can’t just say “I want an Active Development Line” and change the codeline policy appropriately.
Putting it All Together
If you read this far you may be thinking “ Codeline Policy , and build issues, are SCM, but isn’t testing QA?” In a sense that is correct, but the fact that they are separated into two different groups is an organizational, and perhaps historical, artifact. In Extreme Programming teams developers write tests, and use version control, in addition to coding. There is a role for testing experts, ideally with that role fully integrated into the team, either as someone who helps customers write acceptance tests or as someone on the development team who helps developers with their testing technique. Likewise, there is a role for software configuration management in an agile project, and indeed, all projects would benefit by a more integrated view of SCM.
In addition to abstract benefits of understanding the global value of SCM solutions, implementing SCM processes with this in mind will make it easier for the entire team to embrace the SCM and appreciate the value that it adds.
Conclusion
Often we focus on our particular discipline and lose track of the goal of a software project: To build software that serves a customer’s needs. Testing, SCM, as well as coding should be part of every developer’s toolkit. Some will know more than others about a given discipline, but the disciplines need to work together well.
Acknowledgements: Ron Jeffries provided input into this article. To learn more about Extreme Programming visit www.xprogramming.com.
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About the author
Brad Appleton is a software CM/ALM solution architect and lean/agile development champion at a large telecommunications company. Currently he helps projects and teams adopt and apply lean/agile development and CM/ALM practices and tools. He is coauthor of the bookSoftware Configuration Management Patterns, a columnist in The CM Journal and The Agile Journal at CMCrossroads.com, and a former section editor for The C++ Report. You can read Brad's blog at blog.bradapp.net.
About the author
Steve Berczuk is an engineer and ScrumMaster at Humedica where he's helping to build next-generation SaaS-based clinical informatics applications. The author of Software Configuration Management Patterns: Effective Teamwork, Practical Integration, he is a recognized expert in software configuration management and agile software development. Steve is passionate about helping teams work effectively to produce quality software. He has an M.S. in operations research from Stanford University and an S.B. in Electrical Engineering from MIT, and is a certified, practicing ScrumMaster. Contact Steve at steve@berczuk.com or visit berczuk.com and follow his blog at blog.berczuk.com.
About the author
Steve Konieczka is President and Chief Operating Officer of SCM Labs, a leading Software Configuration Management solutions provider. An IT consultant for fourteen years, Steve understands the challenges IT organizations face in change management. He has helped shape companies’ methodologies for creating and implementing effective SCM solutions for local and national clients. Steve is a member of Young Entrepreneurs Organization and serves on the board of the Association for Configuration and Data Management (ACDM). He holds a Bachelor of Science in Computer Information Systems from Colorado State University. You can reach Steve at steve@scmlabs.com.
