Wednesday, July 9, 2008

Right technology.. right time...

Using the the most appropriate technology to solve a given problem is always the right thing to do

Unfortunately, in some instances, the technology chosen has nothing to do with whether it is the most suitable technology to solve the problem.  It is however, the result of the following,
- The most senior person in the team is most familiar with that technology
- Someone started on a POC to implement the solution on a particular technology, and the rest of the team simply continued on that path without stopping to question if it was the right way to go.
- Fear of open source -> and the inability to pay for a suitable commercial implementation -> results in creating an already existing, tried and tested framework. Talk about re-inventing the wheel.
- Lack of far thinking. Basically focusing on the here and now and not worried about future implications..

The right way to approach any problem like this is to stop and think a little. Just because everyone is jumping on the band wagon saying lets get this done, you shouldnt!
- First think, are we using the right tools to solve this problem.
- Evaluate all your options.. measure the pros vs the cons. This has always proven to be an invaluable exercise for almost any thing in software engineering.
- Based on the requirements and projections.. are you chosing the correct technology/solution.
- How about long term support... Would it be easier to hire engineers with this skill set?
- Try and avoid 're-inventing the wheel' as much as possible. Why waste time -> simple concentrate on solving business problems rather than problems that have already been solved by others. 

This will result in a more focused development envinronment that will ease your development process and provide higher quality results. 

My two cents...

Search This Blog