For about 10 years, the Social Systems Business Group of OMRON Corporation has been outsourcing various kinds of software products to advancing Asian countries such as China, Singapore, and India.

For about 10 years, the Social Systems Business Group of OMRON Corporation has been outsourcing various kinds of software products to advancing Asian countries such as China, Singapore, and India.

Corporate IT managers who become involved in outsourcing projects, and work with outsourcing vendors, come to the same realization sooner or later: only 10%-20% of what they do has anything to do with software

Corporate IT managers who become involved in outsourcing projects, and work with outsourcing vendors, come to the same realization sooner or later: only 10%-20% of what they do has anything to do with software

A couple of weeks ago, I commented on the strategies for recruiting additional software engineers in the face of personnel shortages. Since then, I've seen three or four indications that another strategy is gaining popularity in several parts of the country: hiring and training high-school students as "paraprogrammers." I use the term here in the same sense as "paralegal" or "paranurse," and I think it's just as relevant and valuable.

A couple of weeks ago, I commented on the strategies for recruiting additional software engineers in the face of personnel shortages.

A couple of weeks ago, I commented on the strategies for recruiting additional software engineers in the face of personnel shortages.

As we all know by now, you cannot manage what you do not measure, which has been taken to its extreme in the TQM movement. But what should be the metrics of IS? Should it be input or output, or output per input? Lines of code per labor hour, or ROI perhaps.

The notion of a "post mortem" is familiar to most software developers and project managers: at the end of an application development project, a report is written to document the good, the bad, and the ugly experiences, so that future projects can learn and improve. In theory, it's a useful concept; in practice, it's largely ignored.

The notion of a "post mortem" is familiar to most software developers and project managers: at the end of an application development project, a report is written to document the good, th

The notion of a "post mortem" is familiar to most software developers and project managers: at the end of an application development project, a report is written to document the good, th

I've just returned from a week in Rome, where I presented a seminar on application development for the Internet. One of the most frequent questions I received was, "What about the future of Java?" Italians, Europeans, and Americans have been hearing a lot lately about the uncertainty surrounding Java's future. Is Sun struggling? Is Javasoft reorganizing, and what does that bode for its future? Will Microsoft prevail in its lawsuit, and thus have the freedom to develop and market its own bastardized version of the language?

I've just returned from a week in Rome, where I presented a seminar on application development for the Internet.

Have you noticed that things have changed when you interview prospective software engineers? There was a time when you had all the power, and the candidates trembled and quaked as they waited to see if you were interested in their humble skills. You interrogated them mercilessly, and then you told them they would have to come back for a second, third, and fourth interview. Many of the candidates concluded that getting a job offer was as much a test of endurance as one of demonstrating technical skills.

Have you noticed that things have changed when you interview prospective software engineers?

Have you noticed that things have changed when you interview prospective software engineers?