Agile and SCRUM

Agile vs. Waterfall: A Tale of Two Teams - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PHS-ycbRwqI


SCRUM - Scrum is an iterative, incremental framework for project management often seen in agile software development, a type of software engineering.


What is Scrum? - http://www.mountaingoatsoftware.com/topics/scrum
What are the main activities in Scrum? - http://www.mountaingoatsoftware.com/topics/scrum
What are the main artifacts of a Scrum project? - http://www.mountaingoatsoftware.com/topics/scrum
What are the main roles on a Scrum team? - http://www.mountaingoatsoftware.com/topics/scrum



Scrum Wiki - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scrum_(development)

Scrum with Urban Turtle - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WxiuE-1ujCM&feature=player_embedded#!


Agile Intro 1 - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IbhKG0rNWgQ&feature=related
Agile Intro 2 - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5pEx7zONEUs&feature=related
Agile Intro 3 - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kbn6hMAxPZ0&feature=related

Kinect Effect Reaches Into Hospitals, Senior Centers

http://www.microsoft.com/presspass/features/2011/dec11/12-19KinectEffect.mspx?rss_fdn=Custom

10 predictions for 2012 in tech

1. The web experience: Cascadia believes this potential $8 billion market, which has been led by the growth in online shopping, will continue. Speech recognition technology, thanks to the popularity of Apple’s Siri, will also gain more attention.

2. Cloud computing and data center automation: 2011 was the year of the cloud, and companies will now look to reduce the huge cost of running data centers with data center automation solutions.

3. Continued growth in the cloud: Enterprise will want affordable cloud solutions. Cascadia predicts that small and medium-sized businesses will be the biggest market.

4. Software development becomes agile: The growth of mobile apps has shown that new applications can hit the market in mere days after development. Cascadia thinks large software companies will recognize the growing importance of tablets and smartphones and acquisitions may follow.

5. Convergence of SoLoMo: Social, local and mobile have all seen growing interest with the growth of services like Foursquare. Mobile commerce could be a $100 billion industry in a couple years, and Cascadia believes this will lead to M&A activity.

6. Online video advertising: This segment will continue to grow, and advertisers will continue to shift away from print and television. By 2015, online video advertising spending could reach $7.1 billion.

7. Video content from broadcast to broadband: More and more people will watch video online, and this will result in more M&A activity for companies that make technology to digitize, store and distribute video.

8. Brick-and-mortar acquires e-retailers: Most brick-and-mortar stores have an online storefront, but consumers are buying more from e-retailers. Cascadia thinks acquisitions could be forthcoming from companies looking to maintain their strong positions in the market, like Home Depot, Lowe’s or Bed Bath and Beyond.

9. Social voice gets louder: Hundreds of millions of people are now on social media sites, but advertisers will continue to want more detail about the users of social media. Companies offering social analytics will see interest from investors.

10. Continued consolidation in online advertising: Ad networks of Google, Yahoo and Microsoft dominate the online advertising space. The space could become a $77 billion industry by 2016, and Cascadia believes these companies could shut out competitors.

Extracted - http://www.techflash.com/seattle/2011/12/10-predictions-for-2012-in-tech-the.html?ana=from_rss&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+TechFlash+%28TechFlash+-+Seattle%27s+Technology+News+Source%29&utm_content=Google+Reader

HTML 5 Browser Support Banners

http://www.findmebyip.com/litmus/#html5-web-applications

http://www.focus.com/images/view/11905/

The First Real-World App Store

https://openspacestore.com/

The Rise of the "App Internet"

At a recent conference in Paris, Forrester Research's Chairman and CEO George Colony challenged attendees to change the way they think about the Internet. He posited his theory that the Web is really software architecture and the Internet is becoming the "App Internet."

Colony explained, "In this model, powerful local devices (PCs, smart phones, tablets) run applications that simultaneously take advantage of resources in the Web/Cloud. If you want to see this model in action, check out iPhone and Android applications."

Forrester believes that this new "App Internet" could be worth $2.2 billion."

