Agile development isn’t a thing you do, it’s an attitude, it’s a set of personal values about responding to the real world, being open to the information that is there and being willing to do something about it.
I’m listening to an online interview with Kent Beck, Cynthia Andres and Tom DeMarco. My son hears Andres’ voice and says, “You’ve got a woman teaching you about technology?!”
“What a sexist you are,” I say.
“I’m just repeating what you always say: ‘Oh, women don’t know anything about computers.’”
“When did I ever say that?”
“You say it all the time. ‘Men are a lot smarter than women.’”
I deny this vehemently, and not just because my wife is sitting across the room.
Meanwhile, Andres is saying something: Blah blah blah Kent blah blah blah . . .
“Ken!?” the boy says. “Who’s advising you? Barbie?”
I think it’s such a shame we set our sights so low. Either you’re stuck with software that works the way it works because you don’t want to break it, or you get an upgrade that causes pain and anguish. I just want my stupid computer to work and it doesn’t. That’s not computing.
That we accept the status quo says such negative things about us as humans . . . Our ambitions are so, so small compared to the opportunity.
