RE: The Perpetual Myth of iSeries Obsolescence

   There is a trade-off between applying modern principles to high level
   language data base access design and what programmer bosses are asking
   for.

   I develop software solutions that my employer will use for years, if not
   decades.  It would make sense to design them so that they use the system
   resources, and personnel, efficiently, with built-in support for auditing
   the veracity of the input and the data.  But 99% of the time, the
   management mandate is to implement the whatever new stuff as fast as is
   humanly possible, thus my thinking is dominated by quick and dirty how get
   this operational as rapidly as I can.  Then when I get a break from new
   stuff needed, I review what is running to see where I can repair anything
   that is not running efficiently.

   Bottom line interest of most management is how to get the same job done
   with less cost.  99% of the data we get from our customers is in some
   form, output from THEIR computers.  In theory, that data could flow into
   OUR computer, with only a fraction of the human involvement we have today,
   so that the same staff could handle 10 times the business volume.  In our
   1998 conversion we got rid of such a system.  It was not working
   effectively because the quick & dirty & cheap & nice looking paradigms had
   got in the way of the notion of getting the job done efficiently, using
   decision-making that understood the application..

   We did a migration in 1988 from an ERP that was Y2K compliant to one that
   was not.  My boss told me that I would be fired if I did not shut up about
   Y2K.  The first modifications that I did, all my programs were Y2k
   compliant.  The first review I got after this migration criticized me for
   putting too much quality into my work.  When the company asks for trash
   and I deliver quality, that means it takes me longer to get the job done
   than if I had delivered only that which was asked for.  The boss wanted a
   hell of a lot more trash, and a lot less quality.  Well I was a bit
   uncomfortable with this, but I knew that most employers I ever been to had
   same attitude, they just not as articulate about it as this guy, so I made
   my quality less obvious.

   A few decades ago, the big problem with computer data was the dirty data
   due to data entry snafus, so the mandate was to make the process
   idiot-proof.  This led to any idiot can do it, so companies fired the
   experienced people, and hired idiots because they could be paid less.  We
   still had the data base garbage problem, but because the payroll dominated
   by idiots, less people seeing the garbage, so it less noticeable. 

   This is why today, the software interfaces need to appeal to the lowest
   common denominator of the work force, which includes those off-shore
   people who do not know our language, culture, or understand the
   applications, but can do the work because the interfaces have been idiot
   proofed over remote access from anywhere.

   Ultimately the "any idiot who can do it" is an automaton, like robot with
   bar code reader.  For decades computer professionals have been helping
   business owners automate other types of professionals out of a job, so the
   survivors should not complain as it is also the computer professionals and
   management who are also automated out of existence.

   99% of the PCs that I have seen in the work place have on them all the
   standard stuff that comes with Windows, such as Solitaire and other
   games.  We all play them occasionally.  It relieves some of the stress, in
   the perception of the person playing them.  But hey, when everyone was on
   green screens, we got more work done, because we did not have the
   stress-relieving tools out there, which I have my doubts are really that
   effective.  Years ago, when I had some time on my hands, such as when I
   got some major backup or update running, and a pile of stress, before this
   alternative became available, I used to do a couple of jogs around the
   building (exercise needed for a guy who is seated at computer terminal
   most hours of day), and that is what I should be doing now, instead of
   playing solitaire.  It is all part of the perception of "it looks nicer"
   when what we should be addressing is "what contributes to productivity,
   accuracy, good health, etc."

   Am I the only person who sees a correlation between increased mouse use
   and carpal tunnel syndrome?

   -
   Al Macintyre
   http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/User:AlMac
   http://www.ryze.com/go/Al9Mac
   BPCS/400 Computer Janitor ... see
   http://radio.weblogs.com/0107846/stories/2002/11/08/bpcsDocSources.html