Gantt Charts

Posted by Josh Milane in IT Project Management on 02 28th, 2008 | No Comments

I think they are great, as a guideline, but lay out a project plan in a Gantt chart over a 6 month period and then compare what you planned against what happened…

I like them in small timeboxes, as guidelines, generalizations without fine levels of detail. Nothing beats a whiteboard when you are in the trenches.

Otherwise, I just have not seen them be terribly accurate in real world situations.

I mention this because it came up today in conversation.

I have weird conversations, I guess.

Best,

Josh

Simple Tip for Managing Status Meetings

Posted by Josh Milane in IT Project Management on 02 28th, 2008 | No Comments

Okay, if you have read my other blog posts, particularly my post about developing a custom PM methodology, you know I am all about inputs and outputs.

This is, obviously, for traceability. When you are running your status meetings, leave with a list of Action Items. Disseminate the list so people are accountable and understand what is expected of them, are able to ask questions if they do not.

The next time you meet, use that list of Action Items as your Agenda.

Action Items —next meeting—> Agenda Items

It is simple, really, but the tendency to get overwhelmed with ancillary efforts is strong, and a public forum is a place that people do not want to have to report failure in. Besides that, this closes the loop nicely and prevents tasks from falling through the cracks.

Of course, you would be simultaneously managing an Issue/Task log.

Thanks,

Josh

Nine Benefits of Incremental Delivery

Posted by Josh Milane in IT Project Management on 02 27th, 2008 | No Comments

MSF stresses the importance and value in iterative development and incremental delivery in Agile environments.

Why? It’s a good question. With the advent of new tools and platforms, the Waterfall approach is not only old, but maybe silly. Still, the argument for an Agile process is not always an easy one to make – especially in shops that have an established process that works pretty well most of the time.

Here is a little list of sound reasons to go with an Agile process. I am certain it is not complete. Nine is just the number I came up with before I realized how late it was and that I needed to get some sleep ;)

Nine Benefits of Incremental Delivery and Agile Process

  • Risk Management (start with the highest risk elements when there is an unknown)
  • Economics (constant checks against budget and priorities prevent sudden plug pulling)
  • Focus (smaller work packages are less daunting, more rewarding)
  • Motivation (when a client is pleased, the team is pleased)
  • Control Theory (reduces margin of error in estimates, especially as an organization’s process matures over time)
  • Stakeholder Involvement (like the old JAD sessions, engaged stakeholders are better than disengaged stakeholders for a wide variety of reasons)
  • Continuous Learning (with each iteration, there is a lesson learned)
  • More Readable Documentation (small chunks are more easily digested, and UML *is* useful if presented correctly)
  • Freshness (tools and technologies are readily absorbed)

I also like this approach because every day, when the Devs check their code into VSS or whatever they are using for source control, their efforts immediately flow into the stream of the project’s lifecycle. It sounds very symbiotic, and mirrors natural progress. Evolution didnt happen with a Big Up Front Requirements Session.

The build will reflect the code, and the builds will drive iterations of the project. The team’s efforts will be the lifeblood of the project.

Best,

Josh

Trillian Killer? Side by side comparison.

Posted by Josh Milane in Other on 02 22nd, 2008 | 7 Comments

Hey there.

This has nothing to do with PM or BA or IT, really. I just stumbled on an app that is cool, open source, and useful. I like to pass these things on. I especially like competition in the land of Open Source. You get some really cool ideas when people are doing something because they are excited about it and believe in it.

Digsby is a lot like Trillian, but after one day of using it I already like it much more. Not only does it work with more IM clients, but it has skins, looks cute, seems to work very well, and you can send email directly from the IM window. This is a feature I wouldn’t have thought of but am glad that someone did. It’s surprisingly useful.

It can also alert you to POP mail arrival. That’s pretty nice. The only thing I still need to tweak is the way new IMs come across. If I have a chat window with you running and I minimize it, messages that you send me show up on the screen in a little bubble. This isn’t always great for work settings. However, I am sure I can figure out how to turn that off.

I like it better than Trillian. It’s free. Give it a shot. You will need a Beta Code. Email them for one. If they wont hook you up, I will. They call me the candyman.

Below is a pretty shallow comparison. If you click it, you will actually be able to read it. WordPress is a bit goofy to work with sometimes. Sorry.

