I received an email from a colleague today. It talked about software's annoying characteristic of deteriorating over time, across changes. This, he wrote, was as much a part of the business of creating software as are computers. He then went on to stress the importance of developer testing aka unit testing. He mentioned how developers spend less than 20% of their time writing unit tests according to a recent industrywide survey. He encouraged, in fact, insisted that developers write unit tests that ensure coverage of all changes and additions, and review older unit tests for regression.
The key to being ahead of the competition, he wrote, was being nimble, and that meant having short release cycles. But if software was not well-tested, if developers did not write unit tests, or there were no automated regression tests, developers would be afraid of making changes. Even if they did dare to make changes, those would take longer to get tested, or worse, lead to failures.
How logical! Being a testing freak, I was ecstatic to read someone else speak the same words I have been crying out loud during my whole professional life.
But that was just the cake; here's the icing. The colleague who wrote the email was the vp of engineering & research.
For anyone wondering what I do here, this should quell any doubts about its importance!
9.28.2006
9.23.2006
View from Vancouver
I flew back from Vancouver today, having gotten my work visa renewed. It was a breeze. Somehow I have started to really believe in the system -- that if you do everything right, you do end up being given the benefit of doubt inspite of the current xenophobic undercurrents.
This is the second time I was in Vancouver, and this time, the city revealed itself quite a bit more than my previous visit. (Well, I have to admit that it is the other way round -- this time, I actually took the time to explore, unlike the last time, when I was there with Keerat who was preoccupied worrying about getting deported because of I had lost my previous passport!)
Vancouver has its share of shady alleyways, but what was chara
cteristic was that one moment, you are in a thriving business district, the next, in a rundown alley, and then again back into the hustle, all within a few blocks. I actually dared to mark the transitions by retracing my steps for a few blocks, but somehow never figured exactly where they occurred. I should say though that even the roughest parts of the town weren't all that bad; most people seemed to mind their own business and for the most part I think I was invisible. I think I walked close to 15-20 miles in the 3 evenings that I was there -- it may not sound like much to a seasoned traveller, but it was enough for me to start appreciating a bicycle.
What I find most interesting when I visit a new city is pick up the local newspaper and find out what is making the headlines. Splashed across the front pages of a seemingly popular daily was the revelation that the average number of vehicles on the greater Vancouver area has increased by 28,000 per year, every year in the last 5 years. Various local luminaries and gentry alike had something to say about how much more of a pain it was to commute to work everyday. (I have no idea how the former group came to this conclusion.) The average commute time seems to have increased from half an hour 15 years back to 2 hours, which did not suprise me, but the reporter seemed that later piece of revelation with a gasp. Another reason I like to follow the local news is that you end up running into this surprising little facts. How many people knew that Vancouver is hosting the 2010 Olympics? I guess that is hardly a little fact by any measure and secondly, I may be more ignorant of current events than I thought; nevertheless there was a fair amount of literature on the trials and tribulations of the local populace resulting from preparations for that event. The newspaper seemed to ponder extensively, even sounding a tad disappointed, that there was little opposition from environmental, social, and trade-union groups about the adverse impact on the city following an event of such magnitude. Another fact that I did not know, which the reporter seemed to earnestly propose, was that the City of Denver bailed out of hosting the Olympics in the 80's! Anyway, the conclusion of that cover feature was that most of the unions and community welfare groups were "bought" and that everyone was planning to take a vacation during the 4-5 week of expected mayhem.
The other thing that I found interesting was ofcourse the nightlife. To be fair, I expected a city like Vancouver to have a respectable amount of activity, but even then I was unprepared for what I saw. I had to catch a flight out early in the morning, so I dozed off at midnight and woke up dizzy and hazy at 3 a.m. To my surprise, the street was as lively as it was during mid afternoon. There were a whole bunch of people milling around, although I suspect most of them didn't know that, and the metro buses were actively ferrying people to and away from downtown. It was surely a world away for someone like me who has until recently called quaint little Omaha, Neb home.
