The decs' are down and the diets have started. But it's not all doom and gloom - there's plenty to look forward to in 2015. For starters we're just 7 weeks away from NorDevCon 2015 and here's a few more sessions to sink you teeth into.
So long, and thanks for all the tests
Consultant, coach, designer, analyst and developer, Seb Rose has been involved in the full development lifecycle, from Architecture to Support and BASIC to Ruby. Most recently he's been helping teams adopt and refine their agile practices, with a particular focus on automated testing.
He answers the questions we've all been asking ourselves - Do unit tests make life better? Should we develop using test driven development (TDD)? What exactly are our customers paying for?
Software development is hard. Unit testing and Test Driven Development (TDD) can make it easier, but only if done well – and that takes time. Seb explains how these practices can help your project, what you can do to get better at them, and why your boss should care about them.
You’ll learn about project risk and how developer testing can improve the chances of a successful delivery and see how developer tests don’t just protect against regression, but also act as a primary source of documentation. And we’ll take a few hints from the ancient Egyptians!
A note about the title: In Douglas Adams’ Hitchhiker’s Guide To The Galaxy the dolphins leave planet earth before it gets destroyed, with their last enigmatic message “So long, and thanks for all the fish” being misinterpreted. Is our software giving us the same message? After all, the software would still perform the same function without the tests, wouldn’t it?
The ups and downs of agile as a small agency
Head of Service Design for dxw, an agency specialising in public sector digital, Lily walks us through her agencies experience as a small agile shop working for the public sector, sharing best practice advice and good examples of agile in practice.
When you’re actually working on the front lines with a client who has the drive to do things right, but is still limited by their timescale and budget, how can you make agile work? Lily reveals the answers leaning on experience in front end development and user experience design. Lilly loves using her technical knowledge and design expertise to solve problems.
Lies, damn lies and estimates
Seb steps up once again, this time posing the important question 'Are estimates an essential part of project planning and delivery or a waste of everybody’s time?'
Seb explains how, as is so often the case, the answer is neither and both. In this session we discover that there is more than one kind of estimate and examine how they are typically used in an agile context.
He looks at what some of the great minds have said on the subject, from Steve McConnell to Demarco and Lister. He’ll also consider the need for estimates from the viewpoint of the business people who have to decide whether a project proposal should receive budget. Picking up the ‘No Estimates’ discussion from Twitter, Seb looks at whether there’s a case to be made for always refusing to provide estimates or whether there are times that some sorts of estimation is valuable. Seb closes by considering what Disraeli might have said on the subject.
As a regular speaker at conferences and occasional contributor to software journals, Seb is also a contributing author to “97 Things Every Programmer Should Know” (O’Reilly) and is currently writing The Cucumber-JVM Book for Pragmatic Programmers.
Conference Dinner and Kurasie Wine Reception
Make the most of your time at NorDevCon and join us for a wine reception (free), also at The King’s Centre, generously sponsored by Kurasie. Discuss what you’ve learnt, raise any questions or introduce yourself to other delegates and share insights.
If you’re unable to attend the conference then you’re still very welcome to attend the drinks reception and mingle with conference delegates, speakers, organisers, Norfolk’s tech community and beyond.
The drinks reception will be followed by the conference dinner (£35 + fees for 3 courses and 2 glasses of wine) where you’ll have the chance to sit down and dine with all your favourite speakers in turn and pick the minds of those that are most relevant to you and your business. Places must be booked in advance and, like the drinks reception, invitations extend to those unable to attend the full conference as they also provide invaluable stand-alone networking opportunities.
View the menu here.
Pre-conference special & dinner
You can now RSVP for the pre-conference special and dinner on the evening of Thursday 26th of February(the evening before the conference). If you're able to make it, please do come along to both. The details are below.
Everyone is welcome at both events and you don't need to attend the conference to attend the pre-conference events.
Pre-conference Special with Allan Kelly and Kevlin Henney
Thursday, 26th February 2015 @ 5pm
The Kings Centre, Norwich
The Rule of Three - Kevin Henney
The three-act play, the given–when–then BDD triptych, the three steps of the Feynman problem solving algorithm... a surprising number of things appear to come in threes. This talk walks through — and has some fun with — a number of triples that affect and are found in software development.
Every business is a software business - Allan Kelly
Pre-conference Dinner at All Bar One
Thursday, 26th February 2015 @ 7.30pm
All Bar One, Norwich
This year the pre-conference dinner will be at All Bar One (a short walk from the Kings Centre) at 7.30pm. All are welcome and the fixed price menu is here:
View the menu.
When you RSVP you'll need to pay £11 for the meal and then for your drinks on the night. Please specify a starter, main meal and dessert when you RSVP.
Student & Unemployed Discounts
If you’re a student or are unemployed you can attend NorDevCon for just £25 + fees. If you purchase a discounted ticket you will be required to prove your status when you register on the morning of the conference.
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