[TYPO3-dev] FLOW3 / TYPO3 5.0

[Dmitry Dulepov]

Hi, Robert!

I answer only one point, which is addressed directly to me.

I will skip the rest. We see FLOW3 development from different sides: you
see from the inside, I see from the outside, so it is hard for us to think
the same.

Robert Lemke wrote:
> Dmitry, you propose that we should set a deadline, 1 year from now and
> until then TYPO3 5.0 should be released. That doesn't make sense at all.
> What's your definition for TYPO3 5.0 being done? What's the feature set?
> Setting a deadline for something 1 year ahead is pure speculation and
> against all rules of agile development.

"Rules of agile development" in this case is scientific/fashion buzz.
Parkinson's law says: "The work takes all time allocated to it". If you
have no deadline, your work lasts forever. That's the law, which works
universally.

Here is a good quote about being agile and following deadlines [1]:
===============================
People often spend too much time up front trying to solve problems they
don't even have yet. Don't. Heck, we launched Basecamp without the ability
to bill customers! Since the product billed in monthly cycles, we knew we
had a 30-day gap to figure it out. We used that time to solve more urgent
problems and then, after launch, we tackled billing. It worked out fine
(and it forced us into a simple solution without unnecessary bells and
whistles).

Don't sweat stuff until you actually must. Don't overbuild. Increase
hardware and system software as necessary. If you're slow for a week or two
it's not the end of the world. Just be honest: explain to your customers
you're experiencing some growing pains. They may not be thrilled but
they'll appreciate the candor.

Bottom Line: Make decisions just in time, when you have access to the real
information you need. In the meanwhile, you'll be able to lavish attention
on the things that require immediate care.
===============================

You always can add DAM and versioning later. To me v5 should have been out
"yesterday" with a small core features set *and* (mandatory!) a great UI
that will make people scream from pleasure. Then you could add a new small
feature each week and make people scream again. That would be true agile
development. Think who your customers are and develop for them, not for
sterile science. Please?..

2 cents.

[1] http://gettingreal.37signals.com/ch04_Its_a_Problem_When_Its_a_Problem.php

-- 
Dmitry Dulepov
TYPO3 expert / TYPO3 security team member
Twitter: http://twitter.com/dmitryd
Read more @ http://dmitry-dulepov.com/