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Useless project, and they need it yesterday

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  • K kmoorevs

    I have a customer wanting me to write a special import that they will only use twice a year with less than 50 records per run. I remember discussing this with the trainer last week and arguing against it, ending the conversation sarcastically...'sure, I can spend 4 hours to build it, it will probably take half an hour to install/configure it for the customer, OR, they can spend 5 minutes each month to key it in manually.' Apparently, the sarcasm was wasted, and the customer has been promised a new import...most likely will be a one-off! Me and my big mouth!!! :doh:

    "Go forth into the source" - Neal Morse

    Sander RosselS Offline
    Sander RosselS Offline
    Sander Rossel
    wrote on last edited by
    #4

    Is the customer paying for it? Then why do you care how often they will use it? Just code it!

    It's an OO world.

    public class Naerling : Lazy<Person>{
    public void DoWork(){ throw new NotImplementedException(); }
    }

    P 1 Reply Last reply
    0
    • Sander RosselS Sander Rossel

      Is the customer paying for it? Then why do you care how often they will use it? Just code it!

      It's an OO world.

      public class Naerling : Lazy<Person>{
      public void DoWork(){ throw new NotImplementedException(); }
      }

      P Offline
      P Offline
      Paul Conrad
      wrote on last edited by
      #5

      :thumbsup: If they are paying for it and they want future functionality added, that is more money ;)

      "I've seen more information on a frickin' sticky note!" - Dave Kreskowiak

      Sander RosselS 1 Reply Last reply
      0
      • H H Brydon

        I suspect you are not that experienced a developer. One of the first rules of software development is that you are willing to spend far more time developing automation for a task than the time you would spend doing it manually. Obligatory xkcd[^].

        -- Harvey

        A Offline
        A Offline
        Andrew Rissing
        wrote on last edited by
        #6

        Ironically, it actually proves that he should do it. Since the improvement will only cost 4.5 hours, it falls under the 5 hours window. Of course, he'll have to have this process running for at least five years.

        1 Reply Last reply
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        • P Paul Conrad

          :thumbsup: If they are paying for it and they want future functionality added, that is more money ;)

          "I've seen more information on a frickin' sticky note!" - Dave Kreskowiak

          Sander RosselS Offline
          Sander RosselS Offline
          Sander Rossel
          wrote on last edited by
          #7

          Mo money = Mo problems = Mo work = Mo money = Mo problems = Mo work... ;p

          It's an OO world.

          public class Naerling : Lazy<Person>{
          public void DoWork(){ throw new NotImplementedException(); }
          }

          P J 2 Replies Last reply
          0
          • K kmoorevs

            I have a customer wanting me to write a special import that they will only use twice a year with less than 50 records per run. I remember discussing this with the trainer last week and arguing against it, ending the conversation sarcastically...'sure, I can spend 4 hours to build it, it will probably take half an hour to install/configure it for the customer, OR, they can spend 5 minutes each month to key it in manually.' Apparently, the sarcasm was wasted, and the customer has been promised a new import...most likely will be a one-off! Me and my big mouth!!! :doh:

            "Go forth into the source" - Neal Morse

            P Offline
            P Offline
            Pualee
            wrote on last edited by
            #8

            Your mistake was the "us vs them" mentality. Everything else sounds great. Good job estimating btw, that gives the business a quick way to figure out the ROI and determine the value of the project.

            K 1 Reply Last reply
            0
            • Sander RosselS Sander Rossel

              Mo money = Mo problems = Mo work = Mo money = Mo problems = Mo work... ;p

              It's an OO world.

              public class Naerling : Lazy<Person>{
              public void DoWork(){ throw new NotImplementedException(); }
              }

              P Offline
              P Offline
              Paul Conrad
              wrote on last edited by
              #9

              :laugh:

              "I've seen more information on a frickin' sticky note!" - Dave Kreskowiak

              1 Reply Last reply
              0
              • Sander RosselS Sander Rossel

                Mo money = Mo problems = Mo work = Mo money = Mo problems = Mo work... ;p

                It's an OO world.

                public class Naerling : Lazy<Person>{
                public void DoWork(){ throw new NotImplementedException(); }
                }

                J Offline
                J Offline
                Jorgen Andersson
                wrote on last edited by
                #10

                Except it's more like: Mo work = Mo money = Mo problems = Bad reputation = No work = No money = No problems

                Be excellent to each other. And... PARTY ON, DUDES! Abraham Lincoln

                A M 2 Replies Last reply
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                • J Jorgen Andersson

                  Except it's more like: Mo work = Mo money = Mo problems = Bad reputation = No work = No money = No problems

                  Be excellent to each other. And... PARTY ON, DUDES! Abraham Lincoln

                  A Offline
                  A Offline
                  AspDotNetDev
                  wrote on last edited by
                  #11

                  I don't know, I know of ex-coworkers who are counterexamples (crap work = no effect on reputation = mo work = mo money).

