Comments for Jack Moxley http://www.jackmoxley.com/blog The world according to Thu, 08 May 2008 09:11:58 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.1 hourly 1 Comment on Day 2 at Java One by Matt http://www.jackmoxley.com/blog/?p=13#comment-11 Matt Thu, 08 May 2008 09:11:58 +0000 http://www.jackmoxley.com/blog/?p=13#comment-11 Jack, Glad to hear that the swag quality is similar to European conventions! Cheers Matt Jack,

Glad to hear that the swag quality is similar to European conventions!

Cheers

Matt

]]> Comment on General Session by Matthew the Great and Modest http://www.jackmoxley.com/blog/?p=10#comment-10 Matthew the Great and Modest Wed, 07 May 2008 11:10:18 +0000 http://www.jackmoxley.com/blog/?p=10#comment-10 Woo! Java related blogging! Hope you have a good time Jack, and remember free holidays don't turn up every day. Make the most of it :) Woo! Java related blogging!

Hope you have a good time Jack, and remember free holidays don’t turn up every day. Make the most of it :)

]]> Comment on DIY by Matthew the Great and Modest http://www.jackmoxley.com/blog/?p=4#comment-9 Matthew the Great and Modest Tue, 06 May 2008 16:24:36 +0000 http://www.jackmoxley.com/blog/?p=4#comment-9 I would say that you are mistaking single user development with multi user development. In a single user development environment the implementer must also have the vision. In a multi user development environment only one person is required to have a coherent high level vision. I would suggest that Agile development is multi user, given that the procedures in place are to implement high levels of communication between the different members. I would say that you are mistaking single user development with multi user development. In a single user development environment the implementer must also have the vision. In a multi user development environment only one person is required to have a coherent high level vision. I would suggest that Agile development is multi user, given that the procedures in place are to implement high levels of communication between the different members.

]]> Comment on What to do, Coffee? by Matthew the Great and Modest http://www.jackmoxley.com/blog/?p=5#comment-8 Matthew the Great and Modest Tue, 06 May 2008 12:59:36 +0000 http://www.jackmoxley.com/blog/?p=5#comment-8 Hey Jack, "Don’t use instant. (not unless you like the taste of gravel and tar)" Lies! I find the instant coffee at work to be better than the machine made coffee. "Leave for at least 5 minutes, I prefer 10/15" Most people like their coffee hot. In fact, Hot Coffee has become extremely famus. Hey Jack,

“Don’t use instant. (not unless you like the taste of gravel and tar)”

Lies! I find the instant coffee at work to be better than the machine made coffee.

“Leave for at least 5 minutes, I prefer 10/15″

Most people like their coffee hot. In fact, Hot Coffee has become extremely famus.

]]> Comment on DIY by Tom Hume http://www.jackmoxley.com/blog/?p=4#comment-4 Tom Hume Fri, 21 Mar 2008 18:07:52 +0000 http://www.jackmoxley.com/blog/?p=4#comment-4 Work smarter? Absolutely - I can't imagine anyone proposing that we work stupider ;) But in any environment where you have competition, it's not enough - you need to work smarter and harder (bearing in mind the impact of overfocusing on work over aspects of your life of course). Work smarter? Absolutely – I can’t imagine anyone proposing that we work stupider ;) But in any environment where you have competition, it’s not enough – you need to work smarter and harder (bearing in mind the impact of overfocusing on work over aspects of your life of course).

]]> Comment on DIY by Bryan Rieger http://www.jackmoxley.com/blog/?p=4#comment-3 Bryan Rieger Fri, 21 Mar 2008 13:41:20 +0000 http://www.jackmoxley.com/blog/?p=4#comment-3 Personally, I think the problems with BIG IDEAS tend often to be in their complexity. If your idea is so huge and ultimately complex that it requires an ISO process, documentation and legions of minions then count on lots of perspiration and a sheer brute force effort to see it through to reality. However, if your big idea is based around simple, easy to understand principals that can easily be communicated, agreed upon and referenced quickly then I'd argue the work involved won't nearly be as taxing on your available resources and may just even be a joy to deliver. I think it comes down to being able to keep the entire problem and all of the guiding principals in your head at any given time so you're most able to efficiently work through the project. If you constantly have to load/unload and evaluate (ie task switch) information then chances are you BIG IDEA is likely to grow in scope as you make new decisions on recent learnings - which of course are likely to have an impact on parts of the BIG IDEA that are currently 'unloaded'. Work is work - that 99% doesn't go away, but I honestly believe that the old saying of work smarter, not harder is sound advice. Personally, I think the problems with BIG IDEAS tend often to be in their complexity. If your idea is so huge and ultimately complex that it requires an ISO process, documentation and legions of minions then count on lots of perspiration and a sheer brute force effort to see it through to reality.

However, if your big idea is based around simple, easy to understand principals that can easily be communicated, agreed upon and referenced quickly then I’d argue the work involved won’t nearly be as taxing on your available resources and may just even be a joy to deliver.

I think it comes down to being able to keep the entire problem and all of the guiding principals in your head at any given time so you’re most able to efficiently work through the project. If you constantly have to load/unload and evaluate (ie task switch) information then chances are you BIG IDEA is likely to grow in scope as you make new decisions on recent learnings – which of course are likely to have an impact on parts of the BIG IDEA that are currently ‘unloaded’.

Work is work – that 99% doesn’t go away, but I honestly believe that the old saying of work smarter, not harder is sound advice.

]]> Comment on DIY by Tom Hume http://www.jackmoxley.com/blog/?p=4#comment-2 Tom Hume Sun, 16 Mar 2008 23:05:01 +0000 http://www.jackmoxley.com/blog/?p=4#comment-2 Counterpoints and sniffiness: the myth that genius is a solitary affair is quite a prevalent one. The ability to DIY is great, there's also a lot to be said for standing on the shoulders of giants. Decomposing large tasks into small ones predates agile, or indeed software development, by millenia. If a big idea gets lost when you analyse it, then how is it ever big, or an idea? Execution counts as much as inspiration (which I think you acknowledge in your "dreamers that do" phrase): 1% inspiration, 99% perspiration. It's not either/or, and boxing up humanity into dreamers and bureaucracy is kinda cruel, no? Confidence as the only antidote? What about group hugs, co-operation, and constructive debate? And who's the arbiter of good and bad ideas? Don't current environmental problems show us that our definition of hindsight needs to be extended thousands of years into the future to be worthwhile? Welcome to the blogosphere :) Counterpoints and sniffiness: the myth that genius is a solitary affair is quite a prevalent one. The ability to DIY is great, there’s also a lot to be said for standing on the shoulders of giants. Decomposing large tasks into small ones predates agile, or indeed software development, by millenia. If a big idea gets lost when you analyse it, then how is it ever big, or an idea? Execution counts as much as inspiration (which I think you acknowledge in your “dreamers that do” phrase): 1% inspiration, 99% perspiration. It’s not either/or, and boxing up humanity into dreamers and bureaucracy is kinda cruel, no?

Confidence as the only antidote? What about group hugs, co-operation, and constructive debate?

And who’s the arbiter of good and bad ideas? Don’t current environmental problems show us that our definition of hindsight needs to be extended thousands of years into the future to be worthwhile?

Welcome to the blogosphere :)

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