Subtraction.com - If it looks like a cow, swims like a dolphin and quacks like a duck, it must be enterprise software

Funny post by Khoi Vinh! The post itself isn't particularly good (though funny), but the comments section is very long, and has some real gems.

Since I'm now working on enterprise software, it's suddenly really, really easy to tell from the comments, who's actually been there and done that, too.

The dynamics of power when it comes to the users vs purchasers of enterprise software was one of the hardest things for me to adjust to initially, when coming from B2C agencyland, as it were.

These two comments really stood out for me, but if you bother to trawl through the whole lot, there are a couple more good ones. :)

If you've worked on enterprise software at all, your head will be nodding and nodding like one of those bobbly dogs...

Proudly a craftsnugget!

Read an interesting post by Mark Boulton - Not a craftsman.

I usually like what he's written, but in this case, I have to disagree. He's defining it wrong. ;)

But wai nugget?

Well see...

"If my uncle was restoring traction engines for a living, he would’ve been out of business. Craft is love. And love takes time. And time is scarce and probably best spent elsewhere."

That statement immediately made me think of the story where Picasso does a little sketch in 5 min. A potential buyer goes 'Omg! How can you charge <whatever ridiculous sum> for something that took you 5 min to do?!?!' Picasso looks down his nose regally, and replies, 'That, ma'am, took me my whole life.' (Or something similar.)

I disagree that craft has to be slow. Yes, love takes time. Expertise takes time. But that doesn't mean you bill your 10k hours to your clients directly. The 10k hours you have under your belt are what affects the asking price you give to clients! The 10k hours are the love.

The 10k hours are your craftperson's gift to the leanan sidhe that you can never get back. ;)

Also, because everything is always about food, anyone who thinks craft has to be slow has never watched a real sushi chef at work. XD

LICEcap by Cockos Inc, a free, GIF screencast app that's as awesome as its name is awful.

Sample GIF from Mars - a web business intelligence tool for community pharmacies - that we recently launched at Minfos.

I recorded this as a PoC to show my colleagues, but it's had the fortunate effect of making me realise that the way we've implemented that checkbox is pretty bad right now. It shouldn't dismiss the dropdown menu the moment the checkbox is checked, but only upon the user clicking 'Apply Settings'. Otherwise (as you can see), it's quite horridly disorienting.

Get this wonderful, shiny LICEcap tool.

On creating brand identities, writing honorific epics for your supper, and settling.

Fail Safe: Debbie Millman’s Advice on Courage and the Creative Life, Maria Popova

While I understand where she is coming from - we had pretty similar beginnings - if you are a brand consultant and it doesn't bring you joy to shape identities, to work within the constraints of who your clients are, what they want to become, and what they can reasonably be within their current situations...

... then I'm not sure I'd want to pay you top dollar. That's all.

There's nothing dishonourable about writing honorific epics (creating brand identities and everything that goes with it) for your supper. There's no shame in the enjoyment of craftsmanship, in the pursuit of it.

But maybe I'm just saying that because I'm a mediocre nugget who happens to really like writing honorific epics for my supper. And when they have truth and soul in them, even better.

I guess the difference is that while I dreamed of being an illustrator when I was a younger, juicier nugget, and I too, chose the path of stability and sanity that was available when I started out, I don't think I settled.

I think I found something just as good, if different. What I do now - that isn't settling.

Yeah if I'd stayed a print designer, and ONLY a print designer, that would be settling.

But with all the stuff I get to do now, I don't look at illustration and go, 'O woe is meeeee! If only my life had been different I could have had that! How I want that! I (claim) I would give it all for that!'

No. Just no.

The article felt more like a regretful monologue of a 'I wish I was a fine artist' type designer. I've got nothing against fine artists, but I really wish that frustrated fine artists wouldn't work as designers.

Nick Kelly: How lies and white male privilege can get you to high places, fast, even if you probably shouldn't be there.

"Getting every staffing agency within a thirty–mile radius to try to find you a job is no easy task. It took months of work and sleep deprivation to build up a portfolio that people would actually pay attention to. I spent a lot of time redesigning mobile applications from big name brands and then posting them on my website as “concepts” so that I could make people think I had worked for that brand, but really I hadn’t. Basically, I had to manipulate my way to the top. It worked."

I find this terrifying.

Redesigns from outside-in are easy. Here's a very eloquent article on why you should keep your unsolicited redesign to yourself. Particularly good is the bit on why, from the outside-in, even a seasoned professional like Andy Rutledge makes basic mistakes due to personal misconceptions. It's terrifying because due diligence wasn't done to verify that he had actually worked for the brands on his portfolio, and he got away with it. At least, that's what he implies in his piece.

I also wonder whether he'd have had quite the same result if he were a black woman (or a non-white woman!) instead of a white male.

Or to put it another way...

"How I became an Art Director for the largest advertising network in the world… Before I turned 21"

(Because I'm white).

Wait, nugget! What are you on? Well... have a look at these articles (just a few of many), and then go back and read Nick Kelly's piece.

It's terrifying because it's a great illustration of getting a job 'because I'm white' + 'male' without necessarily having the skills to do said job.

It's terrifying because a place I once worked at, and loved with all my heart, was bought by Wunderman a few years ago.

Beyond that, I don't really have much else to say.