Screen Scholar http://blog.screenscholar.com/ Musings, philosophy, and techniques of human relationships and software through the lens of an avid entrepreneurial developer. en Copyright 2010 Thu, 18 Feb 2010 11:11:30 -0700 http://www.sixapart.com/movabletype/ http://www.rssboard.org/rss-specification Effective UI website up for awards...vote now!
]]> http://blog.screenscholar.com/2010/02/httpwwweffectiveuicom-is-up-fo.html http://blog.screenscholar.com/2010/02/httpwwweffectiveuicom-is-up-fo.html Thu, 18 Feb 2010 11:11:30 -0700 Effective UI (my Employer) Book hits #5 in Prerelease! As of today, the book to which I and many others here at Effective UI contributed has hit #5 in Multimedia Information Systems Books, and it's still in Prerelease!!

Check it out!

]]> http://blog.screenscholar.com/2010/02/effective-ui-my-employer-book.html http://blog.screenscholar.com/2010/02/effective-ui-my-employer-book.html books effectiveui software programming Tue, 02 Feb 2010 14:36:41 -0700 ...on communicating scope...
  • Make it a picture.  It's understandable, digestable, communicable, and invokes thought on the part of the client.
  • Communicate scope early and often.  Change is inevitable...change without communication is inevitable failure.
  • Like Scotty on the starship Enterprise - never let them know how the magic happens. And always under-promise and over-deliver.
  • Invoke clients to think about what is agreed, and make sure they know when they're asking for something different than what's been agreed.
  • When you can, call out and itemize work that has been performed outside of the agreed scope.  Clients will either appreciate the work, or discuss a redirection, which is only better for everyone.

]]> http://blog.screenscholar.com/2009/12/business-software-overview-opi.html http://blog.screenscholar.com/2009/12/business-software-overview-opi.html business software Thu, 31 Dec 2009 21:19:49 -0700 Looking for Topics
Over the next few weeks I'll be compiling a list of topics that have crossed my path, but if anyone out there is interested in something specific - I'll add it to my list.
]]> http://blog.screenscholar.com/2009/11/looking-for-topics.html http://blog.screenscholar.com/2009/11/looking-for-topics.html General blogging Sun, 22 Nov 2009 11:26:19 -0700 Greetings, blogosphere.
Things I am:
  • Father of 3 daughters & Husband (of 1, "X" to none)
  • A "Senior Software Architect"
Those 2 things eat about 90% of my waking life.  With the remaining 10%, I:
  • Explore new ways of doing business through books, and personal experimentation
  • Investigate spirituality through books and personal experimentation
  • eat, sleep, and fulfill other biological necessities.
I find myself asking myself "Self, why are you even doing this blog?"

I can come up with more than a few justifiable reasons, but the immediately available ones include:
  • I think my ego needs an outlet, and I'd like to focus on reducing that need (and the associated ego).
  • I like to share things I learned.
  • I think I have experienced a lot of pain in business and software, and I believe that pain is a great teacher, which leads me to believe I have a lot to offer the business and software industry.
  • There's some part of me that thinks, very simply, that it should and must be done.  Oddly - this is simultaneously the most ambiguous and strongest factor in my final decision.
So - to the blogosphere at large I say "Greetings, hello, and go easy on me, I'm new at this..."
]]> http://blog.screenscholar.com/2009/11/greetings-blogosphere.html http://blog.screenscholar.com/2009/11/greetings-blogosphere.html General blogging me personal Sat, 21 Nov 2009 13:22:43 -0700