Link Roundup: September 1, 2010

Good morning,

Welcome to our August 31 link roundup. Here are some notable posts from other software engineering blogs that you may have recently missed:

Architectural Decisions: Accidental or On Purpose? by Christine Miyachi at The Abstract Software Architect. Christine talks about how she uses mind maps to keep track of architectural decisions.

The Emerging Future: Systems of Systems, an IBM webcast. Bruce Powel Douglass talks about issues and potential future solutions for systems of systems.

A Trace in the Sand, by Ruth Malan. Ruth was one of the turoial presenters at SATURN 2010, and her blog is full of great ideas on architecture.

Is Your Head in the Clouds? Or is it Elsewhere? by Harry J. Foxwell, PhD. Harry asks some important questions about if your organization is ready for cloud computing.

Link Roundup: June 14, 2010

Good morning,

Welcome to our June 14 Link Roundup. Here are some notable posts from other software architecture blogs you may have missed in the last week:

Why projects fail? It’s all the business’s fault! by Matt Deacon at his personal blog. Matt talks about who’s really to blame when projects fail.

Don’t Let the Big Get in the Way of the Small, by J.D. Meier at his personal blog. We’ve featured J.D. quite a bit in the past, but that’s because he usually has something really interesting to say. This post about flowing value to look at smaller project components is no exception.

Software Architecture – 5 Years Later, by Arnon Rotem-Gal-Oz at Cirrus Minor. Arnon reminisces about how far he’s come since he began working as a software architect five years ago.

Art, Creativity, and the Tyranny of the Timesheet, by Peter Cripps at Software Architecture Zen. This quote from Peter’s post is especially powerful: “In today’s world it is hard to think of a worse way to ensure people do high quality and creative work than making them fill in a timesheet detailing everything they do.”

Link Roundup: April 12, 2010

Good morning all,

Welcome to our April 12 link roundup. Here are some notable posts and pages from other software engineering blogs and websites that you may have missed:

Testing Service Oriented Solutions, by Richard Seroter at Richard Seroter’s Architecture Musings. Richard talks about the SEI’s recently released report, Testing in Service Oriented Environments, and the 65 recommendations contained therein.

When Is It Time to Quit? by Peter Cripps at Software Architecture Zen. Peter discusses what to do when you realize the project isn’t going to be delivered, and how to recognize the warning signs before you get to that point.

7 Management Interventions for Adapting and Adopting Processes, by J.D. Meier at his personal blog. J.D. shares a good article about change management.

For developers, iPhone-to-iPad is a bigger jump than you’d expect, by Martin Heller at Strategic Developer. Martin examines the differences between programming for the iPad and the iPhone and how this can affect other types of cross-platform functionality.

Why we need certification for IT architects, by Matt Deacon at Matt Deacon’s digestive blog. Matt brings up a valid point about IASA’s IT certification process.

And finally, on April 22, the SEI will host a webinar with Nanette Brown where she will discuss Agile development and software architecture.

SATURN 2009 Video: The Impact of Conducting ATAM Evaluations

Check out this video from SATURN 2009 about the impact of conducting ATAM evaluations.

This is the kind of great stuff you can look forward to seeing at SATURN 2010!

Link Roundup: March 15, 2010

Good morning all,

Welcome to our March 15 link roundup. Here are some notable posts and pages from other software engineering blogs and websites that you may have missed:

The cost of “SOA-fication”, by Nick Malik at Inside Architecture. Nick examines the myth that SOA is an inherently expensive endeavor.

Architecture Refuseniks, by Peter Cripps at Software Architecture Zen. Peter provides a definition of a particularly pessimistic type of co-worker.

A Simple Hint why SaaS is Better, by Phil Wainewright at The Connected Web. Did you know that if you write “find attached” in a Gmail message, and hit “Send” without attaching a file, Gmail will ask if you meant to attach a file? Phil’s encounter with this Gmail feature prompted a fascinating post on the capabilities of software as a service.

Microsoft is “All In” with the Cloud. Let’s Talk Winners and Losers, by Glenn Weinstein at Appirio. Glenn looks at potential winners and losers in Microsoft’s new direction for cloud computing.

Evolving Architectures – Part II but Design is Emergent, by Arnon Rotem-Gal-Oz at his own blog. Arnon talks about test-driven development and design.

And from the SEI website, we have a presentation by Len Bass about designing software architecture to meet business goals, and information about the second keynote speaker at SATURN 2010: Wayne Longcore, Chief Architect for Consumers Energy.

