I’ve finally taken the high definition TV plunge with this sweet little projector. It’s also 3d-ready but I haven’t played with that at all.
It dropped into my old-school TiVo, xBox, and PC running XBMC environment surprisingly easily.
Angie’s List Fails on my Trial Run
August 30, 2010 – 6:26 am
I’ve always liked the idea of Angie’s List. I’m a firm believer that the right lead saves money, time and stress. In need of a Water Softener I finally had a legitimate need for their services and signed up: ~$30 for two years.
Only one entry under category Water Softener in my area was even ranked and he had a D! Most of the local Water Softener services Angie’s List listed were plumbers in any case and I’d rather have the tanks simply swapped out so they can’t help me.
I picked a name brand and will add a report to Angie’s List when I have a verdict. Still holding out hope for getting useful advise from Angie’s List.
Mark your calendar and save the date!
April 28, 2010 – 2:16 pm
It drives me crazy when I receive email at work asking me to “mark my calendar.”
Outlook is clunky but it has a functioning calendar.
If you’re sending me email with a date and time in it you probably need to start over with a calendar invitation.
Additional Stories mid-Sprint
November 23, 2009 – 11:53 am
I was too lax recently when a Scrum Team ran low and picked up some additional Stories. The quick email discussion going over the Stories was probably insufficient to get unanimous buy-in and a Failed Sprint might have been avoided.
Moving forward, I will always have a mini-Sprint Planning Meeting when any new Stories are considered.
Clean End
November 22, 2009 – 8:18 am
One of the things we’ve been tracking is Pass or Fail for a Sprint All the work you set out to do was done? Pass. You missed a Story? Fail. There’s no associated reward or punishment but the teams get pretty serious about it.
A Sprint ended Friday and the Team was patting themselves on the back for their Pass even though at 7:30 PM the Team was still scrammbling to wrap up 3 Tasks. One of the engineers had to cancel dinner plans and was working alone at the office feeling solely responsible for the team’s success.
So now I get be the mean ScrumMaster and give them a big ol’ Fail and explain that the planning and estimates should not require last minute heroics and all-nighters.
I’m adding to my ScrumMaster checklist: Put a clear deadline in Exchange noting the date and hour of the Pass/Fail deadline. I’m a chump for not doing that automatically.
Scrum Evangelist
November 15, 2009 – 8:25 am
I’ve been tasked with converting ValueClick Media’s software development process to Scrum. I’m filling the role of ScrumMaster for two teams. We’ve settled on two-week Sprints and have completed two Sprints so far. It’s still early but the transition had gone surprisingly smooth.
Banana Monkey
April 25, 2008 – 8:18 pm
In Playa del Carmen, Head Chef and I enjoyed this tasty frozen concoction. A slight twist on the Piña Colada, this tropical treat is mighty refreshing.
Ingredients:
8 ounces piña colada nonalcoholic drink mix
1 fluid ounce Kahlua
1 fluid ounce vodka
1/3 banana
Ice
Directions:
Add ingredients into blender and blend, adding ice until desired consistency.
–Sous-Chef on the Run
via al dente blog