http://traceinthesand.com/blog Musing about architecture, architecting and architects Wed, 13 Feb 2008 01:42:32 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en The Wikipedia community describes Conway's Law like this; I paraphrase it like this: if the architecture of the system and the architecture of the organization are at odds, the architecture of the organization wins. The organizational divides are going to drive the true seams in the system. The architecture of the ... http://traceinthesand.com/blog/2008/02/13/conways-law/ Have you read The Goal? It is (still) a pivotal book in the Lean movement. I’ve been telling architects that The Wheel on the School (a children’s story by Meindert deJong) is the hidden jewel of that genre—namely novelization of business fundamentals. I believe it could be a pivotal book ... http://traceinthesand.com/blog/2007/09/28/elementary-lessons-in-vision-and-teaming/ If you're interested in Agile and Architecture, here's an interesting read, including the comments: The Demise of the Gantt Chart in Agile Software Projects, by Tate Stuntz on July 31, 2007. I have to agree with David Christiansen: "I’m not convinced there is such a thing as a methodology or ... http://traceinthesand.com/blog/2007/09/18/architecture-and-the-agile-quest/ The Agile Manifesto articulates the following core values: Individuals and interactions over processes and tools Working software over comprehensive documentation Customer collaboration over contract negotiation Responding to change over following a plan In essence, informal, iterative, adaptive processes that rely on the collaboration of empowered individuals are strongly favored over formal, bureacratic process and its accoutrements (plans, contracts, comprehensive documentation).  If we ... http://traceinthesand.com/blog/2007/09/08/agile-architecting/ Here's a status update on where things are at on HelpMatch. HelpMatch Vision and Strategy We are working on a "vision pitch" slideset; Al de Castro currently has the baton on that. This will be available for review and reaction shortly. I'm thinking it might be an idea to create a vision ... http://traceinthesand.com/blog/2007/03/26/helpmatch-state-of-play/ Value Proposition Through Scenarios Let's explore the HelpMatch value proposition through scenarios or vignettes describing how HelpMatch could be used. I would like to get to more vivid stories, but here's a start that will seed ideas. Please remember that we are in vision exploration here. We try to be specific ... http://traceinthesand.com/blog/2007/03/11/exploring-helpmatch-value/  If you didn’t read the March 1 HelpMatch Call to Action post, you might like to read that before this post. We urgently need to move on getting HelpMatch.net set up with a wiki and blog.This is the foundation for the HelpMatch technical network that will get HelpMatch designed and built.  HelpMatch.net will become a great ... http://traceinthesand.com/blog/2007/03/02/helpmatch-collaboration-tools-selection-subcommittee/ HelpMatch: Redefining the Humanity of Humanity!Join the cast of characters who are seizing their defining moment; pitch in and help create something that will redefine the humanity of humanity! Sounds big, overblown even, but such is the potential of HelpMatch! If you just think of a “MySpace” for help, for ... http://traceinthesand.com/blog/2007/03/02/helpmatch-call-to-action/ I get challenged on the question of vision. Is it management's responsibility to come up with the vision, or the architect's? Well, this is my push-back: the architect needs to be sure there is one. Remember: no vision, no destination, a random walk. If management has established a shared vision, and ... http://traceinthesand.com/blog/2006/10/25/that-vision-thing/ I have learned what I know about good architecture from working with good architects, many of whom have set the bar for excellence in architecture documentation. That said, I am too often caused to lament that the only thing harder than getting engineers to read the architecture documentation is getting architects to ... http://traceinthesand.com/blog/2006/08/25/architecture-documentation-courage-to-fly-in-the-face-of-convention/