mrc's Cup of Joe Blog

Join us in exploring the world of modern development, evolving technologies, and the art of future-proof software

Month: June 2011

How application architecture can save time and money

Save TimeA few months into owning our first house, we learned something: The builder took some short-cuts. Unfortunately, you don’t recognize architectural defects when you buy the house. They become apparent after you’ve lived in it for some time.

Business applications are the same way.

If you’re building/buying new business apps, or buying software to build new business apps, be careful. It’s easy to fall in love with the interface and features without paying any attention to what really matters: The architecture. …

Meeting immovable deadlines

Save TimeDepending on which research firm you believe, anywhere from 50-90% of IT projects are completed late. While I could rattle off any number of reasons for this, I think that (much of the time) it boils down to one problem: Being late is an option. The deadline is viewed merely as a suggestion…it’s not the end of the world if it’s missed. We’ll just inform management that the project is running behind schedule and then set a new deadline.

But, what if being late wasn’t an option? …

Pivot tables in Google Docs: How do they compare?

EducationA couple of weeks ago, Google announced some big news: Google Docs now has pivot tables! I know what you’re thinking: How is this different than other pivot table options, such as those found in Excel? Are they right for business? I’d like to help you answer these questions.

First, how does this differ from other pivot table options? Before we answer that question, we must first answer this question: What are the other options? Before Google pivot tables came around, there were 2 main approaches to pivot tables: Excel pivot tables and database-driven web pivot tables (like those created with m-Power). With Google’s foray into pivot tables, we now have 3 legitimate pivot table options. So, which one is best for your business? The best way to answer that question is to take a look at how each option compares in 5 key areas: …