Being the fanatic for Indian food that I am, I found a nice little Punjabi food joint called the "Flavours of India" or something similar; the mom-and-pop restaurant was clean, and the food delicious. I asked for the "spicy" version on my first day there (yes, I went there at least once on all three days) and was myself startled by the the heat! Food was pleasantly good wherever I went, and never had a problem finding a vegetarian meal (yeah yeah, go veggies!) Coffee joints were everywhere and Starbucks was everywhere. There was in fact an intersection on Robson and Thurlow I think, where there were two Starbucks joints! Wasn't sure what to make out of that. I did my best to avoid the big coffee chains; instead, I would highly recommend a Blenz Coffee House that is on Robson and something (south of Thurlow) that has free internet access and freshly brewed coffee into the wee hours. Another reason for my moderate dislike towards Starbucks is that they charge for internet while right next door, a local joint is giving away free wireless internet just so that people could be there: eg., Blue Moutain Cafe on near Howe/Nelson: the young asian hosts were very friendly and the guy actually made me a very nice panini. I think I drank 4 cups of coffee while using the internet there just so that I remained in the good books of the hosts! It was very good coffee though.
Walking in the business district during the daytime was a pleasure. It was very New York like, but a lot more cleaner and cozier. The imposing Museum of Art seemed to be a favorite hang out place. They were in fact unloading a huge mural of sorts when I was walking past, almost the length of an 18 wheeler, and I was surprised to find security personnel in dark suites and ear plugs watching everyone go by -- in fact, I had to make an about turn soon after I crossed the area and sure enough, got an long look from one of the security people who looked very much like the sour old lady who screams a lot in "Austin Powers: The Spy..." movie.
Ofcourse, the waterfront - Canada Bay - is a must see. Sea planes landing and taking off in the bay with steep, green, cloud-covered mountains in the background is a sight to see. However like most cities, you have to be right at the waterfront to get a glimpse of anything, given that most of the prime property at along the shores is crammed with sky-scrapers.
On my last evening, I went into what seemed to be the Canadian version of Barnes and Noble called Chapters. I fully expected to see the same covers on the store front and aisles, but heavens.. was pleasantly suprised! Most US bookstores are filled with endless volumes on the merits of the current wars more often than not and memoirs of anywho filling up the aisles for a day or two. But I thought the Canadians had a healthy appetite for looking at things differently from their next-door cousins. The current affairs section prominently featured several titles on the ongoing wars in the middle east with catch phrases ranging from measured skepticism to outright frustration. What I found especially interesting, and which I decided to buy is "Original Zinn - Conversations on History and Politics" by David Barsamian. I have never read Zinn but heard of him enough to pick up the book and must say that it has been a while since I have felt so drawn to a book that I finish reading half of it in a day. Barsemain's queries such as, would the United States have invaded Iraq if it grew grapefruit and bananas, and Zinn's characterization of the US action in the middle east as the savage wars of peace are questions and responses that are barely seen on US media. The book is peppered with references to similar minded authors that I plan to make a note of and start reading.
Overall, I was just surprised how much difference there was between what the Canadians and the Americans read. Maybe that topic should be for another day.
This is the second time I was in Vancouver, and this time, the city revealed itself quite a bit more than my previous visit. (Well, I have to admit that it is the other way round -- this time, I actually took the time to explore, unlike the last time, when I was there with Keerat who was preoccupied worrying about getting deported because of I had lost my previous passport!)
Vancouver has its share of shady alleyways, but what was chara
cteristic was that one moment, you are in a thriving business district, the next, in a rundown alley, and then again back into the hustle, all within a few blocks. I actually dared to mark the transitions by retracing my steps for a few blocks, but somehow never figured exactly where they occurred. I should say though that even the roughest parts of the town weren't all that bad; most people seemed to mind their own business and for the most part I think I was invisible. I think I walked close to 15-20 miles in the 3 evenings that I was there -- it may not sound like much to a seasoned traveller, but it was enough for me to start appreciating a bicycle.What I find most interesting when I visit a new city is pick up the local newspaper and find out what is making the headlines. Splashed across the front pages of a seemingly popular daily was the revelation that the average number of vehicles on the greater Vancouver area has increased by 28,000 per year, every year in the last 5 years. Various local luminaries and gentry alike had something to say about how much more of a pain it was to commute to work everyday. (I have no idea how the former group came to this conclusion.) The average commute time seems to have increased from half an hour 15 years back to 2 hours, which did not suprise me, but the reporter seemed that later piece of revelation with a gasp. Another reason I like to follow the local news is that you end up running into this surprising little facts. How many people knew that Vancouver is hosting the 2010 Olympics? I guess that is hardly a little fact by any measure and secondly, I may be more ignorant of current events than I thought; nevertheless there was a fair amount of literature on the trials and tribulations of the local populace resulting from preparations for that event. The newspaper seemed to ponder extensively, even sounding a tad disappointed, that there was little opposition from environmental, social, and trade-union groups about the adverse impact on the city following an event of such magnitude. Another fact that I did not know, which the reporter seemed to earnestly propose, was that the City of Denver bailed out of hosting the Olympics in the 80's! Anyway, the conclusion of that cover feature was that most of the unions and community welfare groups were "bought" and that everyone was planning to take a vacation during the 4-5 week of expected mayhem.
