> "JOO" == James Olin Oden <joden@lee.k12.nc.us> writes: > > JOO> As it is though the current company I am working with has > JOO> invested heavily in clearcase and so any solution would require > JOO> it. > > Vladimir G. Ivanovic http://leonora.org/~vladimir: > Precisely. Once you start with ClearCase, you're effectively locked into > a costly, proprietary solution[sic] forever. Well, no. Let me preface by saying that there's absolutely nothing wrong with proprietary solutions - they just have to actually be of more value than their total costs to be worthwhile. ...The "stuck with it forever" part is a key indicator of what is appropriately viewed as "bad management." ...I'm really a techie, but as Chief Scientist, I have a management role with my firm. From this experience, I have learned a little about such issues, thankfully from some enlightened souls... There is a concept of "sunk costs." These are expenses for which your organization is "underwater" - essentially forever, such as with ClearCase as described above. Like a sunken ship, such "resources" are only good for salvage. Because of the fast-pace of computer hardware development and the plumeting prices for it, it's more frequent that organizations are stuck with sunk costs on hardware. As an example, consider "optical juke boxes", and "tape robots." Storage systems such as these are oft found with sunken costs these days because magnetic disks offer faster access with lower total costs of ownership - especially so when maintenance, personel, floor space, air-conditioning and electrical power are taken into consideration. ...The same reasoning applies to software as well, of course... When your organization has a sunk cost, it's wise to recognize it as early as possible and move on. True, as a technical person it can be difficult to deal with situations like this because often management doesn't consider seriously the business acumen of technical people. But, honestly, we are often the first to recognize these shipwrecks when they occurr in the technology. A secondary and not to be minimized problem is the "you're wrong" or "placing blame" issue. Simply put: It's not about blame, it's about your organization being profitable. If put in these terms, USUALLY management will listen... A thoroughly researched perspective, articulated gently will usually win the day, and even if you don't get what you want, you will likely impress your management and you may win the next battle. ...Sorry to be so far off topic... Good luck out there, Richard -- Richard Troy, Chief Scientist Science Tools Corporation rtroy@ScienceTools.com, 510-567-9957, http://ScienceTools.com/ _______________________________________________ Redhat-devel-list mailing list Redhat-devel-list@redhat.com https://listman.redhat.com/mailman/listinfo/redhat-devel-list
