If your software has no effect, why ARE you writing it? You need to figure out who your customers are.
Some of my software has actual human users (other engineers, customer support personnel, etc), but a lot of it simply doesn't. This isn't unusual for system software. Who the heck is a user for a device driver, for example, or a boot monitor?
The waterfall model works. The waterfall model gets you the highest quality code. It could be the perfect process... but for it's single sole disadvantage: it's slow. It's so slow that you need to combine it with an iterative process, otherwise you can't keep up with the customer and marketplace requrirements. And even then it's still too slow.
So what do we do instead? We use processes which let us get two year products out the door in two months. All would be good, except that those two month products are now unusable. No only are they piles of bug infested shit, they STILL dont' meet the customer's requirements, because they were developed so fast there was never any time to get the customer's complete input.
A waterfall model is nothing more than creating software step by step. All other engineering disciplines have been doing waterfall models since the dawn of time. Analyze, design, build, test, maintain. Every step is crucial, and every step must be done in order.
One of our divisions at work has been using Agile for a couple of years now. Recently I've had to be involved in their process.
Aaargh!
If they're using real Agile, and not just picking and choosing the parts they like, then I can only conclude that Agile sucks. For years I have been bitching about the stupid waterfall model I've had to use, but Agile seems to be the exact opposite, with opposite but just as existant disadvantages.
First, where's the fricking specifications!?!? How the hell am I supposed to write code if I don't know what I am supposed to write? For a small team this informality may work, but for the fifty person team I'm on, it's maddening. "Just do it!" they tell me. So I do. And then throw it away because it isn't what they wanted.
Second, it's claimed that there are specifications, only that they're called "user stories". That's all well and good if you're writing a user interface, but most software is not a user interface. As a systems software developer, "user stories" don't do me much good because the user doesn't interact with the software I write. Heck, according to the user stories, my code doesn't even exist!
From what I can see of it, Agile is merely a reactionary response to old fashioned gated/waterfall processes. It's not better, it's not worse, it's just another damned unworkable process.
Maybe you can hold off the reboot until after midnight? It's really annoying when admins reboot the servers in the middle of the day when I'm trying to get some productive work done.
Read the Handbook on ports, and particularly on synchronizing ports (to get the latest). Once you have your ports tree set up, you can find it under/usr/ports/www/firefox. Here's what I do to set up:
[as root...] cp/usr/share/examples/cvsup/ports-supfile ~ [edit ports-supfile to point to a cvsup server] cvsup ports-supfile
Consider building your own system. Linux kernel hackers code fast and furiously, but they can't type fast enough to keep up with new hardware. Pre-built systems use "new" hardware, so the odds of getting hardware with specs newer than the release of Linux you're using are high. Heck, I once bought a computer that had newer hardware than what was listed on its packaging!
You avoid this when you build your own system because you get to be in control of what hardware is used. This doesn't mean you have to use old obsolete hardware, it just means you can avoid the Windows-only hardware. Sure it's inconvenient to build your own, but for some people it may be worth it. Also, there are tons of shops that will build a system for you.
I run FreeBSD. I built my current system two years ago, selecting components by comparing a local computer hardware catalog to the FreeBSD supported hardware page. My system "just worked". This week I used the opportunity provided by the FreeBSD 6.0 release to wipe my harddrives and reorganize my triple boot layout scheme. Again, FreeBSD "just worked" for every component. But for Windows I *STILL* needed to dig out the manufacturers' driver CDs, because WXP-SP2 *STILL* didn't support some of the hardware!
Those companies are already out there. They're not as big as Dell, simply due to the fact that the Open Source OS market is miniscule compared to Windows. But they are out there.
You're implying that Dell supports Windows because they pre-install Windows. Since when? If I need support for Windows on my Dell, it won't be Dell giving me free support.
Most EULAs are not contracts. Most lack consideration and any meaningful form of assent. A mouse click to "agree" to waive some rights in return for nothing is not a contract.
