First time here? Check out the site's "greatest hits" or read a post from the archives. Feel free to leave a comment or ask a question, and consider subscribing to the latest posts via RSS or e-mail. Thanks for visiting!
Do you Tweet? Follow me on Twitter @shanselman or learn how to use Twitter!
« Tsunami - Apple.com has updated their ho... | Main | Blogs and Opinions - "Viewer Mail," an i... »

There's an amazing essay at The Spurious Pundit on "Picture Hanging." It's an allegory that explores how simple requirements in software aren't that obvious to folks who may not have context. The writing is wonderful, do check it out, it's worth your time. Subscribed.

A highlight:

You tell him to hang the photo of your pet dog, and he comes back a week later, asking if you could "just double-check" his design for a drywall saw.

    "Why are you designing a drywall saw?"
    "Well, the wood saw in the office toolbox isn't good for cutting drywall."
    "What, you think you're the first person on earth to try and cut drywall? You can buy a saw for that at Home Depot."
    "Okay, cool, I'll go get one."
    "Wait, why are you cutting drywall in the first place?"
    "Well, I wasn't sure what the best practices for hanging pictures were, so I went online and found a newsgroup for gallery designers. And they said that the right way to do it was to cut through the wall, and build the frame into it. That way, you put the picture in from the back, and you can make the glass much more secure since you don't have to move it. It's a much more elegant solution than that whole nail thing."
    "..."

This metaphor may be starting to sound particularly fuzzy, but trust me - there are very real parallels to draw here. If you haven't seen them yet in your professional life, you will. [Spurious Pundit]




Contact

Sponsors

Hosting By

Hot Topics

Tags

Calendar

<November 2009>
SunMonTueWedThuFriSat
25262728293031
1234567
891011121314
15161718192021
22232425262728
293012345

Archives

November, 2009 (5)
October, 2009 (19)
September, 2009 (11)
August, 2009 (12)
July, 2009 (21)
June, 2009 (26)
May, 2009 (16)
April, 2009 (13)
March, 2009 (17)
February, 2009 (17)
January, 2009 (18)
December, 2008 (32)
November, 2008 (17)
October, 2008 (22)
September, 2008 (16)
August, 2008 (14)
July, 2008 (25)
June, 2008 (19)
May, 2008 (17)
April, 2008 (17)
March, 2008 (26)
February, 2008 (21)
January, 2008 (28)
December, 2007 (19)
November, 2007 (17)
October, 2007 (31)
September, 2007 (39)
August, 2007 (37)
July, 2007 (43)
June, 2007 (37)
May, 2007 (32)
April, 2007 (38)
March, 2007 (29)
February, 2007 (46)
January, 2007 (31)
December, 2006 (27)
November, 2006 (31)
October, 2006 (32)
September, 2006 (39)
August, 2006 (34)
July, 2006 (40)
June, 2006 (18)
May, 2006 (31)
April, 2006 (34)
March, 2006 (30)
February, 2006 (38)
January, 2006 (44)
December, 2005 (19)
November, 2005 (34)
October, 2005 (24)
September, 2005 (37)
August, 2005 (20)
July, 2005 (24)
June, 2005 (33)
May, 2005 (16)
April, 2005 (22)
March, 2005 (34)
February, 2005 (15)
January, 2005 (37)
December, 2004 (28)
November, 2004 (30)
October, 2004 (34)
September, 2004 (22)
August, 2004 (34)
July, 2004 (18)
June, 2004 (64)
May, 2004 (49)
April, 2004 (21)
March, 2004 (29)
February, 2004 (29)
January, 2004 (36)
December, 2003 (25)
November, 2003 (24)
October, 2003 (59)
September, 2003 (42)
August, 2003 (24)
July, 2003 (44)
June, 2003 (29)
May, 2003 (21)
April, 2003 (30)
March, 2003 (27)
February, 2003 (47)
January, 2003 (50)
December, 2002 (31)
November, 2002 (38)
October, 2002 (44)
September, 2002 (15)
May, 2002 (2)
April, 2002 (4)

Google Ads