Answer Upon
#1 in Business Subscribe Email Print

You are here: Home > Business > Management > The 70% Solution: Practical Testing and Version Control

Tags

  • become
  • level
  • incomplete application
  • current production
  • testing immediately

  • Links

  • The Best Books on Complete Eye Surgery
  • Rule of Thumb For Exporting Technology
  • Pose Your Dog for Holiday Photos
  • Answer Upon - The 70% Solution: Practical Testing and Version Control

    To Be or Not To Be...That Really is the Question!
    Business, what a marvelous thing! It has helped to create a nice lifestyle for many of us. Business can build fortunes and produce great joy, it can also cause monetary problems and produce anxiety as well as sadness and of course it can lead us into every emotion in between.Why does this invention called business or commerce or whatever moniker you may want to call it so often cause us to be driven into such turmoil?Certainly money
    ation? Let's just call it "functionally challenged". This is what I call the 70% solution. The deadline doesn't move and the developers deliver a fully tested, bug-fixed version on time and within budget. This gives management the opportunity to evaluate further investments into application functionality while reaping the benefits of any developments to date.

    Don't bla

    Creating a Powerful Brand Name
    “Pull the string, and it will follow wherever you wish. Push it, and it will go nowhere at all.”-- Dwight D EisenhowerFrom top business executives, to people striving everyday in their communities. From traditional corporations, to the internet, “branding” has become one of the most significant marketing practices to date. We have all become accustomed to the fact that our favorite brand will consiste
    "What do you mean you need to push back the launch date?" Says the CEO. Says the CFO. Says the user community. CTOs, CIOs, and all officers who oversee major development projects have had to deliver the dreaded message. But a deadline for the sake of a deadline is a dangerous pitfall that can consume an entire project and stymie it to the point that it never launches. Over the years I've come up with six simple rules that help deadlines become more meaningful, while keeping the developers, the user community, the CFO and the CEO all satisfied.

    1. Always have minor version control throughout development. Group functional requirements into minor versions so that core functionality is prioritized and so that the entire development team is generally active on the same minor version.

    2. Always target minor version releases every 2 to 4 weeks.

    3. Always begin testing immediately once each minor version is complete.

    4. Always prioritize bug-fixing to the highest level upon the completion of any testing.

    5. Never allow a problematic functional enhancement to be a showstopper. Negotiate with the user community and the CFO or CEO for a delay in, or removal of, the delivery of that functionality.

    6. Always launch the product on time - as long as the most recent fully completed minor version is functionally equivalent or better than the current production system. Launch it, no matter how far you are from 100% complete.

    So I want you to launch an incomplete application? Let's just call it "functionally challenged". This is what I call the 70% solution. The deadline doesn't move and the developers deliver a fully tested, bug-fixed version on time and within budget. This gives management the opportunity to evaluate further investments into application functionality while reaping the benefits of any developments to date.

    Don't blam

    Accounts Job Opportunities - Technological Advancement has Made a Revolution
    Unemployment is not the problem in today’s market; the problem is lack of people who are well equipped with practical knowledge & skills and having pure theoretical knowledge. For a person to be successful it is necessary to be both theoretically and practically sound.Unemployment! Unemployment! is the talk of the state. According to NASSCOM estimate IT enabled services in India might generate 1.1 million job opportunities
    years I've come up with six simple rules that help deadlines become more meaningful, while keeping the developers, the user community, the CFO and the CEO all satisfied.

    1. Always have minor version control throughout development. Group functional requirements into minor versions so that core functionality is prioritized and so that the entire development team is generally active on the same minor version.

    2. Always target minor version releases every 2 to 4 weeks.

    3. Always begin testing immediately once each minor version is complete.

    4. Always prioritize bug-fixing to the highest level upon the completion of any testing.

    5. Never allow a problematic functional enhancement to be a showstopper. Negotiate with the user community and the CFO or CEO for a delay in, or removal of, the delivery of that functionality.

    6. Always launch the product on time - as long as the most recent fully completed minor version is functionally equivalent or better than the current production system. Launch it, no matter how far you are from 100% complete.

    So I want you to launch an incomplete application? Let's just call it "functionally challenged". This is what I call the 70% solution. The deadline doesn't move and the developers deliver a fully tested, bug-fixed version on time and within budget. This gives management the opportunity to evaluate further investments into application functionality while reaping the benefits of any developments to date.