By purchasing the software you have gained the legal right to utilize the software (at least in the US you have). Thus, a "contract" cannot give you that right as consideration, because you ALREADY possess it. Also, the act of utilizing the software, including the act of installation, cannot be used as evidence of assent.
Imagine you buy a new Toyota Prius. You've handed over your money and received the keys in return. Then you see a notice on the driver's door, saying that you may not service the vehicle yourself, and that you signal your acceptance of this term by opening the door. Would such a notice be legally binding? Of course not! So what makes software any different?
'In order to add our product to their list, they must have downloaded it and then examined it. These actions are forbidden by the notice,' a RetroCoder spokesperson said.
A notice is not a contract. It is not any form of agreement. Heck, it barely qualifies as a legal mechanism. Why this company thinks a notice contractually binding is unknown. Maybe their lawyers flunked out of lawschool? Maybe they had to go all the way to Elbonia to pass the bar exam?
This goes beyond the unilateral "click-thru" licensing of other companies. I'm going to name this one "we-said-so" licensing.
I just built it yesterday, and had no problems. I used ports, and simply did a "make; make install", and it just worked. Took a long time because Firefox is a huge beast, but I didn't have any build problems.
It's a common theme in jokes. It is a gag. It is not universal. It's extremely rare among paranoid psychotics.
Just because people on Slashdot joke about it does not make it true. There are lots of jokes about Scotsman and sheep, but that does not mean sheep buggery is common and universal in Scotland. Duh.
There is one particular difference between the US and Europe that explains why so many European countries are having these riots while the US is not: US culture isn't based on ethnicity. While there certainly are instances of ethnism and racism in the US, the culture isn't founded upon it.
In Europe you are defined by your ethnicity. National boundaries are based on it. Danes come from Denmark and eat Danish food and speak the Danish language. Germans come from Germany and eat German food and speak the German language. And so on, and so on, and so on. In the US, however, everyone is an American first, and whatever their ethnicity is second. We speak English first, and in most cases, don't even know the native language of our ethnicity.
When French culture is defined by being ethnically French, how must an immigrant feel living there?
Everytime my company says "there are extremely skilled people over in Bangalore", someone gets laid off. That there REALLY are extremely skilled people over there does not negate the fact that people are getting laid off.
I greatly suspect that Mantel is quitting because all SuSE functions are being handed over to the Ximian group. One evidence for me is his "sarcastic" comment.
To me, that sounds like subtle (or not so subtle) sarcasm. Perhaps Mantel heard the phrase "lots of extremely skilled people over there in the Ximian division" used one too many times as an excuse by his bosses, that he simply used it back at them.
After all, if you have a division of perfect people down the hall, why not let them work on the kernel? Even if they're applications people with absolutely no kernel experience, how hard can it be for perfect people who have all the answers?
Just in front of Linderhof there is a statue grandly and proudly "flipping the bird" to all visitors. I took a picture of that statue because I thought it was so funny, but all the Germans I was travelling with couldn't understand why I thought it was so funny.
Webapps are okay for some things, but are inferior and unsuitable for most. The major problem is the limitation of the interface. You can make it look pretty, and with Ajax, even make it somewhat interactive, but you can't make it very usable.
But not every application is a front end to a backend database. I know this sounds like heresy to you database programmers, but it's true.
Slashdot Mirror
If your software has no effect, why ARE you writing it? You need to figure out who your customers are.
Some of my software has actual human users (other engineers, customer support personnel, etc), but a lot of it simply doesn't. This isn't unusual for system software. Who the heck is a user for a device driver, for example, or a boot monitor?
Actually, if you don't commit slander and libel, you're pretty safe against accusations of slander and libel. Not immune, just safe.
