shesafish

	Wednesday, January 29, 2003

 Biofeedback Software

Nervous Kids Can Get Help from New Software

[kuro5hin.org]

I hope someone makes an open source version. I've wanted to try one of those biofeedback machines, just to see how your ability to focus fluctuates throughout the day, but they are pretty expensive.

7:00:08 PM  comment [] | Topics: metacognition 

Something to read when the time comes, sorry for the hit-and-run.

Modeling one-to-many relationships with XML (Earthweb)

[IBM DeveloperWorks: XML News]

6:53:55 PM  comment [] | Topics: XML 

 Designing for Credibility

This is an internal dillema that has plaqued me in recent years: I am a programmer, so design (as in webpage layout, stylesheets, colors) will always be low priority. Right? I often tiptoe back to the design, tweaking html here and there, but only as a fun excercise to do on breaks between coding tasts. In a perfect world I would come up with a layout like Craigslist, clean, tidy and requiring minimal artistic skills.

Tanya [PixelCharmer] Rabourn points us to Luke Wrobleski's excellent article Visible Narratives: Understanding Visual Organization explains why these competing priorities are not easily resolved. It also provides some helpful links on the subject including Stanford Guidelines for Web Credibility.

link found at [Pixelcharmer] via [ia/ - information architecture news].

6:36:09 PM  comment [] | Topics: Tuftianism goodWeblogs GUI HTML 

 Project Management's first P (there are eight): Purpose

C and C forwarded this is nice piece on Project Management, structured into eight 'P's: Purpose, Promise, Process, People, Planning, Practice, Performance, and Place. Eight 'p's are a little daunting so I might jot two or three onto an index card for my cubicle.

Purpose is a good one to review on a weekly basis (for me at least, as I can wander into tangentia). Why are we doing the project? It would be interesting to track the answer from week to week. As the author says, "Purpose changes or evolves through time. We learn, conditions change, clients' views change."

This is something I hadn't considered before: expect the first P (Purpose) to change with time. Allow it to change. If purpose remains constant, fine. If not, at least you won't be blindsided. Expecting purpose to change also motivates you to consistently revisit the first p. Revisiting p1 naturally reinforces p5: planning, but that's topic for another time.

5:57:44 PM  comment [] | Topics: Project_Management