The Grammar of Data:
Vol 1. Grammar of Data: Intro “Studies on IT Project Success Rates”
Monday, January 7th, 2008Studies on IT Project Success Rates
IT development success rates are abysmal. When projects go over budget, miss their ship date, and suffer from feature creep or lack of proper quality assurance, no one wins. The client isn’t happy, the users aren’t happy, and chances are you aren’t happy, either. While the research shows that this […]
Vol 2. The Grammar of Data: Intro “Examples of Problems Caused by Poor Planning”
Monday, January 7th, 2008Examples of Problems Caused by Poor Planning
Many of these studies focused on large projects using enterprise software systems. So, you may be thinking, “Those studies apply to the big projects. I don’t need a structured development process because I’m working on a much smaller scale.”
That is a very dangerous thought. The process outlined in this […]
Vol 3. The Grammar of Data: Intro “Causes for Project Failures”
Monday, January 7th, 2008Causes for Project Failures
To prevent project disasters, you must examine the common reasons for failure to understand the importance of a process that will avoid them. Most failed projects experience one or many of the following characteristics. You aren’t guaranteed project success by avoiding these mistakes. However, they will keep you from completing your projects […]
Vol 4. The Grammar of Data: Intro “Causes for Project Successes”
Sunday, January 6th, 2008Causes for Project Successes
Successful projects tend to follow a similar pattern regardless of the companies involved or the business and technical purpose of the project. There are myriad ways to fail when building large software systems. There are only a very few ways to succeed.
Successful projects that finish on time and within budget and contain […]
Vol 5. The Grammar of Data: Intro “House Construction Example”
Sunday, January 6th, 2008House Construction Example: Building from the Ground Up
Development of a software project is analogous to building a house, in that a well-planned logical sequence of events can determine its level of success. Both situations benefit greatly from proper planning.
Create the blueprint
Any effective construction process, whether building a house or a software system, begins with […]
Vol 6. The Grammar of Data: Intro “Process Outline”
Sunday, January 6th, 2008Process Outline
The process described in this article has been used in many forms by many different companies using all types of database platforms. It focuses on planning and enables creative and efficient programming after development begins. It’s called the “Culver Process” after Eric Culver, President of Ability Integration, who first introduced this concept to the […]
Vol 7. The Grammar of Data: Discover “Discovery is a Study of Language”
Saturday, January 5th, 2008Discovery is a Study of Language
The process in this article is not about software; it is about learning how to define software. Therefore, the purpose is to teach you how to examine human language and routines to explore the way in which we organize data. Refined skills in identifying data within common language are […]
Vol 8. The Grammar of Data: Discover “What are Requirements?”
Friday, January 4th, 2008What are Requirements?
First, consider the true definition of requirements:
The IEEE Standard Glossary of Software Engineering Terminology define requirements as:
“A condition or capability needed by a user to solve a problem or achieve an objective.”
“A condition or capability that must be met or possessed by a solution or solution component to satisfy a contract, standard, specification, […]
Vol 9. The Grammar of Data: Discover “How Do You Discover Requirements?”
Friday, January 4th, 2008How Do You Discover Requirements?
The task of discovering requirements is similar to trawling for fish with large nets. You first run a net through an organization to catch every possible requirement. The trawling analogy is appropriate because the trawlers catch more fish than they really want. When fishing for salmon, fisherman may not be interested […]
Vol 10. The Grammar of Data: Discover “Create a Project Profile Questionaire”
Friday, January 4th, 2008Create a Project Profile Questionnaire
After researching your client and project, you want to develop a “Project Profile Questionnaire” to give your client. The client’s answers will help you determine the overall objectives of the project, as well as some of the preliminary information about the technical infrastructure of the organization. This information will help […]