A Good Polish Helps a Lot
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Looking at the title of your post I was thinking a good Polish sausage, they always help me. :)
I was thinking of the reverse
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I see dead people. Hell, I code for dead people. :-) No, these people are not dead inside. They actually are software vendors with vision, and potential long term business partners.
Hell, I code for people that make you long for death.
Software Zen:
delete this; -
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martin_hughes wrote:
Your soul is at risk!
You reckon? Next year I resume my LLB studies. What then?
I'm all dead inside,up to the point of indifference... "so what" attitude:P naahh I still love it :cool:
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I having experiences that reinforce the notion that clients, any type of clients, will be more willing to accept minor bugs or omissions from at least an intermediate deliverable if it is neat and looks nice. Even my perfectionist technical director. I demoed a small web app tonight, and everything displays and looks nice (thanks to telerik, not my styling skills), but the Update buttons and the grid filtering don't work. The clients were a lot more than happy, they were plain excited, and they aren't goo-goo eyed end-users either. If you are going to ignore layout and styling, then you must deliver a functionally perfect application. If you want early, semi-functional prototypes, they should look almost as good as the end product.
Your polished partially-complete product allows your client to psych themselves up for the finished product, but also (and probably more importantly) show it off to their coworkers, bosses or clients. The sonner they can start doing that, and the more polished the project is when they do show it around, the better they look to their coworkers/bosses/clients. Put simply, your polish makes them look good.
patbob
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Your polished partially-complete product allows your client to psych themselves up for the finished product, but also (and probably more importantly) show it off to their coworkers, bosses or clients. The sonner they can start doing that, and the more polished the project is when they do show it around, the better they look to their coworkers/bosses/clients. Put simply, your polish makes them look good.
patbob
Very true, but I find the polish even works internally. A bad interface with serious functionality, but also serious omissions or bugs, psychs the boss up negatively. A polished interface immediately sets a positive frame of mind, and I get suggestions or criticism instead of reprimands.
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Very true, but I find the polish even works internally. A bad interface with serious functionality, but also serious omissions or bugs, psychs the boss up negatively. A polished interface immediately sets a positive frame of mind, and I get suggestions or criticism instead of reprimands.
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You're wearing both hats -- the developer, and the client who has to show it to their boss. Let me guess.. your boss is either under 40, or never really worked in any engineering trench of any sort. Did I get it, or am I way off? :)
patbob
He's just over forty, has a masters in engineering (I think mechanical), and has been developing software and engineering databases for about ten years, after working as an engineer. He is our technical director, and very, very far from sales.
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I having experiences that reinforce the notion that clients, any type of clients, will be more willing to accept minor bugs or omissions from at least an intermediate deliverable if it is neat and looks nice. Even my perfectionist technical director. I demoed a small web app tonight, and everything displays and looks nice (thanks to telerik, not my styling skills), but the Update buttons and the grid filtering don't work. The clients were a lot more than happy, they were plain excited, and they aren't goo-goo eyed end-users either. If you are going to ignore layout and styling, then you must deliver a functionally perfect application. If you want early, semi-functional prototypes, they should look almost as good as the end product.
Your experience is not surprising. People judge what they can't see from what they can see. If you have paid attention to the interface, then what is underneath will also be written with the same attention to detail and won't be released until it meets your professional expectations. By making it look professional, you build up your reputation and their trust in you so that they are more patient and accepting of things they don't fully understand.
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Your experience is not surprising. People judge what they can't see from what they can see. If you have paid attention to the interface, then what is underneath will also be written with the same attention to detail and won't be released until it meets your professional expectations. By making it look professional, you build up your reputation and their trust in you so that they are more patient and accepting of things they don't fully understand.
I think that sums up my point perfectly.