Link Roundup: March 1, 2010

Good morning all,

Welcome to our March 1 Link Roundup. Here are some notable posts from other software engineering blogs that you may have missed:

Version Control Tools, by Martin Fowler on his personal blog. Martin compares various version control tools and calls out some truly terrible ones.

IT Training and Justification, by Dan Douglas at IT is Possible. Dan provides a great case for the value of ongoing training for IT professionals.

The Extensibility Syndrome, by Michael Stal at Hitchhiker’s Guide to Software Architecture and Everything Else. Michael’s discussion of extensible design provides a look at change throughout the development cycle.

The SOA Paradox: Rejecting the Architecture, Embracing the Concepts, by Loraine Lawson at ITBusinessEdge. Loraine gives evidence that service orientation (if not service-oriented architecture) is the wave of the future.

Agile Security Engineering, by J.D. Meier on his personal blog. J.D. summarizes his talk from the Microsoft 2010 MVP Summit, where he covered Agile security engineering.

What does the brand of “Enterprise Architect” stand for? by Nick Malik at Inside Architecture. Nick muses on the meaning of enterprise architect as a brand.

Link Roundup: February 15, 2010

Good morning all,

Welcome to our February 15 Link Roundup. Here are some notable posts from other software engineering blogs that you may have missed this past week:

Toyota Gas Pedals and Radiation Death, by Mike at What Does Mike Think? Mike’s examination of mechanical complexities reveals that, in many cases, software is the most important component of a system.

Are You a Software Architect?, by Simon Brown at InfoQ’s Coding the Architecture. Simon looks at the distinction between software developer and software architect.

Cloud Defined, by J.D. Meier at his own blog. J.D. provides a definition of cloud computing to help delineate and refine further discussion.

Where are the Enterprise Architects?, by Paul T. Preiss at IASA. Paul brings up several points about enterprise architecture that are worth considering further.

Requirements traceability – The Holy Grail, by Michael Stal of Hitchhiker’s Guide to Software Architecture (and Everything Else). Michael talks about architecture documents and his experience with what separates a good architecture document from a bad one.

Link Roundup: February 8, 2010

Good morning all,

Welcome to our February 8 Link Roundup. Here are some notable posts from other software engineering blogs that you may have missed this past week:

NServiceBus 2.0 Release Candidate 2 Available, by Udi Dahan at the Software Simplist. Udi’s post about the new release of NServiceBus details its major features, which include the ability to integrate transactional messaging into applications.

Most inane customer service #fail ever, by Phil Wainewright at Software as Services. Phil’s unfortunate experience with TeleWest provides some great guidance about service providers shouldn’t do.

Conversational Stories, by Martin Fowler at his own blog. Martin takes on some common misconceptions about Agile method.

California Needs the Cloud, by Ryan Nichols at CIO Blog.  Ryan makes a call to action to the state of California to investigate using cloud computing for their check-processing systems, and  provides examples of how other types of public agencies have used cloud computing to achieve great things.

Link Roundup: February 1, 2010

Good morning all,

Welcome to our February 1 Link Roundup. Here are some notable posts from other software engineering blogs that you may have missed this past week:

Why I Don’t Believe in Software Architects, by Sergey Mikhanov on his own website. Sergey’s post sparked plenty of discussion about the roles and nature of a software architect, and led Simon Brown at Coding the Architecture to write his own response.

SOA and Cloud Computing: Beyond the Myths, by Mike Kavis at Kavis Technology. Mike’s presentation from the 26th Annual Information Technology  Seminar at Utah State focuses on debunking several myths behind the interaction of SOA and cloud computing.

3 Pillars of Architecture, by Kirk Knoernschild at Architect Zone. Kirk begins with the premise that “architects architect architecture” and explains the social, technology, and process pillars that make up his view of software architecture.

Link Roundup: January 25, 2010

Good morning all,

Welcome to our January 25 Link Roundup. Here are some notable posts from other software engineering blogs that you may have missed this past week:

Stakeholder-Specific Communication, by Michael Stal at Hitchhiker’s Guide to Software Architecture and Everything Else. Michael’s thoughts on stakeholder-specific communication are applicable to a wide range of software architecture issues.

Why Microsoft and Intuit Need Each Other’s Clouds, by Phil Wainewright at Software as Services. Phil discusses the functionality and limitations of the cloud platform.

Tim Brown on Design Thinking, by Peter Cripps at Software Architecture Zen. Peter provides a link to and a summary of a TED podcast with Tim Brown, CEO of IDEO.