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The Career Programmer: Guerilla Tactics for an Imperfect World 2nd Edition
Unrealistic schedules, unstable releases, continual overtime, and skyrocketing stress levels are legendary in the software development industry. Unlike traditional occupations such as accounting or administration, the software business is populated with programmers who are as creative and passionate about their work as musicians and artists. But for
most programmers and project managers, it is a complete surprise when they enter the business world and find that internal politics, inept management, and unrealistic marketing drive the process, rather than a structured and orderly approach based on technical issues and quality.
This guide, delivered with the wit and aplomb to make a serious topic entertaining and palatable, will help you survive the programming industry in 2006. The Career Programmer explains how you can work within the existing system to solve deadline problems and regain control of the development process. You'll master self-defense techniques to shield yourself, your project, and your code from corporate politics, arbitrary management decisions, and marketing-driven deadlines. Author Chris Duncan provides proven, practical, hands-on solutions designed to work even when tested by the political and chaotic realities of the business environment. Issues are addressed from the points of view of both the programmer and project manager, and steps are illustrated from all perspectives--from large-scale teams down to projects with a single developer. For you, the end results will mean less overtime and stress, higher-quality software, and a more satisfying career.
THE CAREER
PROGRAMMER
GUERILLA TACTICS FOR AN IMPERFECT WORLD,
SECOND EDITION
Christopher Duncan
The Career Programmer: Guerilla Tactics for an Imperfect World,
Second Edition
Copyright 2006 by Christopher Duncan
All rights reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any
means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information
storage or retrieval system, without the prior written permission of the copyright owner and the
publisher.
ISBN-13 (pbk): 978-1-59059-624-1
ISBN-10 (pbk): 1-59059-624-2
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication data is available upon request.
Printed and bound in the United States of America 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
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Contents at a Glance
FOREWORD . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xiii
ABOUT THE AUTHOR . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xvii
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xix
INTRODUCTION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xxi
PART I
SOFTWARE DEVELOPMENT IN AN IMPERFECT WORLD
CHAPTER 1 WELCOME TO THE CORPORATE WORLD . . . . . . . . . . 3
CHAPTER 2 BUSINESS IS WAR. MEET THE ENEMY. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
CHAPTER 3 GOOD CODING SKILLS ARE NOT ENOUGH . . . . . . . . 45
PART I I
GUERILLA TACTICS FOR FRONT-LINE PROGRAMMERS
CHAPTER 4 PREVENTING ARBITRARY DEADLINES . . . . . . . . . . . . 59
CHAPTER 5 GETTING YOUR REQUIREMENTS ETCHED IN STONE . . 75
CHAPTER 6 EFFECTIVE DESIGN UNDER FIRE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95
CHAPTER 7 PRACTICAL ESTIMATING TECHNIQUES . . . . . . . . . . 111
CHAPTER 8 FIGHTING FOR QUALITY ASSURANCE . . . . . . . . . . . 127
CHAPTER 9 KEEPING THE PROJECT UNDER CONTROL . . . . . . . . 141
CHAPTER 10 MANAGING YOUR MANAGEMENT . . . . . . . . . . . . . 159
CHAPTER 11 CORPORATE SELF-DEFENSE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 175
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PART I I I
BUILDING A BETTER CAREER
CHAPTER 12 CONTROLLING YOUR DESTINY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 189
CHAPTER 13 GET A JOB (SHA NA NA NA. . .) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 201
CHAPTER 14 CAREER 2.0 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 219
CHAPTER 15 FLYING SOLO . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 231
CHAPTER 16 JOB SECURITY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 245
INDEX . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 261
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