2013/10/31 Alberto Salvia Novella <es204904...@gmail.com> > An extract of "Rework: Change the way you work > forever"<http://sharkinfestedcustard.files.wordpress.com/2011/10/rework-jason-fried.pdf> > :* > ** > > * > > *Throw less at the problem* > > Watch chef Gordon Ramsay's Kitchen Nightmares and you'll see a pattern. The > menus at failing restaurants offer too many dishes. The owners think > making every dish > under the sun will broaden the appeal of the restaurant. Instead it makes > for crappy food > (and creates inventory headaches). > > That's why Ramsay's first step is nearly always to trim the menu, usually > from > thirty-plus dishes to around ten. Think about that. Improving the current > menu doesn't > come first. Trimming it down comes first. Then he polishes what's left. > > When things aren't working, the natural inclination is to throw more at the > problem. More people, time, and money. All that ends up doing is making > the problem > bigger. The right way to go is the opposite direction: Cut back. > > So do less. Your project won't suffer nearly as much as you fear. In fact, > there's agood chance > it'll end up even better. You'll be forced to make tough calls and sort out > what truly matters. > If you start pushing back deadlines and increasing your budget, you'll > never stop. > > > > *Embrace constraints* > > "I don't have enough time/money/people/experience." Stop whining. Less is a > good thing. Constraints are advantages in disguise. Limited resources > force you to make > do with what you've got. There's no room for waste. And that forces you to > be creative. > Ever seen the weapons prisoners make out of soap or a spoon? They make do > with what they've got. Now we're not saying you should go out and shank > somebody--but > get creative and you'll be amazed at what you can make with just a little. > > Writers use constraints to force creativity all the time. Shakespeare > reveled in the > limitations of sonnets (fourteen-line lyric poems in iambic pentameter > with a specific > rhyme scheme). Haiku and limericks also have strict rules that lead to > creative results. > Writers like Ernest Hemingway and Raymond Carver found that forcing > themselves to > use simple, clear language helped them deliver maximum impact. > > The Price Is Right, the longest-running game show in history, is also a > great > example of creativity born from embracing constraints. The show has more > than a > hundred games, and each one is based on the question "How much does this > item cost?" > That simple formula has attracted fans for more than thirty years. > > Southwest--unlike most other airlines, which fly multiple aircraft > models--flies > only Boeing 737s. As a result, every Southwest pilot, flight attendant, > and ground-crew > member can work any flight. Plus, all of Southwest's parts fit all of its > planes. All that > means lower costs and a business that's easier to run. They made it easy > on themselves. > When we were building Basecamp, we had plenty of limitations. We had a > design > firm to run with existing client work, a seven-hour time difference > between principals > (David was doing the programming in Denmark, the rest of us were in the > States), a small > team, and no outside funding. These constraints forced us to keep the > product simple. > > These days, we have more resources and people, but we still force > constraints. We > make sure to have only one or two people working on a product at a time. > And we always > keep features to a minimum. Boxing ourselves in this way prevents us from > creating > bloated products. > > So before you sing the "not enough" blues, see how far you can get with > what you > have. > > > > *Start at the epicenter* > > When you start anything new, there are forces pulling you in a variety of > directions. There's the stuff you could do, the stuff you want to do, and > the stuff you have > to do. The stuff you have to do is where you should begin. Start at the > epicenter. > > For example, if you're opening a hot dog stand, you could worry about the > condiments, the cart, the name, the decoration. But the first thing you > should worry about > is the hot dog. The hot dogs are the epicenter. Everything else is > secondary. > > The way to find the epicenter is to ask yourself this question: "If I took > this away, > would what I'm selling still exist?" A hot dog stand isn't a hot dog stand > without the hot > dogs. You can take away the onions, the relish, the mustard, etc. Some > people may notlike > your toppings-less dogs, but you'd still have a hot dog stand. But you > simply cannot > have a hot dog stand without any hot dogs. > > So figure out your epicenter. Which part of your equation can't be > removed? If > you can continue to get by without this thing or that thing, then those > things aren't the > epicenter. When you find it, you'll know. Then focus all your energy on > making it the > best it can be. Everything else you do depends on that foundation. > > > > *Build half a product, not a half-assed product* > > You can turn a bunch of great ideas into a crappy product real fast by > trying to do > them all at once. You just can't do everything you want to do and do it > well. You have > limited time, resources, ability, and focus. It's hard enough to do one > thing right. Trying > to do ten things well at the same time? Forget about it. > > So sacrifice