Best Online Examples of Workflow Patterns? 82
g8orade writes "In his bestselling book, The World is Flat, Thomas Friedman lists workflow management software in the top 5 Flatteners. During my work for a shipping startup, I have analyzed our software's many UI weaknesses, particularly related to workflow management, and am currently searching for the best online examples of various UI application patterns / widgets that address managing transaction flows. What are the best examples you know of that are commonly viewable on the web?"
"Our software UI is Oracle (9i) Forms compiled to run with Java, through the web. We're using RT for our internal ticket tracking and it has many of the features listed. Also, we're evaluating several commercial document management systems as bolt-ons or companions to our in-house application. Here are some patterns we'd like to improve:
- Queue with count beside it. Example: 'Unshipped orders (5)'
- Screen for UI building of a search and ability to save the search as a queue
- List of queues showing all transaction counts and their various states
- Transaction list / table screen (should have an many possible features as a standard spreadsheet: pick your columns, column order, sort order, clickable column headings, export to various formats, print view, etc.)
- Detail view screen (one transaction, may include too many fields to display at once, requiring tabs, scrolling up and down, left to right, etc., should have a good printable view)
- Contact database built-in or connection to one from another system
- Auto messaging of various statuses to contacts and lists of contacts, above
- Full web accessibility and security model to allow our suppliers and clients access to their own queues for 'pull queries', in addition to what we email them.
- Ability to create a list of values for a field, then incorporate that into the query for a queue.
- Journal of a transaction
- Screen showing progression of a transaction
- Screen showing Parent / child parts of a transaction"
Why don't you DO YOUR JOB? (Score:0, Insightful)
Re:Why patterns? (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:Why don't you DO YOUR JOB? (Score:4, Insightful)
I, for one, do not welcome our lazy, buck-passing overlords.
Re:Why patterns? (Score:3, Insightful)
Friedman Says "workflow" But Means "Web Apps" (Score:1, Insightful)
Read the book, AssHat! Friedman is NOT a developer and not even software savvy, so when he titles something "workflow", you have to read what he says, and what he says is "web apps".
Bad news is that every "Web 2.0" marketer is going to interpret Friedman's words in the most convenient way. Like the Far Side cartoon with two bears at the cave door fighting off humans: "Seems like there's more and more of these each year!"
Re:Why don't you DO YOUR JOB? (Score:4, Insightful)
Re:Why don't you DO YOUR JOB? (Score:4, Insightful)
It happens to be (about to be) my job too, so you can accuse me of self interest too. But hey - interesting discussion. Better than some halfarsed regurgitated press release, eh?
Dave
Re:Why patterns? (Score:5, Insightful)
I find them useful for communication. If my design is similar to a pattern (most patterns are only part of any solution) then I can use the name of the pattern to describe my design more quickly. Often, because a pattern will include several distinct elements, I am able to convey several nuances of a particular design with only one or two words.
Explaining a design in terms of patterns is also a cool way of mentoring junior developers. You can back them out of the details of "this problem" and take a look at the more general situation, what the pattern suggests, and then go back to "this problem" and see how it fits in. Often you'll be able to elicit multiple "a-ha!'s" from the junior.
Back to your point, I find that the best pattern authors understand that they must strike a useful balance between generality and specificity. You still have to design the solution, but the top-level "how the heck do I get started here" is what's described by the pattern. Fowler tends to be better than the GoF at this particular skill.
Of course, getting the most utility out of patterns absolutely requires that you are an experienced designer (or are working with one). This means applying all of the classic design skills, including patterns, as appropriate to solve the problem (and that may mean no use of patterns for a particular problem).
Regards,
Ross
Re:YAWL (Score:3, Insightful)