The other thing that I found interesting was ofcourse the nightlife. To be fair, I expected a city like Vancouver to have a respectable amount of activity, but even then I was unprepared for what I saw. I had to catch a flight out early in the morning, so I dozed off at midnight and woke up dizzy and hazy at 3 a.m. To my surprise, the street was as lively as it was during mid afternoon. There were a whole bunch of people milling around, although I suspect most of them didn't know that, and the metro buses were actively ferrying people to and away from downtown. It was surely a world away for someone like me who has until recently called quaint little Omaha, Neb home.Being the fanatic for Indian food that I am, I found a nice little Punjabi food joint called the "Flavours of India" or something similar; the mom-and-pop restaurant was clean, and the food delicious. I asked for the "spicy" version on my first day there (yes, I went there at least once on all three days) and was myself startled by the the heat! Food was pleasantly good wherever I went, and never had a problem finding a vegetarian meal (yeah yeah, go veggies!) Coffee joints were everywhere and Starbucks was everywhere. There was in fact an intersection on Robson and Thurlow I think, where there were two Starbucks joints! Wasn't sure what to make out of that. I did my best to avoid the big coffee chains; instead, I would highly recommend a Blenz Coffee House that is on Robson and something (south of Thurlow) that has free internet access and freshly brewed coffee into the wee hours. Another reason for my moderate dislike towards Starbucks is that they charge for internet while right next door, a local joint is giving away free wireless internet just so that people could be there: eg., Blue Moutain Cafe on near Howe/Nelson: the young asian hosts were very friendly and the guy actually made me a very nice panini. I think I drank 4 cups of coffee while using the internet there just so that I remained in the good books of the hosts! It was very good coffee though.
Walking in the business district during the daytime was a pleasure. It was very New York like, but a lot more cleaner and cozier. The imposing Museum of Art seemed to be a favorite hang out place. They were in fact unloading a huge mural of sorts when I was walking past, almost the length of an 18 wheeler, and I was surprised to find security personnel in dark suites and ear plugs watching everyone go by -- in fact, I had to make an about turn soon after I crossed the area and sure enough, got an long look from one of the security people who looked very much like the sour old lady who screams a lot in "Austin Powers: The Spy..." movie.Ofcourse, the waterfront - Canada Bay - is a must see. Sea planes landing and taking off in the bay with steep, green, cloud-covered mountains in the background is a sight to see. However like most cities, you have to be right at the waterfront to get a glimpse of anything, given that most of the prime property at along the shores is crammed with sky-scrapers.
On my last evening, I went into what seemed to be the Canadian version of Barnes and Noble called Chapters. I fully expected to see the same covers on the store front and aisles, but heavens.. was pleasantly suprised! Most US bookstores are filled with endless volumes on the merits of the current wars more often than not and memoirs of anywho filling up the aisles for a day or two. But I thought the Canadians had a healthy appetite for looking at things differently from their next-door cousins. The current affairs section prominently featured several titles on the ongoing wars in the middle east with catch phrases ranging from measured skepticism to outright frustration. What I found especially interesting, and which I decided to buy is "Original Zinn - Conversations on History and Politics" by David Barsamian. I have never read Zinn but heard of him enough to pick up the book and must say that it has been a while since I have felt so drawn to a book that I finish reading half of it in a day. Barsemain's queries such as, would the United States have invaded Iraq if it grew grapefruit and bananas, and Zinn's characterization of the US action in the middle east as the savage wars of peace are questions and responses that are barely seen on US media. The book is peppered with references to similar minded authors that I plan to make a note of and start reading.
Overall, I was just surprised how much difference there was between what the Canadians and the Americans read. Maybe that topic should be for another day.
9.19.2006
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