                  Thou mewling ill-breeding pignut!

                  J 1 Reply Last reply
                  0
                  • K kmoorevs

                    I have a customer wanting me to write a special import that they will only use twice a year with less than 50 records per run. I remember discussing this with the trainer last week and arguing against it, ending the conversation sarcastically...'sure, I can spend 4 hours to build it, it will probably take half an hour to install/configure it for the customer, OR, they can spend 5 minutes each month to key it in manually.' Apparently, the sarcasm was wasted, and the customer has been promised a new import...most likely will be a one-off! Me and my big mouth!!! :doh:

                    "Go forth into the source" - Neal Morse

                    G Offline
                    G Offline
                    GenJerDan
                    wrote on last edited by
                    #12

                    I spend a good deal of my time trying to talk those people out of apps. Right now, I'm "converting" an overly complicated Access "program" to ASP.NET. Yeah, like we really need to go through all this so 10 people can do it on a web page. Web pages are cool...or something.

                    YouTube and My Mu[sic], Films and Windows Programs, etc.

                    1 Reply Last reply
                    0
                    • K kmoorevs

                      I have a customer wanting me to write a special import that they will only use twice a year with less than 50 records per run. I remember discussing this with the trainer last week and arguing against it, ending the conversation sarcastically...'sure, I can spend 4 hours to build it, it will probably take half an hour to install/configure it for the customer, OR, they can spend 5 minutes each month to key it in manually.' Apparently, the sarcasm was wasted, and the customer has been promised a new import...most likely will be a one-off! Me and my big mouth!!! :doh:

                      "Go forth into the source" - Neal Morse

                      W Offline
                      W Offline
                      wizardzz
                      wrote on last edited by
                      #13

                      Next time, ask them for a special export. http://www.special-export.com/[^]

                      Twits[^]

                      R 1 Reply Last reply
                      0
                      • W wizardzz

                        Next time, ask them for a special export. http://www.special-export.com/[^]

                        Twits[^]

                        R Offline
                        R Offline
                        Roger Wright
                        wrote on last edited by
                        #14

                        Waste of time... There are no dealers in Arizona, Nevada, or the Peoples' Republic of California. Grrr....

                        Will Rogers never met me.

                        1 Reply Last reply
                        0
                        • K kmoorevs

                          I have a customer wanting me to write a special import that they will only use twice a year with less than 50 records per run. I remember discussing this with the trainer last week and arguing against it, ending the conversation sarcastically...'sure, I can spend 4 hours to build it, it will probably take half an hour to install/configure it for the customer, OR, they can spend 5 minutes each month to key it in manually.' Apparently, the sarcasm was wasted, and the customer has been promised a new import...most likely will be a one-off! Me and my big mouth!!! :doh:

                          "Go forth into the source" - Neal Morse

                          J Offline
                          J Offline
                          jschell
                          wrote on last edited by
                          #15

                          Keep in mind what happens when the customers have everything they need and do not want any more new features.

                          L 1 Reply Last reply
                          0
                          • A AspDotNetDev

                            I don't know, I know of ex-coworkers who are counterexamples (crap work = no effect on reputation = mo work = mo money).

                            Thou mewling ill-breeding pignut!

                            J Offline
                            J Offline
                            Jorgen Andersson
                            wrote on last edited by
                            #16

                            I hate them too.