    Don't bla

    Hire Teamwork-Oriented Employees
    You can use pre-employment tests, specific interview questions, realistic job previews, and role-modeling to hire employees who crave to use teamwork and collaboration.Warning: Many jobs do not need teamwork-oriented employees. Our society greatly values “teamwork.” Also, many leaders are teamwork-oriented, so they erroneously assume they should hire employees who love teamwork.So, find out which jobs in your company really requir
    ally active on the same minor version.

    2. Always target minor version releases every 2 to 4 weeks.

    3. Always begin testing immediately once each minor version is complete.

    4. Always prioritize bug-fixing to the highest level upon the completion of any testing.

    5. Never allow a problematic functional enhancement to be a showstopper. Negotiate with the user community and the CFO or CEO for a delay in, or removal of, the delivery of that functionality.

    6. Always launch the product on time - as long as the most recent fully completed minor version is functionally equivalent or better than the current production system. Launch it, no matter how far you are from 100% complete.

    So I want you to launch an incomplete application? Let's just call it "functionally challenged". This is what I call the 70% solution. The deadline doesn't move and the developers deliver a fully tested, bug-fixed version on time and within budget. This gives management the opportunity to evaluate further investments into application functionality while reaping the benefits of any developments to date.

    Don't bla

    Tax Return Preparation Needs To Done Properly
    Preparing tax returns is a tough job and just anybody cannot do the work. For tax return preparation work you need to have the assistance of a certified professional CPA. So be it the tax return preparation of an individual or a business it is important to get professional help for this. In United Sates the tax season witnesses a heavy rush of customers to the office of CPAs who work towards helping out in the tax return preparation calculations.
    r community and the CFO or CEO for a delay in, or removal of, the delivery of that functionality.

    6. Always launch the product on time - as long as the most recent fully completed minor version is functionally equivalent or better than the current production system. Launch it, no matter how far you are from 100% complete.

    So I want you to launch an incomplete application? Let's just call it "functionally challenged". This is what I call the 70% solution. The deadline doesn't move and the developers deliver a fully tested, bug-fixed version on time and within budget. This gives management the opportunity to evaluate further investments into application functionality while reaping the benefits of any developments to date.

    Don't bla

    Negotiating a Pay Raise
    Negotiating a Pay Rise - Do you think you are not been paid enough? Not being valued at your company? - Do you look at your pay slip and wish you had been paid that little bit more that you deserve? - Do you think you have been particularly successful in your job? And gone beyond expectations? If you have answered 'yes' to any of the above, then it is time to negotiate a pay rise. But how do you go abo
    ation? Let's just call it "functionally challenged". This is what I call the 70% solution. The deadline doesn't move and the developers deliver a fully tested, bug-fixed version on time and within budget. This gives management the opportunity to evaluate further investments into application functionality while reaping the benefits of any developments to date.

    Don't blame the developers. It's more likely a project runs over budget and over deadline because of optimistic cost planning or scope creep than poor developer skills. Following these rules ensures delivery of the best product the development team can achieve within a set budget or period of time. Even in an environment where scope creep becomes a factor, escalating requirements can be scheduled into minor versions so they never hold back the launch of the "functionally challenged" application.

    Testing? Who needs testing? So you didn't follow the six rules, you're past the code freeze date, and you're supposed to be in final testing but there are still more things to implement. The user community and the CEO want to know if you'll be able to launch on time regardless. That's when it hits you— if only we could "streamline" the testing phase we could still make it. Very bad idea. The cost of backing out due to insufficient testing can cost more than the project itself. Recently I witnessed a botched implementation of a customer service application that almost cost the company in question its three largest clients—and millions of dollars.

    Work your mediation magic. Application development managers have to be part negotiator and part magician. They need to keep all sides happy, even if product expectations and budget restrictions are in conflict. No one really wants the 70% solution, but everyone can live with it. And when no one's 100% happy, you know you're probably doing it right.

    HTTP = HTML link (for blogs, profiles,phorums):
    <a href="http://www.hubyou.info/article/24227/hubyou-The-70-Solution-Practical-Testing-and-Version-Control.html">The 70% Solution: Practical Testing and Version Control</a>

    BB link (for phorums):
    [url=http://www.hubyou.info/article/24227/hubyou-The-70-Solution-Practical-Testing-and-Version-Control.html]The 70% Solution: Practical Testing and Version Control[/url]

    Related Articles:

    Career Change and Risk: It Can Lead to Greater Success in the Workplace

    One Little Mistake Can Cost Thousands Of Dollars

    Business Startup Funding - Are You Ready?

    Bookmark it: del.icio.us digg.com reddit.com netvouz.com google.com yahoo.com technorati.com furl.net bloglines.com socialdust.com ma.gnolia.com newsvine.com slashdot.org simpy.com shadows.com blinklist.com