Extracted from - http://www.infoq.com/news/2011/12/app-internet

Things to remember while working in a software company

Once you get into a company, you will come across many different people with different attitudes and passions.
In the same project, you may have competitors / the more lazy / one who neither wants to move ahead and can't even see you moving or the one who falls for you, irrespective of your position.
Well, these may make you worry and if you are mature enough, you can make others worry by ignoring them (which is the toughest part to do, after all we are humans with emotions).

Let me turn to a developer who is working hard to prove how dedicated/strong he is and becomes disappointed after the review/rating/appraisal. The most important thing is not to just work hard, but let your superior know what you are doing. What is the risk you are taking/have taken, the amount of time you are spending in the organization. That way, he will always have the visibility of what you are doing and can guide you as and when required. It’s always better to shadow someone as you may not be best at the very initial stage, but his/her experience will help you to grow better. There are people who might want to surprise everyone/superior with something extra, they hide what they are doing and only if they succeed, they come up or sometimes being lazy they go back, and this most of the time, puzzles the superior, but it's important to note that the project and your superior are not your family members. They can’t read you until you convey to them.

It is also noticed that the developer wants to do better in projects than what the client expects (the design/development) but it's always better to have a clear communication and visibility before you do something because sometimes, the line you have changed may have its own significance to the client/project, and they may fire back.

One thing which we should accept is that predicting someone’s mind is always risky than to commit/ understand and work on what we hear/ what has been said. There might be very simple mantras to get flick in the organization.
What I would say is to first make yourself simple, be dedicated towards the assigned work, before that do analysis and evaluate the timeline, try to be a bit committed, also give some time for regular improvement (upgrade), have a cup of coffee with co-workers and turn to a helping hand as and when required.

Let me add about the quality of work... which is always better to provide, but check out the timeline. You shouldn't try to be perfect when you know you are working on a tight schedule. You can take up all the points to your superior with clear and polite communication. There is no harm in using shortcuts as and when really required.

Let me go back and pick the used terms. When we say helping hand, it should be help and not to take the whole credit/steal from someone's mouth and eat fully, grow and let others grow, so people will remember you. When we say committed, you should check for the possibility of achievement and try out if you can't achieve within a given time, no need to feel low, no one is perfect but giving prior intimation to superior is always better.
About upgrading, yeah there should be some hours of time you give for yourself; you shouldn’t be puzzled after years of work as you don't know what the current market demands, also accept the truth... Perfection is always important, but knowledge is wealth.

Well, the other thing is coffee with co-worker, yeah it's important, grooming with co-workers sometimes brings people closer and gives an opportunity to understand each other, creates an emotional touch. It also gives an opportunity to share ideas and get knowledge. You shouldn't drag your colleague if he/she is really busy; make it casual rather than a very important task. Your tea time shouldn’t be so long that your superior is really getting disappointed, and it shouldn’t be a sort of tension for her/him. Keep track of your activity, we shouldn't forget that the company pays us on an hourly basis and we should be worth the money. Everyone will have their own way to track the daily activity, but it's better you draft your day's schedule on paper as soon as you reach the office and check and work if you have some priority task to finish (In short, list out your priorities).

Now let’s step into a role where if a person is managing a team, obviously which can't be a simple job, as the job of a junior because if a junior is noticed by one superior then the lead will be surrounded with many eyes, a team, his superior and other stockholders, it’s not just managing one but managing many stockholders of a project with the project.
When in IT, the most important quality is to adapt your leadership style according to the situation and/or the state of the team - an example is to be a supervisory leader when a team is forming but to be a participative leader when a team is performing. A leader must play with the individual strengths rather point to weaknesses. People love the one who supports, guides and gives room for growth, rather than ignores. Honesty, patience and confidence are key qualities. The other thing that a leader must have is vision.

When we talk about a manager, he/she should be a leader and with better planning quality. A perfect planning gets half of the work done. This comes only with experience, sometimes after failing several times, you may not be perfect, and need not worry about it, and we are not here to succeed always. It’s better to have people in control as much as the project, which surely helps in progressing.

