Tag: competence

Development commitments have two edges


My friend Kirk has run his dev team in a mostly Agile system. Code sprints, agreeing on tickets for the sprint, declaring victory at the end of the sprint, etc. But now Kirk's boss says: I need you to commit to achieve certain goals by various dates over the next year. Once you agree to … Continue reading Development commitments have two edges →

How not to determine a raise


A friend, whom I'll call "Kirk," works in a startup. A really good developer, whom I'll call "Amy," reports to him. Kirk lobbied his boss for a big raise for Amy. He thought about this the right way: I've researched the current market rates for developers of Amy's level and abilities. She's very good, she's … Continue reading How not to determine a raise →

Counterbalance park: A Bogus Tagline


My October rant about Counterbalance park included intellectually sublime comments about the park's tagline, "An Urban Oasis." Let's examine it more closely. It contains, gosh, three words. An: A preposition. There's nothing to complain about here, these aren't the droids you're looking for. Urban: An adjective meaning, "in, relating to, or characteristic of a city or town." … Continue reading Counterbalance park: A Bogus Tagline →

Counterbalance park: Fail


Counterbalance Park, Seattle's newest park, located in lower Queen Anne, aka Uptown, sucks. It's an incredible Fail. An unmitigated disaster. The city calls this ode to concrete an "urban oasis." I am not kidding — its official name is, "Counterbalance Park: An Urban Oasis." I knew it'd be terrible when I heard its name. Because … Continue reading Counterbalance park: Fail →

AT&T Mobile sucks


Dave Gouldin is one of the bright minds at Pegasus News, and a performer in the up-and-coming alternative/indie band Watching Cars. AT&T Mobile is selling refurbished iPhones, and Dave has run into a buzz-saw of AT&T Mobile incompetence whilst trying to buy one.