Editorials

Displaying XML data in HTML files

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Displaying XML data in HTML files
In this second tutorial of the series we shall see how we can display xml data in a html file.

Rushed? Work Less. Deliver More.
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Building BI Projects… Your Approach
[Send in your thoughts here]

Daniel writes "I have been involved in many project style implementations including BI related ones, software, hardware deployment and ERP system implementations. In my experience the phase of scoping the project or determining what you are going to do, what you need and how long it will take is crucial to the predictability of success of the project. Under/over estimate in any area and you introduce risk.


I have seen multi-million dollar projects go awry because of an underestimation of skill-set requirements, both on the consultant and customer side, as well as underestimating the complexity of a task because discovery was not executed completely. The investment was higher then the return making the task impractical with the approach that was chosen for the solution.

It is ok to fully explore all areas pertaining to a project to best determine the approach to be used by the solution. This is sort of an architectural approach to the discovery part of scoping the project. From there, based on the resources available (people, skill/abilities, hardware, and the all important $), identify the volume of work that can be completed in the requisite time frame. Some parts of the body of work that you identify are high investment low return while others low investment and high return. In my opinion it is best to build on a body of success. Future development can be inherently stable and politically there is value of building a reputation of promise-deliver.

Typically I like to look for a general evolution in terms of 2-4 iterations of the project life-cycle. The farther out you go, the iterations tend to be just projections because the organization will go through a change by then but the major problems tend to materialize in a similar fashion. If staffing is an issue you identify now, it will most likely still be an issue through the 3rd or 4th iteration even though they may have a different task profile then originally anticipated.

I am a firm believer in the small bites or the iterative approach."

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