The Software Development Pendulum: Why Agile?
Mary Poppendieck,
Author, Lecturer and Lean Software Expert
Monday, March 19, 12:15 PM–1:15 PM
Mary Poppendieck will take us on a walk through the history of software development,
tracing the pendulum of accepted practice as it swings from one extreme to the
opposite extreme, and then back the other direction — never quite settling into
the sweet spot in the middle. She will examine examples of truly excellent software
development practices and discuss where they fit on the pendulum's path and
what we have learned from these successes.
Software Development at Microsoft: An Inside Look at Building Visual Studio 2005
Brian Harry, Microsoft Distinguished Engineer
Monday, March 19, 5:30 PM – 6:30 PM
Microsoft Distinguished Engineer Brian Harry will give you a behind the scenes
tour of software development at Microsoft. In particular, he'll provide insight
into the development of Visual Studio 2005 and how his team built Team Foundation
Server, a finalist in the 17th Annual Jolt Product Excellence Awards. Learn
how his team not only developed this product, but also how they used it to do
so, creating a virtuous cycle of software innovation.
Craftsmanship and the Problem of Productivity: Secrets for Going Fast without Making a Mess
Robert
C. Martin, President/CEO, ObjectMentor
Tuesday, March 20, 12:15 PM – 1:15 PM
Speed. Many of us believe it is speed that separates the good programmer from
the mediocre. In this keynote, between lectures on astronomy, Uncle Bob will
answer the age old question: "How can I write code faster?"
Build Scalable Infrastructure Today for Tomorrow's Peak
 Felipe Cabrera,Vice President of Software Development, Amazon Web Services |
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Wednesday, March 21, 12:30 PM - 1:30 PM |
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Why Software Sucks
David
S. Platt, President, Rolling Thunder Computing
Wednesday, March 21, 5:30 PM - 6:30 PM
Users think that today's software sucks. It's unsafe, it's unreliable, and it's
hard to use. These problems are not technical. We've been able to solve them
for many years, but instead we've gotten a paper clip with eyebrows. Why?
Software sucks because developers forget (or never knew) the bedrock principle
of software development : KNOW THY USER, FOR HE IS NOT THEE. For example, what
do your customers come to you for? Hint: It's not software. For another example,
do you think your users care about your application? They don't. Never have;
never will. They care about accomplishing the task that it does. They don't
want to think about you or your application at all. It's your job to care about
them anyway.
The keynote will show good and bad examples from commercial software and websites: those that understand and help their users, and those that treat users with contempt. For example, consider the ads for Microsoft Office that show non-upgrading users wearing plastic dinosaur heads. Developers fear looking like dinosaurs by not having the latest technology, but ordinary users fear breaking an installation that currently works, or having useless junk like dancing paper clips slow down their computers so they need to buy new ones. Your user is not you.
We put this nation on wheels not by training the entire population as mechanics,
but by improving cars so they didn't often need mechanics. The same transition
needs to happen to the software industry. This talk provides sound design principles
so that your software won't suck. Learn how blindness will improve your vision.
The Social Enterprise: Innovation + Technology = Good Samaritan?
 Carlos
S. Baradello,Ph.D., Adjunct Professor of Entrepreneurship and Director, International Business Accelerator, University of San Francisco |
 Patrick
Guerra,Entrepreneur in Residence, Center for Science, Technology and Society, Santa Clara University |
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| Friday, March 23, 12:30 PM - 1:30 PM Human suffering is an integral part of our daily dose of mass media intake. However, most of us discard the notion that we can do something to ameliorate that suffering, as we compartmentalize this reality as part of a separate philanthropic world, with little connection to our daily work lives. This keynote explores how social entrepreneurship is using technology and innovation to create both social and economic value. Technology start-ups and early business ventures seeking wealth creation can and are creating objective applications for the common good and social benefit. Entrepreneurs are naturally equipped to recognize opportunities, explore innovative approaches, identify emerging technologies, invent revolutionary business models, mobilize resources, manage risks, and build viable and sustainable enterprises. These skills are just as valuable for the creation of economic value, as they are in the creation of social benefits. In applying analog market-driven approaches in areas of human suffering, social entrepreneurs are attempting to serve markets with incomes averaging under $5/day. Further, these social entrepreneurs apply market economy principles to underserved economies where roughly 80% of the planet lives. New technologies and business model innovations bring unconventional opportunities to alleviate endemic human problems and bring possibilities to enhance human development from the streets of Bangladesh to the slums of Rio. |
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