Digsby V Twitter

There are a lot more features in each application, but these are the ones that matter to me, and a few that I have included just because people will be interested.I should also point out that I have used Trillian since its inception and rarely find a bug or have an issue. I have only been using Digsby for 10 hours or so. No bugs, yet. Go ahead and shoot me a note:

  • AOL: jm02130 or bigjosh1974
  • Yahoo: joshua_milane
  • Google: joshuamilane

And if you have a BlackBerry or iPhone, I can absolutely recommend JiveTalk. It has caused me to almost avoid 763 accidents that never should have been possible, and actually get into one (very minor) accident that is entirely JiveTalk’s fault. It is an awesome IM client for your handheld. In fact, I installed the trial and actually paid to convert. It is the only BlackBerry app I have ever purchased. Give it a shot, too! Just don’t use it when you drive. It’s dumb.

Keep in mind, I am pretty fickle. I like Digsby today, but may wind up back with Trillian if I cannot solve some of the minor annoying issues I am having with Digsby. Regardless, it is a neat application and you should give it a run.

The killer handheld app, if they could get it right, is the free VOIP client. I’m not going to name the ones that are out there, because they either stink or cost money. When there is one worth telling you about, I will, for sure.

Best Regards,

Josh

UPDATE 022808 – Digsby is especially buggy with MSN and GTalk. I have not had issues, but a lot of people have been emailing me about it. So, remember… its a beta! Trillian is far more stable. as of today. I hope the Digsby folks clean up their product, because I want to recommend it very badly. Right now, I would have to tell people to stick with Trillian if they are happy with it.

UPDATE 081509 – Trillian Astra is pretty cool. No major bugs to speak of, and the people at Digsby are getting a bit smarmy for my tastes.

Simple System Definition in Pictures

Posted by Josh Milane in IT Project Management on 02 16th, 2008 | 2 Comments

1.

system.jpg

2.

actors.jpg

3.

login_logout.jpg

4.

use-cases-and-actors.jpg

5.

use-cases-and-actors-defined1.jpg

Next: Use Cases to Development Requirements to Test Cases

Thanks,

Josh

Is Valid HTML Important? Google doesn't think so.

Posted by Josh Milane in SEO on 02 8th, 2008 | No Comments

Take a peek:

SYSML – UML but cooler?

Posted by Josh Milane in IT Project Management, Other, UML 2.0 on 02 8th, 2008 | No Comments

SYSML isn’t all that different from UML as it would tend to exist in the wild. In my opinion, and based on what I know right now, it looks like an attempt to standardize a deviation from a standard. I guess that is valid. Science does the same thing. There are 3 forms an element can take, but then we discover plasma and there are 4. It is just adaptation. I get aggravated when people throw around buzzwords as though they actually mean something.

Anyhow.

Here is a little chart that shows SYSML diagrams and their UML counterpart. There are a few diagrams in SYSML that were not part of the UML standard, and there are some UML diagrams that have no place in the SYSML standard. This is because SYSML is aimed at Systems Engineers and not software as a whole. Now, if you were a Systems Engineer and working with UML, chances are you did not say, “Dammit, I cant diagram that because the UML 2.0 standard wont allow for it…”. Chance are, you made annotations, maybe a narrative, whatever you needed to in order to GET THE POINT ACROSS. That is what this stuff is used for; we diagram to document, to clarify, to establish requirements and expectations, as well as to brainstorm, pass the time, appear to be busy, and any number of things. However, the value of a document is in it’s utility and it’s ability to be understood. Of course, that means that the diagram has to make accomodations for its audience. I think it will be hard to convince me that any standard accommodates all audiences.

So, yes, the chart (I stole this from another site, but its all Open Source, so it’s all in the spirit of collaboration):

SysML Diagram Purpose UML Diagram Analog
Activity diagram Show system behavior as control and data flows. Useful for functional analysis. Compare Extended Functional Flow Block diagrams (EFFBDs), already commonly used among systems engineers.  Activity diagram
Block Definition diagram Show system structure as components along with their properties, operations and relationships. Useful for system analysis and design. Class diagram
Internal Block diagram Show the internal structures of components, including their parts and connectors. Useful for system analysis and design. Composite Structure diagram
Package diagram Show how a model is organized into packages, views and viewpoints. Useful for model management. Package diagram
Parametric diagram Show parametric constraints between structural elements. Useful for performance and quantitative analysis. N/A
Requirement diagram Show system requirements and their relationships with other elements. Useful for requirements engineering. N/A
Sequence diagram Show system behavior as interactions between system components. Useful for system analysis and design. Sequence diagram
State Machine diagram Show system behavior as sequences of states that a component or interaction experience in response to events. Useful for system design and simulation/code generation. State Machine diagram
Use Case diagram Show system functional requirements as transactions that are meaningful to system users. Useful for specifying functional requirements. (Note potential overlap with Requirement diagrams.) Use Case diagram
Allocation tables**dynamically derived tables, not really a diagram type Show various kinds of allocations (e.g., requirement allocation, functional allocation, structural allocation). Useful for  facilitating automated verification and validation (V&V) and gap analysis. N/A
N/A Component diagram
N/A Communication diagram
N/A Deployment diagram
N/A Interaction overview diagram
N/A Object diagram
N/A Timing diagram

