What's the deal with 'agile development'

[FoBoT]

it is corporate speak for 'we stand over your shoulder watching you program to make sure you don't stop to FB or nef on ATOT as much as all the other developers do'

 

[FoBoT]

...but my problem is not with the ideas of agile, it's with the legions of suits and consultants and gurus who are always looking for methodology-based ways to "fix" programming, when the problem with programming is that we get shitty requirements from people who don't have a clue what they're asking us to do.

this


they (the beancounters/suits) don't really know (or care?) what is wrong with the other way (legions of project managers/meetings/etc), so they came up with this as a solution

then other IT people think , 'hey , that is a neat solution, i think i'll find a place to do that' (regardless of what their real 'problem(s)' might be)

 

[DaveSimmons]

Like any other method it will work well for some teams. But those teams could probably also succeed using other approaches.

Self-guided developers just need to be pointed in the right direction, whether their boss is called a "program manager" or a "scrum lord".

 

[IHateMyJob2004]

Agile is closer to what a hobbyist may do. It's basically a no direction, no management, no design plans (well nothing elaborate, maybe very high level)... You are then told to make it work.

I always love reading comments like this. Obviously by soemone that has never done agile development and probably read just enuogh to think it is a formal way of justifying hack 'n' slash programming.

 

[KIAman]

I always lovereading comments liek this. obviously by soemone that has never done agile development and probably read just enuogh to think it is a formal way of justifying hack 'n' slash programming.

I missed his comment and thanks for quoting it.

Agile development is actually very organized. The speed and energy of the sprints require tight control, organization and communication. There is no room for hack and slash and if one tried to get away with that in a team, they would be booted out in no time.

And management is there, they are just not allowed to talk to the team without going through the scrum master first. Management gets what they need by reading the backlog status and schedules. The stakeholders get what they need by getting working prototypes of the software. The team gets what they need by reducing distraction, keeping an energetic pace and relying on each other's skillsets.

 

[IHateMyJob2004]

KIAmen,

The first thing I thought when I read about Xp/Agile was that it was justification for hacking. But once you use it you realize how good it is.

And as funny as it is, I have been on waterfall based projects where all the reporting to management by the PM was based on waterfall but what was really being done was more of a crappy agile process that more closley resembled hack 'n' slash because the people doing the actual work including software leads know that there are deadlines to consider.