The waterfall model works. The waterfall model gets you the highest quality code. It could be the perfect process... but for it's single sole disadvantage: it's slow. It's so slow that you need to combine it with an iterative process, otherwise you can't keep up with the customer and marketplace requrirements. And even then it's still too slow.
So what do we do instead? We use processes which let us get two year products out the door in two months. All would be good, except that those two month products are now unusable. No only are they piles of bug infested shit, they STILL dont' meet the customer's requirements, because they were developed so fast there was never any time to get the customer's complete input.
A waterfall model is nothing more than creating software step by step. All other engineering disciplines have been doing waterfall models since the dawn of time. Analyze, design, build, test, maintain. Every step is crucial, and every step must be done in order.
One of our divisions at work has been using Agile for a couple of years now. Recently I've had to be involved in their process.
Aaargh!
If they're using real Agile, and not just picking and choosing the parts they like, then I can only conclude that Agile sucks. For years I have been bitching about the stupid waterfall model I've had to use, but Agile seems to be the exact opposite, with opposite but just as existant disadvantages.
First, where's the fricking specifications!?!? How the hell am I supposed to write code if I don't know what I am supposed to write? For a small team this informality may work, but for the fifty person team I'm on, it's maddening. "Just do it!" they tell me. So I do. And then throw it away because it isn't what they wanted.
Second, it's claimed that there are specifications, only that they're called "user stories". That's all well and good if you're writing a user interface, but most software is not a user interface. As a systems software developer, "user stories" don't do me much good because the user doesn't interact with the software I write. Heck, according to the user stories, my code doesn't even exist!
From what I can see of it, Agile is merely a reactionary response to old fashioned gated/waterfall processes. It's not better, it's not worse, it's just another damned unworkable process.
Maybe you can hold off the reboot until after midnight? It's really annoying when admins reboot the servers in the middle of the day when I'm trying to get some productive work done.
That's because GNU really has no clue about compatibility. Take a look at any non-GNU libc, and you won't have that problem.
Just because GNU/Linux is written that way...
Actually it's not written that way. It's written "Linux". But that's another topic...
Read the Handbook on ports, and particularly on synchronizing ports (to get the latest). Once you have your ports tree set up, you can find it under /usr/ports/www/firefox. Here's what I do to set up:
/usr/share/examples/cvsup/ports-supfile ~
[as root...]
cp
[edit ports-supfile to point to a cvsup server]
cvsup ports-supfile
Keep the job! Duh!
The convenience of having a paycheck while you're job hunting outweighs the convenience of scheduling interviews on an empty schedule.
Besides, you now get to tell your boss you're using a vacation day to go job hunting, and not feel embarassed by it!
Consider building your own system. Linux kernel hackers code fast and furiously, but they can't type fast enough to keep up with new hardware. Pre-built systems use "new" hardware, so the odds of getting hardware with specs newer than the release of Linux you're using are high. Heck, I once bought a computer that had newer hardware than what was listed on its packaging!
You avoid this when you build your own system because you get to be in control of what hardware is used. This doesn't mean you have to use old obsolete hardware, it just means you can avoid the Windows-only hardware. Sure it's inconvenient to build your own, but for some people it may be worth it. Also, there are tons of shops that will build a system for you.
I run FreeBSD. I built my current system two years ago, selecting components by comparing a local computer hardware catalog to the FreeBSD supported hardware page. My system "just worked". This week I used the opportunity provided by the FreeBSD 6.0 release to wipe my harddrives and reorganize my triple boot layout scheme. Again, FreeBSD "just worked" for every component. But for Windows I *STILL* needed to dig out the manufacturers' driver CDs, because WXP-SP2 *STILL* didn't support some of the hardware!
Those companies are already out there. They're not as big as Dell, simply due to the fact that the Open Source OS market is miniscule compared to Windows. But they are out there.
You're implying that Dell supports Windows because they pre-install Windows. Since when? If I need support for Windows on my Dell, it won't be Dell giving me free support.
By reading this reply you agree that I don't have to.
