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Best Practices for Process Documentation: Use Cases (3 of 3)

By Jim MacLennan ⋅ September 21, 2008 ⋅ One comment

I’ve been writing about iterative documentation and checklists, and it’s easy to see how these are applicable to a number of common IT processes … Build a server Apply OS patches Move new code into production Initiate a project / programming request Unfortunately, there are plenty of other areas in IT that you think should [...]

Best Practices for Process Documentation: Checklists (1 of 3)

By Jim MacLennan ⋅ September 14, 2008 ⋅ Post a comment

I’ve written before about process documentation and the need for checklists – especially for repeatable and complex processes that you may not perform every single day. A written process solves a multitude of issues: Security: For complex processes with integrated platforms, a detailed list keeps you from forgetting key settings, switches, and process steps that [...]

Tomato Firmware – Upgrading my Wireless Router

By Jim MacLennan ⋅ March 22, 2008 ⋅ Post a comment

I’m not going to retell the story of the Linksys WRT54G wireless router (ok, read this if you are curious). Just capturing some key learnings, to be googled / indexed / found by the next person experiencing issues. I settled on the Tomato firmware – seemed to get the best reviews, and it covered the [...]

Stop Thinking, Start Doing – Else Your Career/Skills/Network Will Fade Away …

By Jim MacLennan ⋅ January 2, 2008 ⋅ Post a comment

Hugh Pickens posted an interesting comment on Slashdot last week … pulling ideas out of an excellent NY Times article … “I have a DVD remote control with 52 buttons on it, and every one of them is there because some engineer along the line knew how to use that button and believed I would [...]

SQL Hack for Reporting Project Phase and Status

By Jim MacLennan ⋅ December 20, 2007 ⋅ Post a comment

It’s been a while since I’ve posted some code, but I did a nice little SQL hack today that I’ve been puzzling over for a while. I freely admit that I may have made this more difficult with the original data model, but the die has been cast. Consider a single SQL table that captures [...]

How to Win at the PMO Prioritization Game

By Jim MacLennan ⋅ December 19, 2007 ⋅ Post a comment

Last time I talked about “cheating” at the PMO prioritization game. Ok, it wasn’t cheating, more like a trick to keep your projects small, fast – and easy to fit into a crowded schedule. Totally above board, but some might call it manipulative. Remember the old management hack … how do eat an elephant? If [...]

PMO Prioritization – Project Descriptions should be Effective, Relevant … and Short!

By Jim MacLennan ⋅ December 9, 2007 ⋅ Post a comment

Next year, our PMO will be taking a run at improving “transparency” for project prioritization – a clearer process for getting projects approved and scheduled. Here’s a key building block – what is the most effective way to describe a project? There is a certain amount of art and style in getting this right; most [...]

Interesting How the Mind Works

By Jim MacLennan ⋅ October 1, 2007 ⋅ Post a comment

My mother has always been an accomplished letter writer – her travelogues are definitely worth keeping. Lately, she’s adapted her flair for the written word to email, having amassed a healthy mailing list of relatives, grandchildren, etc. Here’s one she sent last month – I thought it was an interesting insight into the nature of [...]

Alternative KM Tools (3 of 3)

By Jim MacLennan ⋅ September 25, 2007 ⋅ Post a comment

In my first two posts about alternative KM tools I wrote about audio – digital voice recorders and voice-recognition software. One could consider this “old-school” technology, because the stuff has been around for a long time. Another technology that’s been around for a long time is PC-based video – around, but possibly not as accessible [...]

Alternative KM Tools (2 of 3)

By Jim MacLennan ⋅ September 11, 2007 ⋅ Post a comment

In my first post about alternative KM tools, I wrote about audio files, and my new productivity enhancer – the digital voice recorder. One thing I noticed when replaying these sessions and capturing the notes; since I could cue and review all parts of the conversations, I was taking more notes than I used to [...]

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