06:48
Faizan
Many business people don't fully understand the complexity of a software development process. It's natural, since specialized books about development are read by developers and other IT people, and many others might still be referring to a software project as ''coding'' or ''writing''. With better luck one might add 'designing' and 'testing'. Quite inaccurate.
One can think of several metaphorical comparisons to describe software development, such as writing a book or building a house. Some of them are a good light in the dark, some are rather misleading. And while many people may argue whether creating software is an art, a science, or a precisely elaborated process, we'd leave that choice to someone else. It cannot be described sparsely. But we'll try to give some descriptions and comparisons in a compact and clear way.
Do We ''Write'' Software?
One of the common but rather vague things is comparing creating software with writing. Writing code, writing a book, and so on. You can start writing a book without a plan and go with the flow; with custom software development you cannot, unless developers do a rather small piece of software on their own - and for themselves. Moreover, an outsourced software project never starts with writing code.
Books and software may both have strict deadlines. But once a book is published, what's written is written; rewriting is not an option. But software keeps being under constant improvement with new versions being released - it's a natural thing. It's almost impossible to get every need of your end user, catch up with business and technological changes once and for a lifetime. Books aren't that dependent on changes; software is. But that's good: your software, unlike a book, can't become just another mediocre thing on the market, can't become irrelevant and outdated. The processes are absolutely different: we prefer using the words ''create'' or ''build'' software rather than ''write''.
Do We ''Grow'' Software?
''Growing'' software on a good basis and a good set of documentation is possible to a certain extent. Like with writing, it's not the best description one can suggest. It partially gets the incremental, agile nature of making and maintaining relevant software. But while ''growing'', the product is rarely tasty until it's ripe, and the owner has to wait awhile.
The difference is, in software development there are different stages of being ''ripe''. Startups usually demand rolling a minimum viable software product on the market, getting feedback and making corrections and improvements. Each version is more ''ripe'' than its predecessor, and it has to be ''watered'' by support and maintenance, kept fresh amidst all the business and technological changes.
One can think of several metaphorical comparisons to describe software development, such as writing a book or building a house. Some of them are a good light in the dark, some are rather misleading. And while many people may argue whether creating software is an art, a science, or a precisely elaborated process, we'd leave that choice to someone else. It cannot be described sparsely. But we'll try to give some descriptions and comparisons in a compact and clear way.
Do We ''Write'' Software?
One of the common but rather vague things is comparing creating software with writing. Writing code, writing a book, and so on. You can start writing a book without a plan and go with the flow; with custom software development you cannot, unless developers do a rather small piece of software on their own - and for themselves. Moreover, an outsourced software project never starts with writing code.
Books and software may both have strict deadlines. But once a book is published, what's written is written; rewriting is not an option. But software keeps being under constant improvement with new versions being released - it's a natural thing. It's almost impossible to get every need of your end user, catch up with business and technological changes once and for a lifetime. Books aren't that dependent on changes; software is. But that's good: your software, unlike a book, can't become just another mediocre thing on the market, can't become irrelevant and outdated. The processes are absolutely different: we prefer using the words ''create'' or ''build'' software rather than ''write''.
Do We ''Grow'' Software?
''Growing'' software on a good basis and a good set of documentation is possible to a certain extent. Like with writing, it's not the best description one can suggest. It partially gets the incremental, agile nature of making and maintaining relevant software. But while ''growing'', the product is rarely tasty until it's ripe, and the owner has to wait awhile.
The difference is, in software development there are different stages of being ''ripe''. Startups usually demand rolling a minimum viable software product on the market, getting feedback and making corrections and improvements. Each version is more ''ripe'' than its predecessor, and it has to be ''watered'' by support and maintenance, kept fresh amidst all the business and technological changes.
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