[OT]: MC IDE b9

[Ken Ray]

On 6/10/05 2:32 AM, "xbury.cs at clearstream.com" <xbury.cs at clearstream.com>
wrote:

> The context in which i work daily and since 15 years is about as broad
> as an OS by itself - like linux but for xtalk and in plain english. Im
> sure this
> is of value - yet it speaks little for TAOO's capabilities: control of the
> OS
> or any component - and access to information any time, any where +
> infinite extensibility for editing... In an object oriented paradigm.

That's swell, and when you get something done and tested, let us know.
 
> It's not hard to document or fix things but it's extremelly hard to
> document
> when after each paragraph you get new ideas - so the scripts are the only
> documentation i ever needed. I've rewritten the TAOO definition so many
> times it's not even funny but getting it right is impossible without the
> practice... So i try - each day...

So does it surprise you that *we* can't make heads or tails of it? Write
your ideas down, but don't implement them until current code is completed...
if you continue to interrupt yourself, you'll be spinning your wheels and
wasting a lot or your and our time.
 
If everything you talk to us about is a work in progress, it is essentially
meaningless, IMHO. It's like vaporware that promises the "next big thing",
but then never delivers.

> I just wonder where linux would be today if Linus was faced with the same
> crowd i am... No admonition intended... But i find many go their own way,
> rewrite the wheel and still dont get it... So that's ultra-aggravating if
> you've
> already pointed the obvious circle...

Yes, but just saying that TAOO is the solution to everyone's problems in
xTalk doesn't take people any closer to the solution. In fact, it becomes
*more* aggravating for *them* because they feel you have the answer to their
problem, and then when they go to investigate, it either doesn't exist yet,
or breaks so they can't use it.
 
> As for the beta - unfinished ware, you might point out the 2.6 release...
> ;)
> The difference is that users do report the problems - in my case - less
> than
> a handful - so finding these errors is really hard for me in between
> releases.

I think the reason is clear... if every time someone downloads something
from you it breaks almost immediately, it shows that you didn't test it
thoroughly before you provided it for people to use.  And *that* means that
you either (a) are so enthusiastic to get it out that *you* don't care that
it's buggy, or (b) you are hoping that other people will find the bugs for
you so you don't have to test, or (c) you don't have a healthy respect for
other people's time and think they won't mind spending large chunks of time
trying to debug your code for you.

Listen, Xavier, my intention is not to "rag on you", but to point out the
fact that you're in a terrible spiral - you complain that more people aren't
using your stuff or reporting bugs, but you don't make it inviting for
people to do that - in fact, you do the opposite, and effectively "push
people away" with the kind of software you provide to others.

Please seriously take to heart the comments that Chipp and others (including
myself) that have given you:

  - don't talk about something until it is done (or in testing)
  - don't release software that hasn't been tested thoroughly so that the
only bugs that should be reported are esoteric, and tested on multiple
platforms (or make sure you document the platform(s) it *has* been tested
on)
  - when you finally release something, make sure there's sufficient
documentation that people shouldn't have to come back to you with questions
unless it is an uncommon situation that's not covered in the docs
  - don't use the term "TAOO" in every conversation - it is currently pretty
meaningless (IMHO) and the more you talk about it, the less meaning it
gets... my suggestion is to lay off of it until you actually have a working
version of TAOO ready to show, and *then* promote it. This is kind of like
the "boy who cried wolf" but in reverse... you cry "wolf" so many times that
people will eventually get to the point that they don't care whether there's
a wolf or not...

As Chipp mentioned, you are obviously very smart, very excited, and very
dedicated to solving people's problems. You contribute on almost every issue
on the Rev list, and we can all tell that you have a lot to provide. Please
take my comments and the comments of others in the caring, corrective light
that they are intended and seriously give thought to what we've said.

Thanks,

Ken Ray
Sons of Thunder Software
Web site: http://www.sonsothunder.com/
Email: kray at sonsothunder.com