We will see the other way around, in IT few situations which often happen in small scale industry. The scarcity of the project, the scarcity of resources/expects resources, which sometimes may bring the tough time for an individual. Most of the time, this leads to competition/ worry to upgrade/ make resources to quit the job. A simple tip is to keep updating yourself. It is often noticed that if a person gets into completion would always love to win and sometimes can go to any extent to make others lose or show down and sometimes, a person really doesn't think about where the path leads to. He/she shouldn’t forget that people are watching them. It is recommended not to get into such situations. Live and let others live. The world is round and every individual has his/her own strengths. Never work to please someone in the organization, just look for your individual strength and the organization benefits. Your individual growth is directly/indirectly the growth of the organization. Remember the resume should build slowly. Try to make sure that you have a strong foundation. Avoid comparison.

Also your stability in the organization always makes a lot of difference in your organization and resume, it will make you stronger but you should stay back for the sake of the resume, your everyday leaning and growth is most important. Remember it’s not family planning to plan for minimum 3/5 or 10 years stability. Place yourself where you are learning and growing and always share ideas.

Last but not the least statement for IT and non IT folks, try to be happy with whatever you do, you shouldn’t lose self-respect and peace of mind... Being happy is not just what we meant to be, we are here to do a little more. Even tough “successful or the richest person is weaker in front of the happiest person”. Don't die to live and be happy!!
Good luck!!

Extracted from - http://www.codeproject.com/Tips/295787/Remember-things-while-working-in-Software-Company

How to become a successful businessman

Believe in yourself

Being an entrepreneur is a lot more risky than the conventional job routine. There is no regular salary; you have to find customers on your own. Marketing your product/service and financing the project are also of concern. I noticed that most entrepreneurs use a combination of due diligence and gut instincts while evaluating their product/service. They are good at spotting a need in the market and then backing themselves up to believe that their idea can fill that void.

Lesson one -- Believe in your idea. Never underestimate what you can do. You may surprise yourself.

• Entrepreneurship: What it takes

Hire the right people

Most entrepreneurs highlighted this as the toughest aspect of building a business. Sanjay Bhargava, who co-founded Paypal, recommended entrepreneurs to bring in people who are really good at what they do and also to focus on ensuring the team members get along with each other.

Some entrepreneurs confessed they made the initial mistake of hiring friends and people they liked, but soon realised that friends were not always the best employees.

Lesson two -- Build your team with people possessing complementary skills, not 'yes men' who are always showering praise. You need employees, partners and mentors you trust, who will give you honest feedback and take your company to the next level.

• Have a question you want to ask?

Be money wise

While some entrepreneurs went in for conventional sources of funding from a venture capitalist or banks, etc, quite a few started out with their savings or by borrowing money from friends and family. Most entrepreneurs said they focused on increasing efficiency and optimising costs and overheads. One entrepreneur shared that he consciously stayed away from non-essentials like an extravagant office, equipments, etc. The focus was on superior execution and high quality service.

Lesson three -- It's tempting to dream of a corner office, a pool table and expensive chairs, but give it some time. Start small and start efficient. Being better is more important than being bigger.

Concentrate on the message

"As a small business, most of our marketing is word-of-mouth. Our clients appreciate the kind of work we do and our reputation for delivering results," said Vidhanshu Bansal, founder of an information-technology company called Pixel Webtech.

Most entrepreneurs said that in the early days, their tendency was to focus on sales activities and as they grew, they started looking at various marketing initiatives, as that is the cement that gels customers, vendors and employees together. Their strategy kept changing, depending on what worked -- direct mailers, e-mail marketing, presentations at seminars, etc.

Lesson four -- Marketing a start-up business is a 24/7 activity and you need to pay attention to the message you're sending out to existing and prospective clients. Your message has to be tailored to meet the customer's expectations.

Keep the team motivated

Do not indulge in fault-finding or blame games. That was a clear message from most entrepreneurs. Pigeonholing a particular member of the team may spread negative vibes within the team and cost you time and quality. Celebrating every small success and appreciating team members will build a sense of camaraderie.

Lesson five -- Be a coach, rather than the star player. Appreciate and acknowledge the positive behaviours of team members so that the behaviours turn into consistent practices.

Make mistakes

"If you ain't a little bit scared, you ain't driving fast enough," said Deepak Wadhwa, another entrepreneur. Most entrepreneurs agreed. Give your people the license to fail. It's ok to make a mistake as long as they are succeeding 9 out of 10 times, and making sure that they don't repeat those mistakes in the future.

