The Right Side, Revisited

[Scott Pfister]

Right after my post last post in 'The New Left Side', I realized that
we're probably far more in agreement on this than we realize. The main
point of debate seems to be how we position this in terms of Agile -
or how we do so at all. Also, I frankly think that keeping the "right-
side values" pays too much historic respect to the stereotypical
Waterfall process which -- I think all of us here agree -- has been
fairly well discredited by now (at least within our schools of
craftsmanship).

So perhaps it's time to reconsider that "right side" and leave the
"left side" for the Agile Principles as we have come to understand and
value them. Below is a different twist, but keeping to most of Doug's
original verbage and phrasing, that drops the Waterfall connection and
perhaps pays a bit more respect to Agile than the comparative
approach.

--------------------------

As aspiring Software Craftsmen and practitioners of agile
methodologies,
we are raising the bar of professional software development by
practicing it and helping others learn the craft. Through this work
we have come to value:

Not only working software, but well-crafted software
Not only responding to change, but steadily adding value while doing
so
Not only individuals and interactions, but a greater community of
craftspeople
Not only customer collaboration but productive partnerships

That is, we value the items on the left but also agree that better
software results when built by true Craftsmen who share these beliefs:

well-crafted software
... We believe the code is also an end, not just a means.
... We follow a set of practices and disciplines that ensure quality
in our work

steadily adding value
... We say no to prevent doing harm to our craft and our product

community
... we live and work in a community with other craftsmen
... we will help other craftsmen in their journey
... We can point to the people who influenced us and who we influenced

partnership
... We are proud of our work and the manner of our work
... We take responsibility for the code we write
... We are proud of our portfolio of successful projects
[actually we would need to adjust these to focus more on partnership,
but as values they still hold true]

[Brian Marick]

I like this approach, structure, and wording.

-----
Brian Marick, independent consultant
Mostly on agile methods with a testing slant
www.exampler.com, www.exampler.com/blog, www.twitter.com/marick

[Antonio Terreno]

I've been silently reading this list for a while now and I'm really enjoying the discussion.

A quick note that applies to myself (only me? I don't know!) and hopefully it will help the group in definining the software craftmanship manifesto.

I think I started to be agile cos I always tried to do a good job for the sake of doing it, I always tried to improve and agile, years ago seemed to be the best solution. (I "blame" Craig Larman for a fantastic presentation at the Sun Java Conference in Milan, 2005)

So craftmanship pushed me to be agile, it was the why, the philosophy behind.

Then I tried to be as agile as possible for three years or so and I found out that agile is not everything, that there was something else moving me to write the code/manage projects in a different way.

I found this list, I started to reading The Craftsman by Richard Sennet and all this stuff makes a lot of sense.

cheers
antonio

On Thu, Feb 19, 2009 at 7:39 AM, Scott Pfister <scott....@gmail.com> wrote:

Right after my post last post in 'The New Left Side', I realized that
we're probably far more in agreement on this than we realize. The main
point of debate seems to be how we position this in terms of Agile -
or how we do so at all. Also, I frankly think that keeping the "right-
side values" pays too much historic respect to the stereotypical
Waterfall process which -- I think all of us here agree -- has been
fairly well discredited by now (at least within our schools of
craftsmanship).

So perhaps it's time to reconsider that "right side" and leave the
"left side" for the Agile Principles as we have come to understand and
value them. Below is a different twist, but keeping to most of Doug's
original verbage and phrasing, that drops the Waterfall connection and
perhaps pays a bit more respect to Agile than the comparative
approach.

... [CUT]

--
http://www.the-arm.com

[Eric Smith]

I have to say I really like this phrasing.  

[Heinrich Breedt]

I like it. well worded

[Robert Martin]

I think there's something to Scott's idea too.  It looks like we've done a shift right instead an expand left, and I think that makes sense.  It keeps things terse and to the point.  It underscores that the rightmost values are unimportant when you have already adopted the Agile view.

I like the ... explanations below.  Overall, I think this is starting to come together. 

A few nits:

"A greater community of craftspeople."  I still prefer "professionals" so that this doesn't sound like it's exclusive to software craftsmen.  QA, BA, PM, can all be in our community of professionals.

"... we live and work in a community with other craftsmen" Work, yes.  But live?  This sounds like we are going to form compounds in Idaho and defend them with guns.  (Which, given the current economic climate, may not be such a bad idea, but never mind that.)

----

Robert C. Martin (Uncle Bob)  | email: uncl...@objectmentor.com

Object Mentor Inc.            | blog:  blog.objectmentor.com

The Agile Transition Experts  | web:   www.objectmentor.com

800-338-6716                  | twitter: unclebobmartin

[Heinrich Breedt]

how about: we live, work and play in a community? J

[Corey Haines]

What? I was working hard to get people ready to move out to a commune. No guns, man, though! Make love, not war!

--
http://www.coreyhaines.com
The Internet's Premiere source of information about Corey Haines

[Adam Williams]

On Feb 23, 2009, at 8:21 PM, Corey Haines wrote:

> What? I was working hard to get people ready to move out to a
> commune. No guns, man, though! Make love, not war!

Don't beat your sword into a plow too soon! There will be offenders
and a need to defend for a long time to come.

[Enrique Comba Riepenhausen]

I don't think the 'living together' part is so alien or necessarily bad. Question is, is it really possible in most cases?

Ending last year / early this year a colleague craftsman and myself decided to give this whole idea a go and see what happens...  

We looked for a nice apartment that would be big enough to create two different spaces, work and living to have what in the past was called the workshop. We are now one month and a half (nearly two) living in the new place (although somehow the ISP is having trouble to get our connection up and running). 

