Comments on: Waiting for the Phone to Ring http://menloinnovations.com/blog/2009/11/waiting-for-the-phone-to-ring/ a peek inside the minds of Menlo Innovations LLC Tue, 07 Sep 2010 18:50:51 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0 By: Lisamarie http://menloinnovations.com/blog/2009/11/waiting-for-the-phone-to-ring/comment-page-1/#comment-49 Lisamarie Fri, 13 Nov 2009 13:49:45 +0000 http://menloinnovations.com/blog/?p=269#comment-49 You're right about it not being the panacea for all software ills. It's only one part of a larger equation. In my particular case, my first brush with unit testing was on a small (very small) project. There was no doubt larger issues at play (design and architecture, for example) of which I was largely oblivious given I was trying to learn a new programming language *and* how to unit test. In that case, I suspect that my pair partner was bearing much of the weight of those larger concerns. (Thank you, Aparna!) Speaking of my pair partner, I also believe that pairing plays a big role in the success of projects. Constant code review, two minds working on a common problem, support for standards, etc. all contribute to project success. We've written about that a bit already, but will undoubtedly tackle it in more detail in the future. You’re right about it not being the panacea for all software ills. It’s only one part of a larger equation. In my particular case, my first brush with unit testing was on a small (very small) project. There was no doubt larger issues at play (design and architecture, for example) of which I was largely oblivious given I was trying to learn a new programming language *and* how to unit test. In that case, I suspect that my pair partner was bearing much of the weight of those larger concerns. (Thank you, Aparna!)

Speaking of my pair partner, I also believe that pairing plays a big role in the success of projects. Constant code review, two minds working on a common problem, support for standards, etc. all contribute to project success. We’ve written about that a bit already, but will undoubtedly tackle it in more detail in the future.

]]> By: Tathagat Varma http://menloinnovations.com/blog/2009/11/waiting-for-the-phone-to-ring/comment-page-1/#comment-48 Tathagat Varma Fri, 13 Nov 2009 13:28:45 +0000 http://menloinnovations.com/blog/?p=269#comment-48 Nice article, and the picture you depict about "throwing stuff over the wall - to and fro" is so global! However, what I don't understand or agree with is that small stuff like unit testing alone could magically fix problems at all levels of software - code, design, architecture, requirements, performance, scalability, interop, memory...and so on. I think there is a legitimate need for better unit testing...there is no doubt about it. But, I would be sceptical to treat it like panacea for all software development malaise. Nice article, and the picture you depict about “throwing stuff over the wall – to and fro” is so global! However, what I don’t understand or agree with is that small stuff like unit testing alone could magically fix problems at all levels of software – code, design, architecture, requirements, performance, scalability, interop, memory…and so on. I think there is a legitimate need for better unit testing…there is no doubt about it. But, I would be sceptical to treat it like panacea for all software development malaise.

]]>