Gallery Opening + Flickr Test

this is a really nice painting
DSC00212.JPG
Originally uploaded by subherwal

Tasker/Implementer Discussion

Tasker - defined at the time of task card creation; a tasker takes a story and ...

a) defines AC/DCs (customer, acceptance criteria, and deliverables) and posts them out to the Wiki

b) creates and estimates the task cards associated with the story

This is done during the 'post pre-planning' meetings, which take place the day of the pre-planning meeting.

Implementer (or 'Prime' or 'Owner') - the Implementer is established when the actual work is taken up and is typically the first person to take down a task card associated with a story. When that happens, the person's name should be attached to the story card (the blue card). The Implementer...

a) drives the story

b) assures quality (by making sure that the acceptance criteria can be met), and

c) is responsible for keeping tabs on the status of the card

The Implementer can change over time, by hingeing off with someone, so he is not married to the task forever. Note that 'responsible' does not mean 'subject to blame' if the story is not finished, but does mean that he is accountable for the status of the story and for knowing why (and why not) the tasks associated with the story have (have not) been completed.

Milestone Driven Development - raw notes

Milestone Driven Development

extremely raw notes...

fdd and gdd - drive to completion a large piece of functionality. However, mdd takes that a step further; drive to milestones that (eventually) drive to goals.

mdd -> gdd -> fdd

Milestones are:
+ smaller "goals"; rungs on a ladder (best practice: m'stones no more than a sprint long)
+ achievable; small yet demoable
+ less risky: smaller estimates, fewer unknowns
+ more manageable: verify doneness on smaller deliverables. Change milestone roadmap in an agile environment all the time. Example: 1,2,3 can become 1,2,a,3 once 1 is complete, for instance and may not change too much.

+ easier to define ACDC

+ means to an end; crawl before you walk; etc.

assists:
management - track progress sprint to sprint; if a milestone is in jeopardy, the drop goal is too unless you descope or reprioritize
developers - can modify "roadmap" at any milestone
testers - can validate smaller pieces

Example:

Feature: Add to Shopping Cart (FDD)

Release/Drop Goal: Place a single transaction in shopping cart (GDD)

Milestones (prioritized - some may be parallel efforts): (MDD)

1. Write User Stories
2. Implement User Stories
3. Complete Validation
4. Duplicate Checking
5. Security, etc...

Heading to RailsConf

My Conference Plan

Home

I am on my way to close the house in Connecticut and end that chapter of our lives.

The house has been very important to me in many ways - I am sad and excited all at the same time!!! This was the first house I ever purchased and was very proud of it. This was also the first place Bks and I called Home together. Our cats loved the house too; Ben and Ivy chased each other around the house, up and down the stairs. They watched the birds all day while they schemed on different ways to get out the garage door. (Ben also helped Ivy get out of her shell in this house.)

It is now time to move on to new beginnings. We now live close to DC in Alexandria, VA and are beginning to settle down there. However, I will always cherish the memories of life in New Haven.

Yeah, It has been a while...

A few things have happened at work that have made me feel passionate about what I do again - While some have been interesting and challenging, others have been downright weird! However, it has been a learning experience through it all. And, it has made me blog again!

A month ago, my (ThoughtWorks-appointed) Iteration Manager at the client site was requested to leave the project due to issues related to scope management and delivery for our specific module. This module is a very complex part of an extremely large J2EE project. I was asked to take over management of this team and become the new Scrum Master (Iteration Manager).

Initially, I planned to reject the promotion due to several reasons;

• The team was extremely fragile.

• I had never managed a team for ThoughtWorks before.

• There were specific members of the team that made the team extremely disfunctional.

However, after a few restless nights and assistance from several people, I decided to take the job!

Well, I can say that (so far) this has been the right decision - The team seems to have turned around and has really delivered a lot of functionality in the previous sprint. Everyone on the team has found renewed focus and are happy to see all the changes made in the team. My goal for the team is simple - delivery, simplicity and happiness - I think we are on our way. Sprint Review takes place middle of next week. This is when the stakeholders meet with the team (in pure Scrum fashion) and review all the deliverables. Last review, a few days after I was handed the team, I had almost nothing to show. This time around, we have a lot to present and this is only because every member of the team decided to step up to deliver. We just have to make sure this momentum is sustained for the next several months. I guess time will tell...

Of course, it has not been as easy as it may seem. I have had to make a few difficult changes and decisions in the past few weeks. Last week, I was asked to move a technically-respected member off my team - this has been one of the most difficult decisions so far. I feel that it is the right thing to do and in the best interest of the client and this person.

This client is an extremely difficult one and the politics remind me of my last full-time job. However, I really feel passionate about helping my team deliver and the client and I understand that if my team succeeds, it will eventually drive the project to succeed in the long term. I continue to do the best I can within the constraints provided and believe that this team will eventually turn around after making sure all the wheels are churning with ease.

Starbucks, Sidewalks and the Indian Embassy

Here I am, at a Starbucks in NYC, a few blocks from B's office, people watching while I wait for the Indian Embassy to renew my passport. I may be able to go to India in December after all but I still need to work with the US Consulate in Bombay. Hopefully I will get the appointment in time and it will all work out. I took the train in with B this morning and slept all the way. It is really amazing that she has done this for so long. Let me tell you, it can get long and uncomfortable.

Talking about Starbucks, I cannot believe that their Christmas drink specials are out already - Thanksgiving is still a few weeks away! However, I am not complaining too much since their peppermint mocha is awesome; you could not go wrong with it...
From a technical perspective, here is an insightful article about Starbucks and the 2 phased message commit, written by a former colleague at ThoughtWorks.

The last couple of months in the year are the best time to be in New York City - it is very festive and beautiful - always puts me in a great mood. Apparently, someone has also noticed that I sing Christmas songs whenever I am happy... ALL year round. I will not get to be here this year but that's alright since I get to see family again!

This week in India (with Diwali and Id celebrations) is a lot like Christmas time in the US. All the buildings and streets are lit up and everyone is in an awesome mood. Hopefully the Delhi attacks (earlier this week) did not dampen the resilient Indian spirit too much...

Red Tape

Well, now is as good a time as any to start blogging... I have been thinking about doing this for a while now and finally decided to get to it.


I am really looking forward to my trip to India in December! Will see my family again - my mom, my brother and his wife and their beautiful baby girl (my brother is too lazy to put up pictures of her so all I have seen of her are the first hours after birth), my crazy cousins in bombay and the rest of my awesome family! Looking forward to seeing Mish and Huz as well - I spoke to Mish recently and it felt like we never lost touch! Also, B will be travelling to India with me - this is the first time she is visiting India and I hope she has a fun time as well... hopefully she will get to see and enjoy South India and Bombay (while I reminisce)...

Anyway, it was all awesome until I discovered the red tape surrounding travel documents (to fly in and out of India) - It can be a cumbersome, stressful experience that may jeopardize the entire trip. I have to visit the US Consulate in India and there are no appointments available till March 2006!?!

I really hope all this works out soon and I get to go home next month... It really has been a long time since I have been home - ever since my brothers wedding - I am sure a lot has changed but, hopefully, everything remains the same...