                            Be excellent to each other. And... PARTY ON, DUDES! Abraham Lincoln

                            1 Reply Last reply
                            0
                            • K kmoorevs

                              I have a customer wanting me to write a special import that they will only use twice a year with less than 50 records per run. I remember discussing this with the trainer last week and arguing against it, ending the conversation sarcastically...'sure, I can spend 4 hours to build it, it will probably take half an hour to install/configure it for the customer, OR, they can spend 5 minutes each month to key it in manually.' Apparently, the sarcasm was wasted, and the customer has been promised a new import...most likely will be a one-off! Me and my big mouth!!! :doh:

                              "Go forth into the source" - Neal Morse

                              Mike HankeyM Offline
                              Mike HankeyM Offline
                              Mike Hankey
                              wrote on last edited by
                              #17

                              Obviously you weren't in the military..."Don't volunteer for anything"! :)

                              VS2010/Atmel Studio 6.1 ToDo Manager Extension Some days, it's just not worth chewing through the restraints.

                              1 Reply Last reply
                              0
                              • J jschell

                                Keep in mind what happens when the customers have everything they need and do not want any more new features.

                                L Offline
                                L Offline
                                Lost User
                                wrote on last edited by
                                #18

                                Microsoft releases a new OS so we've work to do again?

                                1 Reply Last reply
                                0
                                • K kmoorevs

                                  I have a customer wanting me to write a special import that they will only use twice a year with less than 50 records per run. I remember discussing this with the trainer last week and arguing against it, ending the conversation sarcastically...'sure, I can spend 4 hours to build it, it will probably take half an hour to install/configure it for the customer, OR, they can spend 5 minutes each month to key it in manually.' Apparently, the sarcasm was wasted, and the customer has been promised a new import...most likely will be a one-off! Me and my big mouth!!! :doh:

                                  "Go forth into the source" - Neal Morse

                                  realJSOPR Offline
                                  realJSOPR Offline
                                  realJSOP
                                  wrote on last edited by
                                  #19

                                  Why are you complaining? At least you're employed. Where I work, they've been working since January on a dashboard (in SharePoint 2007) for one of our products. The guy in charge of the company was getting a bit annoyed at the fact that after six months, they didn't have so much as a mockup ready to show. So a PM asked me to do a quick-and-dirty proof-of-concept kinda thing in ASP.Net. Halfway through the effort, I was informed that it was NOT a proof-of-concept, and that it was going live as soon as I was done with it and would be used until the SharePoint effort was completed. In two weeks (mostly because it took a week to get access to a production database), I was done with the code and had the site deployed, and at least the PMs are happy. My boss is relieved that it's over because his boss got all twisted over the duplication of effort (Sharepoint and asp.net). There were no requirements (written down), and I'm sure this unofficial project is going to haunt me for a year or more. As an aside, some of the data required for the site doesn't live in the database where it belongs, and instead exists as as a series of about 2000 small HTML files. Since we would have to manually enter this data into the database, and submitting a change request for a production database is a pain in the ass, I'm simply putting the data BY HAND into a XML file and loading that into the application cache. I'm about halfway done with that. Do I care? Not really. I have a job, and that's what matters. My advice is to be a man, hunker down, do the work, and stop whining.

                                  ".45 ACP - because shooting twice is just silly" - JSOP, 2010
                                  -----
                                  You can never have too much ammo - unless you're swimming, or on fire. - JSOP, 2010
                                  -----
                                  "Why don't you tie a kerosene-soaked rag around your ankles so the ants won't climb up and eat your candy ass." - Dale Earnhardt, 1997

                                  1 Reply Last reply
                                  0
                                  • J Jorgen Andersson

                                    Except it's more like: Mo work = Mo money = Mo problems = Bad reputation = No work = No money = No problems

                                    Be excellent to each other. And... PARTY ON, DUDES! Abraham Lincoln

                                    M Offline
                                    M Offline
                                    Mycroft Holmes
                                    wrote on last edited by
                                    #20

                                    I think what he meant to put was: Mo work = Mo money = Mo features = Mo work = Mo money = Mo features ad infinitum I once got a project to produce a 1 page summary report - 6 years later...

                                    Never underestimate the power of human stupidity RAH

                                    1 Reply Last reply
                                    0
                                    • P Pualee

                                      Your mistake was the "us vs them" mentality. Everything else sounds great. Good job estimating btw, that gives the business a quick way to figure out the ROI and determine the value of the project.

                                      K Offline
                                      K Offline
                                      kmoorevs
                                      wrote on last edited by
                                      #21

                                      Thanks to all who took time to respond and sorry for the delay as I posted and left for the long weekend...not being anti-social. Happy 4th. :)

                                      "Go forth into the source" - Neal Morse

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