releases a new version of its Windows operating system, it asks staff to help debug the software by installing and running the system. In the past, project managers had to spend a great deal of time and effort persuading busy Microsoftees to help them with this boring task. So for Windows Vista, the system's latest incarnation, Microsoft created a game that awarded points for bug-testing and prizes such as wristbands for achieving certain goals. Participation quadrupled."
Reminds me of this: http://thedailywtf.com/Articles/The-Defect-Black-Market.aspx
"You're older than you've ever been, and now you're even older."
Back when I was fresh out of college (graduated in 1978), I found myself constantly having to learn new operating systems (mostly mainframe and minicomputer), new editors, new compilers (and languages), and so on. Heck, in my first year out of college, while at General Dynamics/WDSC, I worked on four different computers (CDC mainframe, Perkin-Elmer minicomputers, a Harris hybrid analog/digital computer, and some other mini-computer that I can't remember at the moment -- other than that I could tell what stage the compilie/link process was in by the noise the hard drive [5 MB and occupying a box the size of a 2-drawer file cabinet] was making).
So, one of my 'coming-up-to-speed' techniques was to write a program that interested me. In this case, I wrote a program that would randomly roll up and print out D&D monsters and NPCs, complete with stats. By the time I had that program working, I pretty much knew how to use the system and how to do software development on it. I think I still have some of those printouts in my files at home. ..bruce..
Bruce F. Webster (brucefwebster.com)
The same thing happens on Slashdot, if you want the points then you better make sure your post is Pro-Linux and GPL. Trying to show that Windows may be better in some circumstances or the GPL as many flaws and in some ways it contradicts its core values will not lead to points. Thus discouraged and reducing objectivity in an open forum.
Yeah, but here it's sometimes really satisfying to be modded Troll or Flamebait. I've got some unpopular opinions here that I fly proudly and it doesn't bother me at all to smell the karma burn (I'm one of those people that think that music/movie/software piracy should remain illegal and am convinced that pirates hurt the industries - Gasp!)
It's actually kind of the same here at work. We often have crossword puzzles or word hunts that we can do in hopes of some cheesy prize. Mine get shredded - If I'm at work and wasting time, I'll be posting here or reading the news - Otherwise I'll be working. The same with the safety-awareness games and similar - Those are what get me in trouble. Just because I don't want to waste time playing safety-Pictionary doesn't mean I'm not committed to safety, it just means that I consider most of the games a waste.
Although if there was some interesting prize (not a plastic bracelet) that I could earn just by doing my job well or taking on a couple of extra tasks (beta-testing, whatever), I may be tempted.
He's getting rather old, but he's a good mouse.
How does that reconcile with this one? A man does not have himself killed for a half-pence a day or for a petty distinction. You must speak to the soul in order to electrify him .Napoleon