Re: Blog post for discussion
Adrian Mowat <mowat27 <at> googlemail.com>
2007-08-01 15:58:43 GMT
I find there are two groups of people. Those who think in terms of
capability and those who think in terms of actions.
People who think about capability understand that an application *ought* to
be able to perform a given function and spend their time trying to figure
out how to do it. People who thing in terms of actions are driven by those
features of a program they know how to use and either fear to dig deeper or
it does not occur to them to try.
Those who think in terms of capabilities are much more able to adapt and
learn new applications and techniques much more quickly.
The same goes for trying to teach Agile and/or get existing teams to try new
techniques. Some people can see there is potential to improve in the status
quo and are keen to give it a try while others are happy doing things the
way they always have and need quite a lot of persuading to change.
On 01/08/07, Tim Ottinger <linux_tim <at> yahoo.com> wrote:
> Good example. A lot of people get Windows with their first computer, and
> never learn a second operating system. I've noticed that people who had
> trouble acclimating to computers with windows fear that it will be just as
> hard to switch to Mac or Linux or whatever, because they don't realize that
> they've learned to use GUIs already, and they've learned to use computers
> already, and that's separate from the investment in windows. I found
> switching to be mostly trivial, and mostly beneficial, and not so hard.
> OTOH, my first OS was TRS-80, third was CP/M and Windows was fifth or sixth.
> But when we think about people not switching IDEs or languages, consider
> the tenacity with which people cling to their Windows, and the foolishness
> ----- Original Message ----
> From: Cory Foy <usergroup <at> cornetdesign.com <usergroup%40cornetdesign.com>>
> To: extremeprogramming <at> yahoogroups.com<extremeprogramming%40yahoogroups.com>
> Sent: Wednesday, August 1, 2007 8:30:10 AM
> Subject: Re: [XP] Blog post for discussion
> > In summary, if has been found that animals "imprint on the first
> > they see shortly after birth" and the author of the post argues that
> > developers have a similar reaction to trying new tools. The example used
> > that we might be reluctant to try a new IDE because we are used to the
> > we have always used and are still trying to maximise our productivity
> > it.
> How many people who use Windows switched their start menu to "Classic"
> mode as soon as they got XP? I don't think that's because of impression,
> I think it's because making usable UIs is difficult, and once people are
> used to them, they don't want to have to invest the time to have to
> learn a new paradigm.
> Another example is that, in the new Office, they use this ribbon bar
> concept. I still can't figure out how to do half the stuff I used to do,
> but I've talked to people who say they've found features they never knew
> was there.
> Changing IDEs for a new language usually is a lot easier then changing
> IDEs for the same language. That's not as much of a problem in the .NET
> world, but in Java you have choices, and people get used to them.
> > I believe we often see a similar effect when trying to get an
> > to try new Agile ideas - no matter how hard we work to explain the
> And I think that dovetails to my last sentence. People have difficulty
> adapting to new ways of doing things they are already doing. But taking
> a new project and adapting XP, or a new IDE, or a new language, provides
> that natural break point to let people explore a little more.
> Cory Foy
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