Rants

[CiberTHuG]

Okay... here is my morning rant. Everyone can feel free to join in.

<rant>
My client complains that prospective customers don't like the product because it looks to home grown. It even acts home grown, very amatuer, and very "some kid-in-high-school's first VB project".

They just had a meeting for the first time to dicuss a strategy for a cohesive UI. THIS WEEK!!! AFTER I'VE BEEN HERE FOR FIVE MONTHS!!! THE WEEK BEFORE VERSION 1.5 IS SUPPOSED TO GO PUBLIC!!!!

I complained about a functionality problem, and had some spare time, so I wrote some ASP to add some functionality that I felt was missing. You could go into a groups on call schedule and add people, but individual people couldn't edit their own schedule. If you went on vacation, then you had to go to three or four places to remove yourself from pager support.

What I wrote is simple, and works, and is understandable. But there is no security. I complain about this. I could go in and add the CIO to pager support. I ask what can we do? Today they tell me they are using auditing. TODAY!!!! We have had no meetings since I've been here to discuss anything, to talk stategy or make sure that everything is instep, with a common goal. TODAY THEY TELL ME THEY HAVE AUDITING!!!

So now I have to go back and add this crappy auditing routine that they have.

My client has a potentially good product, but they have no ****ing clue how to build a stable, real-world app that is competitive, scalable, upgradeable, that is tight and light. This is ametuer hour in Visual Studio.

These people don't even have QA!!!! There is no beta testing of any of this crap. I write it, I test it on my machine, and then I put it in the bin to be released. No matter how many times I say, "This should be load tested atleast." They just don't get it.

THIS CLIENT IS A ****ING MORON!!!!
</rant>

[Pix]

I don't have anything to rant about at the moment

[parksie]

Me neither, but I agree with Travis about this one. Even for our A-Level IT projects (a far cry from what he does) the teachers couldn't stress enough the importance of testing, and they're right.

[Kzin]

Originally posted by CiberTHuG
Okay... here is my morning rant. Everyone can feel free to join in.

<rant>
My client complains that prospective customers don't like the product because it looks to home grown. It even acts home grown, very amatuer, and very "some kid-in-high-school's first VB project".

They just had a meeting for the first time to dicuss a strategy for a cohesive UI. THIS WEEK!!! AFTER I'VE BEEN HERE FOR FIVE MONTHS!!! THE WEEK BEFORE VERSION 1.5 IS SUPPOSED TO GO PUBLIC!!!!

I complained about a functionality problem, and had some spare time, so I wrote some ASP to add some functionality that I felt was missing. You could go into a groups on call schedule and add people, but individual people couldn't edit their own schedule. If you went on vacation, then you had to go to three or four places to remove yourself from pager support.

What I wrote is simple, and works, and is understandable. But there is no security. I complain about this. I could go in and add the CIO to pager support. I ask what can we do? Today they tell me they are using auditing. TODAY!!!! We have had no meetings since I've been here to discuss anything, to talk stategy or make sure that everything is instep, with a common goal. TODAY THEY TELL ME THEY HAVE AUDITING!!!

So now I have to go back and add this crappy auditing routine that they have.

Presumably you or your manager just go back and give them an itemised time schedule for each additional non-scheduled items that they want as well as a document recommending specific upgrades. Let them work out how its all going to be done in the time

Originally posted by CiberTHuG

These people don't even have QA!!!! There is no beta testing of any of this crap. I write it, I test it on my machine, and then I put it in the bin to be released. No matter how many times I say, "This should be load tested atleast." They just don't get it.
</rant>

What Ciber don't have QA?

BTW CT weren't you getting married sometime soon - when are we congratulating you?

[Gaffer]

Originally posted by parksie
Me neither, but I agree with Travis about this one. Even for our A-Level IT projects (a far cry from what he does) the teachers couldn't stress enough the importance of testing, and they're right.

Absolutely. And my buiness analyst have been testing my little baby for 3 months now, it went live last night, and we had problems. At-work-until-1am-problesm....

