Interop and Software 2008 at Mandalay Bay Convention centered just wrapped up last week.
James Maguire from Datamation filmed a “virtual booth crawl” with 30 second pitches from select vendors - most of whom were being awarded for innovation in software. You can check it out here or watch below.
Yours truly happened to be manning the booth when James came by. I gave my best 30 second rendition regarding iRise below.
I find the concept of model-driven architecture very interesting as a way of improving the software development process. However, technologists push the concept of models beyond their useful limits when they attempt to use them as a communication tool to non-technical people.
“But I’m drawing pictures, shouldn’t that be easier to understand?!?!”
Yes, pictures communicate better than words, but the key here is that most people think in terms of “experiences” and not in terms of “models.” It’s like the Apple ad:
Mac: “It’d be kinda hard to capture a family vacation with a pie chart…”
PC: “Not true! For example, this light grey area could represent hang-out time.”
Visualization of an intended experience is far more effective in communicating a proposed software solution to most people than the visualization of an abstract representation of that solution. And yet, it seems as if the major thought leaders in software development are constantly trying to come up with new and better forms of abstract representation with the express purpose of communicating with the non-technical.
I can understand the appeal here. Models communicate more “accurately” downstream in the sense that there are fewer translation errors from the model to the code. However, it’s a moot point if they don’t get used.
As an alternative, don’t be afraid to hire translators and equip them properly. In many companies, this person often has the title of Business Analyst or User Experience (UX) professional, and what they are really doing is defining and designing software solutions based on understanding a variety of needs and goals. They can learn the modeling language to communicate with technologists, but they need other mechanisms to communicate with everyone else.
It’s those other mechanisms where a huge opportunity exists for innovation and improvement. Visualizing the experience through simulation is one proven method. What might others be?