some of your darlings for the greater good. Cut your ambition > in half. > You're better off with a kick-ass half than a half-assed whole. > > Most of your great ideas won't seem all that great once you get some > perspective, > anyway. And if they truly are that fantastic, you can always do them later. > > Lots of things get better as they get shorter. Directors cut good scenes > to make a > great movie. Musicians drop good tracks to make a great album. Writers > eliminate good > pages to make a great book. We cut this book in half between the > next-to-last and finaldrafts. > From 57,000 words to about 27,000 words. Trust us, it's better for it. > > So start chopping. Getting to great starts by cutting out stuff that's > merely good. > > > > *Focus on what won't change* > > A lot of companies focus on the next big thing. They latch on to what's > hot and > new. They follow the latest trends and technology. > > That's a fool's path. You start focusing on fashion instead of substance. > You start > paying attention to things that are constantly changing instead of things > that last. > > The core of your business should be built around things that won't change. > Things > that people are going to want today and ten years from now. Those are the > things you > should invest in. > > Amazon.com focuses on fast (or free) shipping, great selection, friendly > returnpolicies, > and affordable prices. These things will always be in high demand. > > Japanese automakers also focus on core principles that don't change: > reliability, > affordability, and practicality. People wanted those things thirty years > ago, they want > them today, and they'll want them thirty years from now. > > For 37signals, things like speed, simplicity, ease of use, and clarity are > our focus. > > Those are timeless desires. People aren't going to wake up in ten years > and say, "Man, I > wish software was harder to use." They won't say, "I wish this application > was slower." > > Remember, fashion fades away. When you focus on permanent features, you're > in > bed with things that never go out of style. > > > > > If you found this interesting, perhaps you shall want to have a look at > the book. > > Thank you. > > > > El 31/10/13 13:53, Ali Linx (amjjawad) escribió: > > > Hi, > > Help is needed and highly appreciated :) > > Thanks! > > *---------- Forwarded message ----------* > From: Ali Linx (amjjawad) <amjja...@gmail.com> > Date: Sat, Oct 26, 2013 at 10:40 AM > *Subject: [ATTENTION] LTS Release - Urgent Need for More People* > To: ubuntu-gnome <ubuntu-gn...@lists.ubuntu.com> > > > Hello Everyone, > > As you may know, 14.04 Cycle is an LTS (Long Term Support) Cycle. Having > that said, Ubuntu and most of the official flavours will have LTS Release. > For the moment, the lack of Manpower could keep us away from having an LTS > Release. However, after a discussion with our Developers, we'd like to > announce the urgent need for these roles: > > 1- Someone with Bug Control to 'Actively Commit' to triaging Ubuntu GNOME > bugs. > > 2- Couple of people helping out with 'Bug Fixing'. > > 3- People to help with 'Packaging' on the PPA's > > PLEASE NOTE: We are looking for people with experience and skills! We NEED > people to commit for 3-5 years support and not just join for few months > then leave. > > NO PROMISES to be made but we would be comfortable enough to submit an > application to the Technical Board in order to have an LTS Release when we > will have volunteers who can actively contribute and help us. > > If you have the required experience and skills or if you know someone who > has, please let us know :) > > Thank you! > > > *Please, FEEL FREE to share this email and spread the word. > > * > -- > Remember: "All of us are smarter than any one of us." > Best Regards, > amjjawad <https://wiki.ubuntu.com/amjjawad> > Areas of Involvement<https://wiki.ubuntu.com/amjjawad/AreasOfInvolvement> > My Projects <https://wiki.ubuntu.com/amjjawad/Projects> > > > > > -- > Ubuntu-quality mailing list > ubuntu-qual...@lists.ubuntu.com > Modify settings or unsubscribe at: > https://lists.ubuntu.com/mailman/listinfo/ubuntu-quality > >
Wow, thank you for sharing Alberto! I'd like to add my 2 cents, quoted from John Maeda's Laws of Simplicity: TEN LAWS 1 reduce The simplest way to achieve simplicity is through thoughtful reduction. 2 organize 3 time Organization makes a system of many appear fewer. Savings in time feel like simplicity. 4 learn Knowledge makes everything simpler. 5 diΩerences Simplicity and complexity need each other. 6 context What lies in the periphery of simplicity is definitely not peripheral. 7 emotion More emotions are better than less. 8 trust In simplicity we trust. 9 failure 10 the one Some things can never be made simple. Simplicity is about subtracting the obvious, and adding the meaningful. THREE KEYS 1 away More appears like less by simply moving it far, far away. 2 open Openness simplifies complexity. 3 power Use less, gain more. TED video: http://www.ted.com/talks/john_maeda_on_the_simple_life.html Book: ( you may find it in other places...) http://www.scan-shipping.com/template/scanship_ru/uploads/files/260_maedalawsofsimplicity.pdf Best regards, Iberê
-- Mailing list: https://launchpad.net/~lubuntu-qa Post to : lubuntu-qa@lists.launchpad.net Unsubscribe : https://launchpad.net/~lubuntu-qa More help : https://help.launchpad.net/ListHelp