IBM has led the effort to create the SYSML standard. Not surprising. They were there when UML was being standardized as well. Also not surprising, IBM has a SYSML modeling tool available for you to purchase. Others do, as well. OMG, the body that oversees the UML standard, put out an RFP (in Open Source Land, RFP means a little something different than it does in Commercial Land) for the SYSML standard. Viola, they got one. I thing the OMG could have put out an RFP for a tweak of UML towards Guinea Pig breeding and gotten a response. Not from IBM, though, true.

It is a pretty neat concept, still. SYSML allows you to place requirements and actual meaningful stuff withing a diagram. The number one complaint that I have heard from Developers about UML is that you cannot code from it. You arent supposed to, but people don’t tend to like to hear that. It is a tool. So, instead of forcing the idea of OOD (Object Oriented Documentation) down people’s throats, SYSML has packaged it in a way that looks very STANDARD and OFFICIAL. Heck, it is versioned and everything! 

I love this stuff. I will be using SYSML like I use PMI, MSF, and RUP – buffet style, and according to the organization I am leveraging it for.

Please do take a look and see if it cannot offer you something. At least now, when you hand in a crazy looking Context Diagram, you can point to the SYSML standard and know that the OMG has your back.

Best,

Josh

UML – Unidentified Madeup Lingo

Posted by Josh Milane in UML 2.0 on 01 30th, 2008 | 1 Comment

Apparently, the last company I worked for is now scouring through Use Case diagrams, not realizing they are Activity Diagrams, and trying to figure out what they mean.

I like this.

I also like gummy bears, and the fact that my blog visits have spiked back to over 200 a day since their renewed interest in Requirements and all things sexy about what I do for a living.

Business Analysis is not Project Management. Can we say this enough times? Do they not teach this in Business School? At this particular company, they are very fond of having initials after your name. My favorite: B.S.

Bachelor of Science.

*ahem*

People actually put that in their email signature.

Really.

Goodnight.- Josh Milane, BS

I have no science degree.

Google Is As Google Does

Posted by Josh Milane in SEO on 01 30th, 2008 | No Comments

So now, talk among some of my SEO buddies involves the assertion that Google is penalizing folks who optimize their sites too well.

People who ranked high with Google, Yahoo, and MSN have found that they have unexplicably lost ranking in Google and Google alone.

At some point this was bound to happen. Indexing and codifying the contents of the web cannot be a true science if the web is expecting to be studied and codified. I know my dog is on his best behavior when I am home, and when I come back from work he acts as though the pillows could have torn themselves up. Point is, it is hard to capture the raw value of something if you judge it by algorithms and techniques that can be anticipated and used as scaffolding for a structure.

It’s kind of like that theorem that puts forth, “as soon as you study something, you change it…”

But it’s not quite like that. I just happen to like that theorem.

It’s more like people finally figured out how bots work, made a business out of it, and the bot owners are finding that they are being spoon fed what they wanted, but didnt want given to them.

Funny stuff.

Ha ha.

Blackberry 8703e and Google Maps and Bluetooth and Traffic and Verizon! Working together!

Posted by Josh Milane in Other on 12 4th, 2007 | No Comments

Finally. A Verizon 8703e that gets realtime traffic and GPS navigation with an external puck for free.

I installed a million GPS applications on my 8703e and none quite did it. The closest was Telenav, but they do not have traffic information for the 8703e.

Then, out of nowhere, Google Maps for Mobile went from not supporting an external GPS at all to

  • Supporting the external GPS puck
  • Providing real-time traffic information

And I am anxious to play with it, see how it works, see Google do something amazing yet again.

Indeed tonight I was a little dot on a red route 93 South, crawling along at 3 mph and… happy. Free GPS and traffic info on my Verizon 8703e.

Check it out. You want Google Maps Version 2.0.1

Just dont try it with Opera Mini, unquestionably the best browser for BlackBerry out there. Again, it’s a freebie. The only goofy thing about it is the way you enter text into forms. The Google site can’t tell which BB you have if you hit their servers with an Opera Mini browser.

Take care,

Josh

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