Lesson six -- The worst mistake is the one that gets repeated. Create a culture of learning and experimentation right at the start of the business. This will become a powerful value with the growth of the business.

Be passionate

Most entrepreneurs accepted that the rewards of being an entrepreneur can be terrific but they were also of the opinion that there is no 'secret sauce.' There are a lot of magazines, self-help books and biographies of successful entrepreneurs that one can read, but at the end of the day, it's about execution. What you really need is to be passionate about your work.

Lesson seven -- If you are doing something and the day flies by, if you are surrounded with people you like to work with, then you have most of the ingredients for entrepreneurial success.

Extracted From - http://www.rediff.com/getahead/2007/jan/18entre.htm

Five Key Enterprise Development Trends

As we head into 2012, enterprise developers will need to focus on some major themes, including the emergence of HTML5, “big data” and analytics, and Agile Application Lifecycle Management (ALM). They should also continue to concentrate on Web, mobile and cloud development, and take advantage of advances in languages and integrated development environments (IDEs).

HTML5 is going like gangbusters. Microsoft has adopted HTML5 for Windows 8, Internet Explorer 9 and upcoming versions of the browser and other products. And there are indications that Microsoft may shelve future development of Silverlight, a development framework for building Web and mobile applications, after Silverlight 5 or a subsequent point release.

The onset of HTML5 also drove Adobe to halt its development of its Flash technology for mobile browsers.

“HTML5 is coming on strong as a standard, accelerated by the speed of change of hardware devices,” said Al Hilwa, an analyst with IDC. “By 2013, we will reach a point where 90 percent of smartphones and tablets will sport HTML5-capable browsers.”

However, Hilwa notes that it is important to remember that the need for a Flash browser plug-in continues on the desktop. “We don’t expect 90 percent of desktop browsers to be capable of HTML5 until 2015,” he said. “So the differentiation that Flash provides in high-end graphics and video protection continues, and Adobe will continue to invest in it.”

Web-based development environments, such as the Eclipse Orion, Cloud9 IDE, eXo Cloud IDE and others, are becoming more and more popular. “Web-based tools will become more important as development moves into the cloud,” said Mike Milinkovich, executive director of the Eclipse Foundation. “However, we should expect a new way of thinking about Web-based IDEs. Trying to fit something like Eclipse into a Web browser just won’t scale. The nice thing about Orion is, it attempts to make the browser your IDE.”

The big data and analytics craze will continue to grow due to the explosion of data coming from intelligent devices, social media and other sources. According to IDC, the market for intelligent systems will grow substantially in the next few years, from 800 million units today to more than 2.3 billion by 2015. Shipments of embedded devices already exceed those of cell phones and PCs, and IDC predicts the market for intelligent systems will soon represent a $520 billion industry.

“Data has become the new currency,” said Kevin Dallas, Microsoft’s Windows Embedded general manager. As proof of how hot big data has become, venture capital firm Accel Partners launched a $100 million big data fund at the recent Hadoop World 2011 conference.

Meanwhile, “One of the most important trends in 2012 will be the maturation of Java PaaS [platform as a service],” said Mik Kersten, CEO of Tasktop Technologies. “While the transition will be a long one, Oracle’s Java Cloud culminates key announcements around PaaS offerings in 2011, and sends a signal that Java developers [should] start considering PaaS solutions as the deployment destination of new applications.”

The Eclipse Foundation’s Milinkovich said he believes the concept of Agile Application Lifecycle Management is becoming a reality. Developers are integrating new tools chains to support Agile development and a faster release process, he said.

“On the ALM side, a key trend to watch [in] 2012 is the open-source-powered tidal wave changing how developers work and collaborate,” Tasktop’s Kersten added.

Extracted From - http://www.eweek.com/c/a/Application-Development/Five-Key-Enterprise-Development-Trends-819318/

Try Windows Phone 7 on Iphone and android

try this on your mobile browser - aka.ms/wpdemo

HTML 5 Snooker Club

http://dl.dropbox.com/u/5728198/Html5SnookerClub/Html5SnookerClub.htm

Web Development with Power Productivity and speed ASP.net New Site

Launch - http://www.asp.net/