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Comment Been a problem for decades (Score 2) 118

by bfwebster (#45778727) Attached to: How Healthcare.gov Changed the Software Testing Conversation

SQA as a red-headed stepchild has been an issue for many, many years. It's just that most troubles/failed software systems don't have the widespread public exposure that Healthcare.gov has; even the most brain-dead corporation would not have launched such an incomplete and bug-ridden system to a vast end-user bases.

Some years ago, I led a review of a late (4 yrs vs 2 yrs estimated) and very over-budget ($500M vs. $180M estimated) corporate software project. The core problems had everything to do with SQA, starting with the fact that there was no SQA organization; all testing was done on an ad hoc basis by individual teams and organizations. Adding to that problem was the fact that there was no coherent architecture. After 4 years and $500M, there were no systems that were ready to go into production. Far too common in industry and especially in government. ..bruce..

Submission + - 30-40% of Healthcare.gov (backed systems) yet to be finished

Submitted by bfwebster
bfwebster writes: In testimony today before Congress, Deputy CIO Henry Chao indicated that 30 to 40 percent of the overall Healthcare.gov systems — primarily the payment, accounting, and back-office systems — are not yet complete. Note that payments must be made by December 15th in order for insurance coverage to start on January 1st. (Note: Chao seems to say at first that 60-70% still needs to be completed, but later clarifies himself that 30-40% needs to be completed.)

Comment Old article. I can sum it up with three quotes (Score 4, Insightful) 400

by bfwebster (#45314311) Attached to: HealthCare.gov: What Went Wrong?

Quote 1: "A complex system that works is found to have invariably evolved from a simple system that worked. . . .A complex system designed from scratch never works and cannot be made to work. You have to start over, beginning with a working simple system." (John Gall, Systemantics,p. 80, 1978 paperback edition).

Quote 2: "In architecting a new [software] program all the serious mistakes are made in the first day." (Martin, 1988, cited in Maier & Rechtin, The Art of Systems Architecting (3rd ed.), p. 399)

Quote 3: "Indeed, when asked why so many IT projects go wrong in spite of all we know, one could simply cite the seven deadly sins: avarice, sloth, envy, gluttony, wrath, lust, and pride. It is as good an answer as any and more accurate than most." (me, testifying before the Subcommittee on Government Management, Information, and Technology Hearing, US House of Representatives, June 22, 1998)

My pre- and post-launch analysis of the Healthcare.gov website can be found here. ..bruce..

Submission + - New concept -- the Peter Pinnacle -- inspired by Ballmer? 1

Submitted by bfwebster
bfwebster writes: Michael Swaine — long-time, well-known and very prolific author/editor in the programming and personal computing worlds — has just devised a new twist on the Peter Principal: the Peter Pinnacle, 'meaning to get promoted so high and to be so unqualified for your job that the company tells you that you can name your price just to go away.' I'm sure the timing of the neologism is just a coincidence.

Submission + - Book Review: Too Big To Fail: The Business Case for Big Data

Submitted by bfwebster
bfwebster writes: [NOTE: I can't find any 'drop-down menu' for book review formatting. I have this saved out on my own laptop as text, so I can re-enter it if you can point me in the right direction. ..bfw.. (bwebster@bfwa.com)] Suddenly more timely than ever in light of the US Government's own Big Data projects, Too Big To Ignore provides a quick-read introduction to Big Data for both managers and technical types. The book's subtitle sets forth its scope: this is neither a technical work on Big Data, nor a "how-to" primer, nor a comprehensive survey of the field. Instead, Phil Simon seeks to explain why a given organization of any size — small, medium, or large — might want to give serious thought to initiating a Big Data strategy relevant to its mission. He gives an overview of Big Data concepts, current solutions, case studies, and a path to get started. Too Big to Fail: The Business Case for Big Data Author: Phil Simon Pages: 231 Publisher: John Wiley & Sons Inc., 2013 Rating: 8/10 Reviewer: Bruce F. Webster ISBN: 9781118638170 (Hardcover) Summary: Why businesses should consider a Big Data strategy Disclosure: I reviewed Simon's first book (Why New Systems Fail) here on Slashdot four years ago and became friends with him as a result. Following the success of his first book, Why New Systems Fail, Phil Simon has carved a publishing niche for himself in focusing on key issues in the intersection of technology and business, then explaining those issues to business types (as well as technical workers seeking a general introduction). Successive titles include The Next Wave of Technologies (various emerging technologies relevant to business), The New Small (using key technologies to allow small businesses to compete with large ones), and The Age of the Platform (the emergence of platform-based business models). His newest book, Too Big to Fail, seeks to do the same for Big Data. As with his prior books, Simon's audience is primarily managers and business decision makers, though his books also provide a quick overview for technologists as well. Big Data, as Simon uses the term, refers primarily to the massive amounts of unstructured data that organizations now have access to, either by tapping into various external data sources or capturing data directly via platforms and other hosted environments. In that sense, Big Data contrasts with traditional internal data stores, such as relational database systems and data warehouses. Big Data is, of course, very much in the news right now, given the on-going revelations of the US Government's PRISM project and other data gathering efforts, which may well be the largest Big Data project to date. This book — which came out in March — clearly does not address those revelations, nor does it touch upon government analysis of Big Data (beyond one or two passing comments). What it does do — as per the subtitle — is make the business case for exploring a Big Data strategy within your organization. The book has an introduction and eight chapters, but really comprises three major sections.The first section — the introduction and Chapters 1 & 2 — covers, in effect, "What is Big Data, and why should I care?" Simon talks about the massive growth in unstructured data over the past 10-15 years and the impact it has had on various businesses. He also The second section — Chapters 3 and 4 — provide an overview of Big Data techniques and current solutions. While the techniques — including data visualization, semantics, and predictive analytics — are timeless, the discussion of specific current technology solutions runs the risk of being dated within a few years, though there is probably no way to avoid that beyond future edition updates. The final section — chapters 5 through 8 — seeks to explain what Big Data looks like in a business environment (including three case studies), how to get started on a Big Data project for your organization, and what the future is likely to hold. As someone with a strong technical background who has not had any dealings to date with Big Data, I found the book a very useful introduction and overview to the business concepts and realities of Big Data. A few times I wanted a deeper technical dive and had to remind myself that this is not written as a technical overview of the subject, but is intended primarily for a business audience. Simon's writing style is readable and informal (occasionally perhaps a bit too informal). But it is a fast and easy read — I read it in one sitting — which is essential for Simon's target audience. In light of PRISM, the subject is perhaps more relevant than ever for all of us, and some organizations may now see Big Data initiatives as a defensive move. However, the real long-term relevance of Big Data — and the corresponding issue, opportunity, and challenge — is underscored by a sidebar in the book written by Brad Feld (Managing Director at Foundry Group, a VC firm):

