Originally a 2008 presentation. Basics of what developers need and require during a process. Images taken admittedly liberally. Didn't edit this one - lots of blank slides.
6. i am a
developer.
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I am a developer.
7. Tuesday, September 4, 12 5
I have a feeling this nickname might have been shortened a bit at work.
8. In the flash Community I am known as the:
BITCHwhocodes
Tuesday, September 4, 12 5
I have a feeling this nickname might have been shortened a bit at work.
9. Tuesday, September 4, 12 6
I have a feeling this nickname might have been shortened a bit at work.
10. people often like to shorten it.
Tuesday, September 4, 12 6
I have a feeling this nickname might have been shortened a bit at work.
20. as a flash developer, lots of things frustrate me
during a project.
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21. Tuesday, September 4, 12 12
I’m going to talk about project management - from the developer’s perspective.
22. Project Management from the Developer’s
Perspective.
Tuesday, September 4, 12 12
I’m going to talk about project management - from the developer’s perspective.
27. Tuesday, September 4, 12 15
Flash developers are currently in high demand. Particularily ones that aren’t completely burnt
out.
28. Burnt out Developers Are useless.
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Flash developers are currently in high demand. Particularily ones that aren’t completely burnt
out.
68. Or worse, like this.
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Or if you are lucky, like this.
69. Tuesday, September 4, 12 36
As a developer, you might think your project manager sees you like this, as a bit of superhero
70. Devs think everyone sees them like this
Tuesday, September 4, 12 36
As a developer, you might think your project manager sees you like this, as a bit of superhero
75. Tuesday, September 4, 12 39
Bad project process places the glass ceiling for developer contribution
76. Bad Project Process Places the glass ceiling for developer
contribution
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Bad project process places the glass ceiling for developer contribution
79. Tuesday, September 4, 12 41
Good project process raises the glass ceiling for developer contribution to be one of
innovation.
80. Good Project Process means developers can
contribute as Innovators.
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Good project process raises the glass ceiling for developer contribution to be one of
innovation.
81. Tuesday, September 4, 12 42
Meaningful innovation cannot easily occur in an environment that does not inherently support
and foster it.
82. Meaningful innovation require environments that foster it.
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Meaningful innovation cannot easily occur in an environment that does not inherently support
and foster it.
83. Tuesday, September 4, 12 43
Meaningful innovation is what can set you far apart from your competition.
84. Meaningful innovation is a competitive edge.
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Meaningful innovation is what can set you far apart from your competition.
93. Tuesday, September 4, 12 48
unless they ve been pulled from someones asseen pulled
from someone’s ass.
94. Unless you pulled them from this.
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unless they ve been pulled from someones asseen pulled
from someone’s ass.
95. Tuesday, September 4, 12 49
Too often estimating focused around the elusive magic number. The magic number is when a
project manager asks you for a time estimate but already has some magic number in his
head.
96. The elusive magic number
Tuesday, September 4, 12 49
Too often estimating focused around the elusive magic number. The magic number is when a
project manager asks you for a time estimate but already has some magic number in his
head.
97. Tuesday, September 4, 12 50
Project Managers act like estimating is a negotiation process
98. Project managers act like estimating is a negotiation process
Tuesday, September 4, 12 50
Project Managers act like estimating is a negotiation process
106. Get the right people to quote.
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bad estimates are a result of a lack of details.
107. Tuesday, September 4, 12 55
The larger the scope of the estimate, the more likely it is to be off.
108. The larger the scope of work to estimate, the more likely it is to
be off.
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The larger the scope of the estimate, the more likely it is to be off.
109. Tuesday, September 4, 12 56
Developers generally suck at estimating. They estimate in ideal hours. They think about the
task , not the three phases of a task.
110. Developers suck at estimating time.
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Developers generally suck at estimating. They estimate in ideal hours. They think about the
task , not the three phases of a task.
117. Tuesday, September 4, 12 60
Multiply whatever a developer tells you by three, that way when they are wrong, you won’t be
going over budget.
118. Triple a quote to avoid going overbudget
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Multiply whatever a developer tells you by three, that way when they are wrong, you won’t be
going over budget.
126. Never have just one plan.
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Never have just one plan.
127. Tuesday, September 4, 12 65
always have a plan b. have a developer help you define what that is.
128. Always Have a Plan B. Have a developer help you
define what that is.
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always have a plan b. have a developer help you define what that is.
131. Tuesday, September 4, 12 67
Lack of planning for a developer, means the scope of work just increased tenfold.
132. If you fail to plan, you just increased the scope of work for a
developer tenfold.