The idea is to fist define what we want to e as a crafsman workshop. What is our value, how do we communicate with other craftsmen and learn the most in our journey. It's here where the seed of NexWerk, an idea that lurked in my brain for years is starting to grow. Let's see if it does!

Last weekend we where defining our mantra (establish, explore, excel or simply e3). This is like a small reminder in short words of what we value as craftsmen. 

We also where thinking of opening up our workshop on Sundays for sharing knowledge with other people (pairing, learning new techiques, etc). 

I'm not sure where this will lead us (specially if we consider that we have dayjobs too), but it is a start that we consider worthwhile!

So, living together might not be as bad ;) 

Enrique Comba Riepenhausen

[Cory Foy]

Hi Bob,

There's something said for having a local community, though. For example, I watch the great meetings and conversations that happen in the midwest and know that to spread craftsmanship I have to start locally. How sad it would be to be a great craftsman not known in your own town.

To me, an important part is sharing that knowledge - and yes, I'd consider it a requirement.

Cory

(from mobile)

---

From: Robert Martin
Date: Mon, 23 Feb 2009 16:20:11 -0600
To: <software_cr...@googlegroups.com>
Subject: Re: The Right Side, Revisited

[Ilja Preuß]

2009/2/24 Adam Williams <adamsg...@gmail.com>:

Have you watched Ghandi?

Cheers, Ilja

[Doug Bradbury]

The intention in adding live to this statement was that to a
craftsman, software isn't just work. It's more. It's a way of life.
It's personal.

It speaks to the relationship we have with each other, which is more
than just professional. We enjoy each other. We stake our reputation
on each other. We depend on one another.

Doug

[Doug Bradbury]

As aspiring Software Craftsmen we are raising the bar of professional

software development by practicing it and helping others learn the
craft. Through this work we have come to value:

Not only working software, but also well-crafted software
Not only responding to change, but also steadily adding value
Not only individuals and interactions, but also a community of
professionals
Not only customer collaboration, but also productive partnerships

That is, by valuing the items on the left we have come to value their
extensions on the right.

http://groups.google.com/group/software_craftsmanship/web/the-new-left-side?hl=en

[Adam Williams]

I have not, though I was briefly schooled on his works through the use
of Wikipedia ;) I don't suppose this is the forum for discussing
philosophies or lifestyles outside of those that support the topic of
Software Craftsmanship, so I'll spare the group my uneducated
ramblings on subjects otherwise. Thank you, Ilja, for the pointer.

adam

[Eric Meyer]

I'm noticing a small problem with this definition.  It uses the phrase "well-crafted" to define a craftsman.  Thats similar to defining an artist as one who creates artistic images/objects.  Also, it seems a bit wordy and complex.  For instance, there's an explanation to the definition at the end of it.  I think it could be simpler (keeping with doing the simplest thing that could work).

Eric

[Robert Martin]

This is looking really good.  

Nits:

I'm not quite sure about the "we've come to value" bit at the end.  I'd be happier with something like "we've found we need..." or "they can't be attained without..."  Or "dedication to the right helps us achieve the left."

[Doug Bradbury]

That is, in trying to achieve the items on the left we have found the items on the right to be indispensable.

[Robert Martin]

!! I like that !!

[Corey Haines]

+1000 I really like how that links practices to ideals. Huzza for brainstorming!

[Eric Smith]

 +1 billion!  

Top that Corey.

[John Goodsen]

Bob, our compounds in Idaho are very friendly to agilistas - what gives?

Sent from my iPhone

[Doug Bradbury]

I think it would be great for someone to present the Craftsmanship
Manifesto at the US Agile Conference this summer. I have made a
submission here: http://www.agile2009.com/node/631

Is anyone interested in helping out with this presentation? (if it is
accepted)
I would welcome a co-presenter, perhaps someone representing a
different craftsmanship 'school' than I.
Agile submissions have "Featured Participants" this year that will
help avoid scheduling conflicts if you'd like to attend in that
capacity.

Doug

[Corey Haines]

I would be very interested in helping out.

I'm also planning on submitting a proposal called 'on the road: the life of a journeyman software craftsman,' which could tie in a bit. I'm not 100% sure what I'll talk about, but craftsmanship will play a huge role.

-Corey

[Kevin Taylor]

Would love to plan on another Software Craftsmanship Summit or "Conference within a Conference" at the Agile Conference. It will be one of the few times that we'll have many people on this list together in one room.

--
Kevin P. Taylor
312.380.6672

//obtiva - Agility Applied. Software Delivered.

http://obtiva.com

[Kevin Taylor]

I personally like the direction The Right Side, Revisited is taking, especially after having had the chance to brainstorm a bit in-person with some other craftsmanship folks here in Chicago over the past few weeks and help solidify some of my concerns and hopes around this discussion.

Primarily, I've been struggling with how Craftsmanship and Agile relate (or not). This has brought up lots of questions for me about where the Agile movement is going (Agile in the Large, Certified Scrum masters running projects without the disciplined technical practices of TDD and simple design, agile coaching turning into camp councilors and wanna-be therapists, etc).

Can I really believe in and be on board with that direction Agile seems to be taking? As I've alluded to in the past, I think Craftsmanship is a bit orthogonal to Agile. At least in the sense that Craftsmanship CAN live and be successful long-term without Agile. But, I believe that Agile cannot be successful unless it re-embraces it technical foundations. Craftsmanship is one route for Agile to achieve that. A way of returning Agile to its XP roots without all the political/emotional baggage XP carries: planning/building iteratively on top of well-written, simple, malleable software.

--
Kevin P. Taylor
312.380.6672

//obtiva - Agility Applied. Software Delivered.

http://obtiva.com