As we approach the 10-year anniversary of XML, Jim Fuller provides a personal retrospective, focussing on how XML has been and will be used with the RDBMS.… Read more
I have always felt rather second-rate as an IT pundit as I have yet to introduce my own TLA (Three-letter Acronym ) into the IT industry. I would therefore like to suggest a new branch of IT: solving IT problems by Antiquarian Research in Technology. Or ART, to us aficionados.… Read more
If I had a penny for every person who said "usability is just common sense", I'd have a pretty reasonable stack of pennies - maybe 30 or so. Clearly I'm not going to be able to retire on this, but at least it demonstrates that many people have misconceptions about how usable interfaces are designed. … Read more
Developers, programmers and designers tend to be deeply geeky types, immersed in the minutiae of the technology. In stark contrast, many IT managers appear to have difficulty working the remote controls on their television. This cultural gap between the foot soldier and officer classes of the IT industry can have interesting consequences.… Read more
The process of appointing managers in large IT department is shrouded in mystery. The bewilderingly random and illogical nature of the process makes it a gambler's delight, and it's often difficult for workers to resist the odd wager on the outcome.… Read more
Phil Factor offers an intriguing theory on why so many, hugely complex, government IT projects fail. Is it because there is a world of difference between the business processes that really take place in a company and the management's understanding of those processes?… Read more
Software projects fail for all sorts of reasons, although the same reasons crop up over and over again. The ICONIX process might offer a way out.… Read more
Whenever I worry about how I shall earn a crust when my mental powers start failing, I always console myself with the thought that I can go and start an IT employment agency. Many before me have done so. It is remarkably easy, as the profession of "Employment Agent" seems to be almost free of regulation. … Read more
Phil Factor mourns the demise of the Eccentric in the IT World - "One of the best programmers I ever met was referred to, in Essex jargon, as being 'two stops short of Dagenham' (Barking)*. … Read more
Most software projects fail. Only about a quarter are completely successful. About half are late and over budget and the remaining quarter just fade into oblivion. What if there was a simple way to ensure your project's success? There is, and it's all about starting out in the right way...… Read more