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Lack of planning for a developer, means the scope of work just increased tenfold.
136. Results of the planning process needs to be
documented in a variety of ways.
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137. Tuesday, September 4, 12 70
The most important document from project planning for a developer, are the functional
specifications.
138. Functional Specifications are the developers bible.
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The most important document from project planning for a developer, are the functional
specifications.
139. Tuesday, September 4, 12 71
Functional specifications might have many names. But its purpose is to tell the developer how
something should work and the business rules.
140. It answers all the how it works questions
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Functional specifications might have many names. But its purpose is to tell the developer how
something should work and the business rules.
144. Developers deal in terms of when, not if.
Good developers can be pessimistic. They will tear
your plan apart and figure out the items that were
not addressed or considered.
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146. Good planning affords the opportunity for a
developer to determine what is missing upfront,
rather than 2 hours before something is due.
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147. Tuesday, September 4, 12 75
Prototyping, whatever form, allows for a quick way to explore user interaction and can help
pinpoint issues early on.
148. Prototyping is a quick way to get the feel of the
proposed user interaction.
Tuesday, September 4, 12 75
Prototyping, whatever form, allows for a quick way to explore user interaction and can help
pinpoint issues early on.
156. Make sure your prototype is reflective of the current
state of the project. don’t show your client a
prototype with a finished design.
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168. most interactive agencies have a casual or loose vibe
and work hard to protect that culture. Process
sounds too corporate and stodgy.
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170. When you are a small team you can be much more
agile and flexible. When you start growing, constant
chaos no longer is an effective motivator
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176. Schedules Have more important purposes than
perfection or accuracy.
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177. Tuesday, September 4, 12 90
They are often made to appease the client but can help make people accountable, invested
and focused.
178. Schedules make clients happy. On some level, they
make people be accountable, invested and focused.
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They are often made to appease the client but can help make people accountable, invested
and focused.
183. Tuesday, September 4, 12 93
This can start with file naming conventions and structure. It might be a developers job to
create the standard, and it might be a project managers job to enforce it.
184. Start with File naming conventions
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This can start with file naming conventions and structure. It might be a developers job to
create the standard, and it might be a project managers job to enforce it.
185. Tuesday, September 4, 12 94
This can start with file naming conventions and structure. It might be a developers job to
create the standard, and it might be a project managers job to enforce it.
186. It might be a developers job to determine a file
naming convention/standard. It might be a pm’s job
to enforce it.
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This can start with file naming conventions and structure. It might be a developers job to
create the standard, and it might be a project managers job to enforce it.
192. so that I can begin a treasure hunt for the one line
that tells me what I need to do.
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so that we can spend time looking for this.
197. Tuesday, September 4, 12 100
Use basecamp, emails, daily status meetings. No one should ever be able to claim they have
no idea what the status of the project is.
198. Use basecamp. Email. Daily status meetings. Never
give someone the opportunity to say “ they have no
idea what is going on”.
Tuesday, September 4, 12 100
Use basecamp, emails, daily status meetings. No one should ever be able to claim they have
no idea what the status of the project is.
208. Deadlines change for a variety of reasons. Indecisive
client. Missed sign-offs. Scope creep.
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Deadlines change for a variety of reasons.
215. Tuesday, September 4, 12 109
For developers, deadlines get crunched when designers miss theirs, regardless of how that
happens.
216. Developers deadlines get shafted when anyone else
blows theirs.
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For developers, deadlines get crunched when designers miss theirs, regardless of how that
happens.
218. To clarify:
Anyone is usually a Designer.
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219. Tuesday, September 4, 12 111
Designers consume timelines like a fat kid at a buffet.
220. Designers consume timelines like a fat kid at a buffet
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Designers consume timelines like a fat kid at a buffet.
221. Tuesday, September 4, 12 112
Project managers often act like the questionable parents
222. Project Managers sometimes act like the irresponsible parent
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Project managers often act like the questionable parents
223. Tuesday, September 4, 12 113
Who show the kid the dessert table rather than cut them off.
224. who show the kid the dessert table rather than cutting them off.
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Who show the kid the dessert table rather than cut them off.
228. Duct tape will fix anything, even a blown timeline.
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Duct tape will fix anything.
229. Tuesday, September 4, 12 116
Developers starting patching and hacking things together in a rush making their code a big
mountain of
230. Developers do rush patch jobs
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Developers starting patching and hacking things together in a rush making their code a big
mountain of
231. Tuesday, September 4, 12 117
Spaghetti. It becomes hard to maintain, hard to extend, hard to decipher. In the long run, it
becomes incredibly inefficient for you are asking a developer to add or change a system that
didn’t account for these changes.
