random ramblings

Was reading this :- Take the September 24-30 issue of The Economist. Page 76, opened at random, offers some startling statistics about how companies work inside. According to a study commissioned by Dov Seidman, author of "How," 43% of American employees surveyed say their company works on a command-and-control culture–management by coercion. Another 54% say their employers are top-down, but with a dollop of carrots and sticks, and talented leaders who try to inspire followership–a category Seidman calls "informed acquiescence." Only 3% actually practice employee self-governance, where a shared set of values and principles guide employees in their work and align them with the company’s larger purpose. The Economist goes on to report that, unlike the employees in the belly of the beast, the bosses at the tops of companies who were interviewed saw a very different picture. Bosses, according to the study, are 8 times more likely than the average to say that their...

I was looking for what is recommended as the must reads for an “IT Professional”. Below is the most recommended ones I came across, not in any particular order. If you know any other must read, do leave a comment. Code Complete – Steve McConnell The Pragmatic Programmer: From Journeyman to Master – Andrew Hunt, David Thomas Refactoring: Improving the Design of Existing Code – Martin Fowler Introduction to algorithms – Cormen, Leiserson, Rivest, Stein Structure and Interpretation of Computer Programs – Harold Abelson, Gerald Jay Sussman, Julie Sussman Design Patterns: Elements of Reusable Object-Oriented Software – Erich Gamma, Richard Helm, Ralph Johnson and John Vlissides (Gang of Four) The Mythical Man-Month: Essays on Software Engineering – Fred Brooks Peopleware: Productive Projects and Teams – DeMarco and Lister The design of everyday things – Donald Norman The Timeless Way of Building – Christopher Alexander Psychology of Computer of Programming – Gerald Weinberg ...

I went for a walk/run today morning, after maybe 3 years break – was able to complete one round of a football field. Incidentally the field was in the same college where I had gone to collect application forms around 18 years back (time does fly). We need to cross this field to reach the office, it was deserted that day. I got robbed while returning after collecting the forms and being my first experience in a college campus, I didn’t know that one should keep the mouth shut – I said something sarcastically, the guy punched me hard in the stomach, I lost my breath and he kicked me for a good measure. That was it, I never set foot in that college afterwards and didn’t apply there as well. About a year ago we moved into a house right across that college, so now from the living room, my view is of this football field. It is now a morning walk destination for residents around the place, so today I decided to start. College had changed, but the field and the broken steps, overgrown bushes ...

Slow and steady wins the race. Being very fast wins it too. You should be confident. But have humility and don’t be arrogant. Be practical, but stick to principles. Have rules, but not too many. Be obedient, but nobody great was ever obedient. Get a degree, but college education is a waste of time. Earn money, but too much money means no life. Have passion for the job, but being too passionate about your job could lead to being a workaholic. Always move forward. Never look back and wonder. But history repeats itself and one should learn from the mistakes. Be honest, but too much honesty could cost you. Talk to enemies, but get your job done. Satisfy the customer, but not at a cost. Make a profit, but don’t be greedy. Be transparent, except when it can hurt you or someone else. Have a great career, but give time to family, don’t stress too much. Be ambitious, but be ethical. All we want is peace of mind and being comfortable, but don’t be in your comfort zone, push yourself. Be a capit...

8 days, 1400 kilometers, 4 hotels, one burst tire – had a great trip to wayanad and ooty. Wayanad was on our list for so long and it didn’t disappoint at all. We visited Tirunelli temple, Banasura Sagar Dam, Pookode Lake, drove to the base of Chembra peak, Soochipara waterfalls and stayed at Vythiri resort for one day. Drives were great – way to Lakkidi, Tirunelli temple, drive through Meppadi to Ooty, way to Chembra peak. Wayanad roads were pretty bad at stretches. It must be in one of those ditches, my tire was torn, not punctured. I found that I didn’t have the wrench, but luckily found help – there were multiple tire repair shops in that town. It was like déjà vu – I had seen a comedy clip from a movie a week back, it was about three people who called themselves “Puncture Brothers”. They would put some nails on the road, someone will wait around for a car to go over them and then they will be around for help. This town was just like that – with such roads around, they must be gett...

I had attended an Agile Project Management session this week. I have never executed project in agile mode yet, but have read/evaluated methodologies for quite some time. I think the fundamental philosophies (better collaboration, prototyping / visible working software, customer involvement, prioritized requirements, self managed team taking responsibility without assignment, just enough documentation and processes, adaptability) is something that should be practiced irrespective of the methodologies used, even if it is waterfall. One thing though – there was one statement that “people don’t know what they want, until they see it”. Maybe corollary is that “when they see it, they would want something changed still”. It is so true in real life. I am going to go off on a tangent. I keep hearing so many things from people about what they want to do – one thing is common, most of people want to do something other than what they are doing, but don’t know exactly what. I feel those who kn...

Once more, people are writing off Obama – there are articles about how he could be one term president (he said he would rather be good one term president one and half years back). So the story continues with another twist. I have been following Obama’s story since almost four years. I first heard about Obama through a Time magazine article when he was a senator – it was portraying him as potential presidential candidate. From then, I have watched the speech at DNC which made him a contender overnight, read the profiles of everyone associated with him – his mother, father, wife, advisers like Plouffe, Axelrod, Jarret, Gibbs, signed up on his election website to receive news, followed primary by primary, every debate, elections, through every up and down, inauguration and state of the union addresses and got familiar with sites such as TPM, DailyKos and even know which columnists are his fans and which are not. It is a fascinating story – or the media and his PR sells it like it is ...