I'me too tired to rant

[CiberTHuG]

Originally posted by Kzin
Presumably you or your manager just go back and give them an itemised time schedule for each additional non-scheduled items that they want as well as a document recommending specific upgrades. Let them work out how its all going to be done in the time

Well, I'm really just an odd job consultant. I do whatever they need. There wasn't an outline of tasks at the beginning of the engagement.

I offer my suggestions, but since I'm trying not to over step my bounds, my suggestions are easily dismissed.

What Ciber don't have QA?

As a company, we don't make any products, so we don't have a team set up for that. But our consultants can do it. We have procedures and outlines and we will easily adapt a client's procedures. Oddly enough, one of my client's prospective clients came back with a question; "Will it handle 400 monitors?"

My client hasn't a clue since it hasn't been load tested. What have I been suggesting? So, they told me to load test it this week. But the biggest server they can offer is a single P-III with a quarter gig or RAM. I called my boss and we might be able to scrounge up a dual P-II with a RAID array and maybe half a gig or RAM.

I will stress it on both machines, but hopefully anyone who is seriously wanting to run 400 monitors has something bigger than a beefy desktop.

BTW CT weren't you getting married sometime soon - when are we congratulating you?

As of this posting, TTM (time to marriage) is 18d07h20m. July 21, 4pm ET.

We had the bachelor/bachelorette parties this weekend. I'm surprised to say that the women turned in first.

This weekend I went to a "nudie" bar for the first time in my life (and I'm 26). I was always afraid to go, fearing that on the evening I went there would be the third string dancers. Butt ugly women who were missing teeth, and had stretch marks, and... well... just generally were unattractive enough to scare you gay. But, while I'm not a fan of tongue peircings (you peirced a muscle why?) I have to say that the women were pleasantly attractive. And of the dozen or so, only two had implants.

'Course, the whole experience was aimed at the lowest common denominator, quantity over quality, figuring you are too drunk to care.

[Ianpbaker]

IT'S NOT A SNICKER, IT'S A MARATHON

[CiberTHuG]

Originally posted by Ianpbaker
IT'S NOT A SNICKER, IT'S A MARATHON

You'll have to translate that into English.

Near as I can tell, you are talking about two candy bars.

[Ianpbaker]

lol

Quite a few years ago over here in blighty, Snickers used to be called marathons, but had the corperate name change.

just taking this piss slightly

[CiberTHuG]

Was Marathon a grocery store?

[Kzin]

Originally posted by CiberTHuG


Well, I'm really just an odd job consultant. I do whatever they need. There wasn't an outline of tasks at the beginning of the engagement.

I offer my suggestions, but since I'm trying not to over step my bounds, my suggestions are easily dismissed.

I've got to agree with what has been said so far- testing is absolutely essential (and in my view an absolute nightmare in complex systems).

I've noticed that the best contractors (best as in most experienced and professional rather than smartest) do delimit their tasks on paper and make sure that the clients buy in on the task list - even if they claim that this is just for their own use - I think it makes life a lot easier for them in the long run.

As for the internal politics though I don't think I'm much help with advice - not subservient enough I guess

Originally posted by CiberTHuG

As of this posting, TTM (time to marriage) is 18d07h20m. July 21, 4pm ET.

This weekend I went to a "nudie" bar for the first time in my life (and I'm 26). I was always afraid to go, fearing

'Course, the whole experience was aimed at the lowest common denominator, quantity over quality, figuring you are too drunk to care.

First and last time I guess! Doesn't sound as though you were missing much! I lived in halls of residence as a undergrad student with a bunch of mining engineer types and there was all together too much of this sort of stuff - quality over quantity any day!

Originally posted by CiberTHuG

But, while I'm not a fan of tongue peircings (you peirced a muscle why?)

Not just tongues I would guess

- anyway piercing seems a baaad idea for a fashion just at a time when most people don't need to get contaminated with each others blood