232. And end up writing spaghetti code.
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Spaghetti. It becomes hard to maintain, hard to extend, hard to decipher. In the long run, it
becomes incredibly inefficient for you are asking a developer to add or change a system that
didn’t account for these changes.
234. Hence the term “polishing the turd”.
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Thus begins the process of polishing the turd.
235. Tuesday, September 4, 12 119
Does the math. Compressed deadline. Just as much work. Lets add more developers!
236. project manager math:
8 Weeks for 1 developer. 2 weeks for 4 Developers.
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Does the math. Compressed deadline. Just as much work. Lets add more developers!
237. Tuesday, September 4, 12 120
This is like the old joke that 9 pregnant women can give birth to a baby in a month.
238. Can 9 women give birth to a baby in a
month?
Tuesday, September 4, 12 120
This is like the old joke that 9 pregnant women can give birth to a baby in a month.
239. Tuesday, September 4, 12 121
Adding developers mid project is a risk and should be assessed as such. Time could be lost
in knowledge transfer. Developers could get frustrated with focus change.
240. Adding or switching Developers mid-Project with a
tight deadline is a risk and should be managed as
such.
Tuesday, September 4, 12 121
Adding developers mid project is a risk and should be assessed as such. Time could be lost
in knowledge transfer. Developers could get frustrated with focus change.
241. Tuesday, September 4, 12 122
Compressed or unrealistic deadlines means that a project manager should be willing to have
a contingency plan. This could have all been possibly avoided if...
242. Compressed deadlines require a contingency plan.
Unrealistic deadlines can sometimes be avoided...
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Compressed or unrealistic deadlines means that a project manager should be willing to have
a contingency plan. This could have all been possibly avoided if...
254. Project managers all graduate from
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Project managers must have graduated
255. Tuesday, September 4, 12 129
from the Subway school of sandwich artistry at some point. They are the masters of the
compliment sandwich - which is a generous serving of bad news sandwiched by two rather
forced compliments to ease digestion.
256. Subway school of sandwich making. They are masters in the
crafting the perfect compliment sandwich.
Tuesday, September 4, 12 129
from the Subway school of sandwich artistry at some point. They are the masters of the
compliment sandwich - which is a generous serving of bad news sandwiched by two rather
forced compliments to ease digestion.
257. Tuesday, September 4, 12 130
Being able to say no, means that yes isn’t the only option. For both a developer and a project
manager.
258. SAYING NO
Means that yes isn’t the only option.
Tuesday, September 4, 12 130
Being able to say no, means that yes isn’t the only option. For both a developer and a project
manager.
259. Tuesday, September 4, 12 131
Project managers need to ask what the impact and implications of a change have. Developers
need the opportunity to state those risks
260. project managers need to understand the
implications of a change.
Developers need the opportunity to state those
risks.
Tuesday, September 4, 12 131
Project managers need to ask what the impact and implications of a change have. Developers
need the opportunity to state those risks
261. Tuesday, September 4, 12 132
Sometimes you might hear it be called risk assessment.
262. Project managers call this risk assessment
Tuesday, September 4, 12 132
Sometimes you might hear it be called risk assessment.
269. Tuesday, September 4, 12 136
QA is often the first thing to be thrown out the window.
270. On a tight deadline, the reality is that an official qa
process is typically the first thing to be sacrificed.
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QA is often the first thing to be thrown out the window.
271. Tuesday, September 4, 12 137
A developer is the best person to test to ensure it works the way it should.
272. The developer is the best person to test to ensure
something works the way it should.
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A developer is the best person to test to ensure it works the way it should.
273. Tuesday, September 4, 12 138
They are not the best candidates to test outside of that.
274. developers might not be the best candidates to test against how
it shouldn’t work.
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They are not the best candidates to test outside of that.
280. Kinda like this one where I’m referred to check an email for
changes.
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281. Tuesday, September 4, 12 142
Bugs with steps to reproduce and details beyond it doesn’t work, do not.
282. being able to reproduce a bug is half the battle.
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Bugs with steps to reproduce and details beyond it doesn’t work, do not.
302. Post project reviews need to address what worked as
much as what not worked.
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303. Tuesday, September 4, 12 153
Post project reviews need to happen throughout the project, not just after.
304. post project reviews need to happen throughout the
project, not just after its done.
Tuesday, September 4, 12 153
Post project reviews need to happen throughout the project, not just after.