Twenty years from now, the thing we call Big Data will be tiny data. It'll be microscopic data. The volume that we're talking about today, in 20 years, is a speck....We are at the very beginning of a Cambrian explosion of data. (pp. 132-133)

And that is why Big Data will impact us all.

Comment Sundog did something roughly similar back in 1984 (Score 5, Interesting) 509

by bfwebster (#43581407) Attached to: Cracked Game Released To Get Back At Pirates

In Sundog: Frozen Legacy (Apple II, 1984), we had a fairly robust, multi-level copy protection method. However, many of the 'cracking' tools out at the time would actually produce a runnable copy of the game -- it was just that the game wouldn't pass its final internal DRM check. In the game, including in 'cracked' versions, you started out on the surface of a given planet (Jondd); you could drive around the planet's surface, walk around the cities, go into stores, buy and sell goods, etc. But when you attempted to lift off into space, if that final DRM check failed, you'd get the message "Clearance to lift denied due to pirate activity" and you would be unable to take off and travel to any other world or system. (Note that you'd never see that message in a legitimate copy of the game.)

Now, the game actually had space pirates who would attack your ship, so a lot of people didn't realize just what the message meant. We would get occasional phone calls from customers asking what they were doing wrong and how they could get clearance. We'd listen for a minute, then say, "Well, just mail us your Sundog floppy disk, and we'll send out a new one for free." Heh. On the other hand, we had at least one person call us up on the phone and say, "Yeah, I get it" and then order a legit copy.

Note that for those customers who did buy an actual copy of the game, if they sent in $10 along with their registration card, they'd get another Sundog floppy disk -- that is, a second complete copy of the game, which they could keep as a backup or give away (or, frankly, sell). Also, if anyone actually did have a legit Sundog floppy that died or was otherwise damaged, we'd exchange it for a new one for free.

Sundog (Apple II) was on Hardcore Computing's "Top 10 Wanted" list (for a cracked version) for quite some time. It was eventually cracked, but I believe it took a year or two. You can find runnable Apple II disk images (for Apple II emulators) online.

I really don't know what copy protection was in place for the Atari ST port of Sundog, since that happened after I left FTL Games. ..bruce..

Comment Similar problems with Netflix and Hulu last night (Score 1) 126

by bfwebster (#42389123) Attached to: Steam Hit By 'No Connection' Error Worldwide

I was trying to watch streaming content on Christmas Eve on Netflix and Hulu (via Apple TV) and was likewise getting 'unavailable' errors; with Netflix, it would happen at different points (from trying to bring up the Netflix main screen down to trying to start an individual episode of a TV series). I chalked it up to tens of thousands of new Netflix/Hulu customers all trying out their new TVs/home theaters/streaming boxes last night. ..bruce..

Comment Can anyone become a musician? An artist? (Score 2) 767

by bfwebster (#41355041) Attached to: Can Anyone Become a Programmer?

Short answer is: yes, in theory; in practice, though, actual results will vary. My observation is that the same is true with programming. Some people are natural talented, some people have good workman-like (workperson-like?) performance, some are pretty wretched no matter how much experience they may actually have, and some just can't grasp the basic concepts enough to really do anything. Note that I've taught computer science on a university level, and I've built software development teams from scratch, so this is based on direct personal observation. ..bruce..

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