Beck and Andres on Extreme Programming

narramissic writes "In recent years, Extreme Programming (XP) has come of age. Its principles of transparency, trust and accountability represent a change of context that is good not only for software development but for everyone involved in the process. In this interview, Kent Beck and Cynthia Andres, co-authors of 'Extreme Programming Explained: Embrace Change,' discuss how XP makes improvement possible."

Extreme...

[celardore]

I was hoping for something a little closer to Extreme Ironing. [extremeironing.com]

That would have been cool.

Re:Article's dated 6th May 2005....

[gbjbaanb]

I don;t know about that - I think pair programming is great. think:

What do you need to pair progam? development software, check. monitor, keyboard, check. coffee, check. newspaper check.
Right, divvi that up between the pairs evenly, you get the software and PC, I get the coffee and newspaper. See how pair programming works? :-)

Unfortunate name

[Timberwolf0122]

Its principles of transparency, trust and accountability

I find this funny as the programming behind Windows XP relate to none of these.

Laundry?

[LaughingCoder]

FTA:

I think that the first book was in reaction to a culture for programmers that was basically camping in their cubicles in Silicon Valley where people were spending their entire lives living out of cubicles with food brought in and laundry taken out.

There are places where they take out laundry? Real programmers don't change their clothes until the job's done!

Why is it called "Extreme"?

[10Ghz]

To me, the word "extreme" sounds like they program in assembly 24x7 for one week straight, or they program with laptops, while running away from a pack of wolves or something. But apparently it's not like that. So what makes it so "extreme"? Did they come up with that name when they were discussing their interests with their jock-friends?

"Oh yeah, I'm in to pretty extreme things. Currently I'm doing base-jumping and ultimate-fighting. How about you?"
"Well.... uh.... I'm in to.... EXTREME programming"
"Whoa! Radical!"

Real Extreme Programming

[niceone]

IMO real extreme programming should involve at least 3 of the following:

1. Only having 24 hours to deliver the code
2. Failing would cause thousands of innocent people to die
3. Getting your interface specs from a dieing man after being helicoptered across town
4. Using emacs
5. Failing code review results in you and/or your spouse being shot in the leg

Re:Why is it called "Extreme"?

[Anonymous Codger]

It's called Extreme because they take some basically good ideas and push them to such extremes as to be completely useless in the real world.

Re:Extreme...

[pnone]

There is also one good tool called Petra supporting extreme programming prototyping http://petra.cleverlance.com/ [cleverlance.com] We use it and love it.

GUI prototyping tool

[pnone]

There is also one good tool called Petra supporting extreme programming prototyping http://petra.cleverlance.com/ [cleverlance.com] We use it and love it.

Re:Overrated

[sammy baby]

Your post reads like a summary of the book, "Extreme Programming Refactored: The Case Against XP," by Stephens and Rosenberg I recommend it for everyone, including people who are using XP successfully.

If nothing else, it's worth it just for the song lyrics:

Eight Builds a Week

(Sing to the tune of "Eight Days a Week" by The Beatles)

Livin' in a timebox
Guess you know it's rough
Gotta build every day, babe
Even half-baked stuff

Build it, ship it
Build it, ship it

Ain't got time for design, babe
Eight builds a week

Build it every day, babe
Build it right on time
One thing I can say, babe
No time for design

Refactor it, test it
Build it, ship it
Ain't got time for design, babe
Eight builds a week

Re:Why is it called "Extreme"?

[Anonymous Coward]

You have some misspellings there... let me correct you:

• "Don't let your programmers be tired" -> "Forbid programmers from working overtime at your own peril as you should realize that a programmer is a real, live adult human being which happens to be a professional and therefore can take care of his own work hours due to the fact that he has been living with himself for quite a few years and knows perfectly well when he's tired and when he's not, and resents being treated like a child by a moronic idiot who just happens to have stepped on enough people to raise up the ladder enough to annoy said programmer".
   
• "Get customer feedback" -> "Release in very short cycles, and have a customer owner that decide how things should work in your dreams, because in the real world you should realize that your customer doesn't give a s***t about whether you need feedback or not, because he's already told you everything you need in all those prep meetings and impromptu emails, and just wants to sit back and click on the darned button and see things working, so he won't be looking or testing anything you send to him because "it's not done yet" until he thinks "it's done" and then he'll change all those lovely specs you spent some much time tuning the tests to fit into. And your manager will be so desperate to please him that he will say yes to anything he says, because after all, this is Extreme Programming, it's great, it's flexible, we can do anything as long as the tests come out alright, right?"

There, cleaned that up a bit for you.

JARCP
----
Just Another Random Cynic Programmer

Re:Real Extreme Programming

[settrans]

5. Failing code review results in you and/or your spouse being shot in the leg

I'm confused. Are we still talking about programmers?

Sounds like writing management books

[wasted]

A lot of business management books work that way.

1. Take something obvious or counterintuitive (Doesn't matter if it will really work or not)
2. Label it with impressive sounding phrases
3. Copyright a bunch of specific steps (methodology) to do the obvious
4. Write and publish a 400 page book about the methodology steps using your new phrases
5. Sell it to PHBs and incompetents
6. Profit!
7. When complaints about non-success arrive, arrange seminars at hundreds of dollars per seat.
8. Give Seminar
9. More Profit!

Hmmm, since I have all of the steps down, maybe I should write a book...

Re:Extreme...

[shreevatsa]

Nah, Extreme Programming [uncyclopedia.org] is cool enough.