June 24, 2009 – Improving our craft: A Discussion on Software Estimation - Mike Eaton
Description:
How are your software estimation skills? If your answer was "dude, I'm terrible at estimation", you're not alone. Being able to accurately estimate software is a skill every developer should have but research and statistics show it's a skill few actually possess. In this session, we'll talk about why we have so much trouble with this key skill and then discuss some strategies for improving our software estimation chops.
Bio: Michael Eaton is an independent consultant living in southern Michigan. Since 1994, Mike has been designing and implementing high quality, robust solutions using Microsoft technologies including .NET and SQL Server. When not working on projects or spending time with his family, he enjoys blogging, twittering and hanging out in IRC with his tribe.
Grok Talk:
Jennifer Griffin will talk to us about CSS.
July 22, 2009 – Three Tips to Improve your Development Process - Jim Holmes
Description:
It doesn’t matter if you’re doing Agile or if you’re working in an environment like RUP or CMMI, there are several things you can do to improve your development process. This highly interactive session will show you three specific tips: improve your estimation, use a daily standup to keep a close focus on your progress, and work in retrospectives to empower your team’s ability to drastically improve your entire software development process, regardless of what that process is, even if it’s no process! You’ll leave this session with a handle on ways to smooth out your project’s environment.
Bio: Father. Husband. Geek. Veteran. Co-author of “Windows Developer Power Tools.” Coffee Roaster. MVP for C#. Chief Cat Herder of the CodeMash Conference. One-time setter, middle blocker, and weakside hitter. Blogger (http://FrazzledDad.com). Big fan of naps.