Most EULAs are not contracts. Most lack consideration and any meaningful form of assent. A mouse click to "agree" to waive some rights in return for nothing is not a contract.
By purchasing the software you have gained the legal right to utilize the software (at least in the US you have). Thus, a "contract" cannot give you that right as consideration, because you ALREADY possess it. Also, the act of utilizing the software, including the act of installation, cannot be used as evidence of assent.
Imagine you buy a new Toyota Prius. You've handed over your money and received the keys in return. Then you see a notice on the driver's door, saying that you may not service the vehicle yourself, and that you signal your acceptance of this term by opening the door. Would such a notice be legally binding? Of course not! So what makes software any different?
'In order to add our product to their list, they must have downloaded it and then examined it. These actions are forbidden by the notice,' a RetroCoder spokesperson said.
A notice is not a contract. It is not any form of agreement. Heck, it barely qualifies as a legal mechanism. Why this company thinks a notice contractually binding is unknown. Maybe their lawyers flunked out of lawschool? Maybe they had to go all the way to Elbonia to pass the bar exam?
This goes beyond the unilateral "click-thru" licensing of other companies. I'm going to name this one "we-said-so" licensing.
I just built it yesterday, and had no problems. I used ports, and simply did a "make; make install", and it just worked. Took a long time because Firefox is a huge beast, but I didn't have any build problems.
It's "news" because the editors of Slashdot think it's news. Not only is it news, it's such awesome earth-shattering news that it makes the main page!
A mention of a 1.5 release might qualify for the IT section, but not an -RC2. Geez, FreeBSD 6.0 didn't even make the front page!
It's a common theme in jokes. It is a gag. It is not universal. It's extremely rare among paranoid psychotics.
Just because people on Slashdot joke about it does not make it true. There are lots of jokes about Scotsman and sheep, but that does not mean sheep buggery is common and universal in Scotland. Duh.
It's not America's fault. The US was "driven" to attack Iraq.
There is one particular difference between the US and Europe that explains why so many European countries are having these riots while the US is not: US culture isn't based on ethnicity. While there certainly are instances of ethnism and racism in the US, the culture isn't founded upon it.
In Europe you are defined by your ethnicity. National boundaries are based on it. Danes come from Denmark and eat Danish food and speak the Danish language. Germans come from Germany and eat German food and speak the German language. And so on, and so on, and so on. In the US, however, everyone is an American first, and whatever their ethnicity is second. We speak English first, and in most cases, don't even know the native language of our ethnicity.
When French culture is defined by being ethnically French, how must an immigrant feel living there?
Everytime my company says "there are extremely skilled people over in Bangalore", someone gets laid off. That there REALLY are extremely skilled people over there does not negate the fact that people are getting laid off.
I greatly suspect that Mantel is quitting because all SuSE functions are being handed over to the Ximian group. One evidence for me is his "sarcastic" comment.
To me, that sounds like subtle (or not so subtle) sarcasm. Perhaps Mantel heard the phrase "lots of extremely skilled people over there in the Ximian division" used one too many times as an excuse by his bosses, that he simply used it back at them.
After all, if you have a division of perfect people down the hall, why not let them work on the kernel? Even if they're applications people with absolutely no kernel experience, how hard can it be for perfect people who have all the answers?
Just in front of Linderhof there is a statue grandly and proudly "flipping the bird" to all visitors. I took a picture of that statue because I thought it was so funny, but all the Germans I was travelling with couldn't understand why I thought it was so funny.
Gaagh! I can't believe how hypocritical I am! That's because in another post I suggested he use Qt. Shame on me.
Webapps are okay for some things, but are inferior and unsuitable for most. The major problem is the limitation of the interface. You can make it look pretty, and with Ajax, even make it somewhat interactive, but you can't make it very usable.
But not every application is a front end to a backend database. I know this sounds like heresy to you database programmers, but it's true.