configuration management

This article focuses on the characteristics of SCM solutions, tool, and environments that are necessary to for agile development to succeed, particularly about agile SCM striving to be as transparent and "frictionless", automating as much as possible.

Branching is both simple and complex.  For many, it is challenging to know where to begin.  This article hopes to provide a starting point, by highlighting branching concepts, providing reasons for branching, and suggesting an approach to establish a branching and merging strategy.

No matter what type of software you develop, from internal IT applications to web applications to commercial software packages, fixing bugs following a release is part of the software development lifecycle. Realistically, software maintenance can be a project by itself. However, the process of merging production fixes into the development codeline is an equally significant effort. Unfortunately, the effort required to merge production fixes into the development codeline can be grossly underestimated and improperly staffed even by organizations that practice otherwise good software development.

If your daughter ever comes home with a friendly, outgoing guy named Norbert, shoot first and ask questions later.

Some years ago, a salesman named Norbert at the SCM vendor where I worked got a call in late December from a prospect that had decided to buy from a different vendor. He asked to keep an appointment he had made for a wrapping up session. He went to the meeting with a sales proposal in hand, and after reengineering the vision of the customer, actually left with a sales agreement. Now that's a short sales cycle!