David West, Espalier and Agility

I like to re-read this presentation Dave West gave back in 2001, once a year. This paper contains a whole bunch of great material about complexity science, Dorsai, how software development IS reality construction, espalier and how Greece vs. Rome is relevant to software engineering.

There's also a nice slide comparing the Agile Manifesto and Extreme Programming, useful for a client presentation. In case you don't want to read the deck:

1. Agile says: we value individuals and interactions over processes and tools.  XP says: put the individuals together and have them work this way.
2. Agile says: we value working software over comprehensive documentation.  XP says: write software the first day and every day, test the first day and every day, refactor the first day and every day.
3. Agile says: We value customer collaboration over contract negotiation.  XP says: Sit the customer down with the programmers and have them steer the project every single day.
4. Agile says: We value responding to change over following a plan.  XP says: Set up intense and rapid feedback and govern yourselves by it.
5. The fact is, XP's real viewpoint is so radical that it can't even be properly expressed by comparing with those wimpy weightless Agile preferences.

Espalier is one of the concepts Dave mentions in the presentation and the photo is a physical example of hedge espalier at Heronswood Gardens.

Yoda and Architecture

Quoting a friend of mine impersonating Yoda on the nature of architecture:

"An architect a designer is.

A designer an architect is not."

While I thought I understood it at first, it really took some time plus spending more time with both to really understand the difference. From what I have observed (and practiced myself), designers are really focused on form plus function whereas architects are focused on intended use and managing complexity. That's what I have found to be different about the two roles.

The photo is of a Washington, DC Metro station, perhaps the Union Station stop if I recall correctly.