Building software is expensive. I’m not talking about creating software, I mean taking software as written (source code) and running it through compilers and linkers and post-processors and packagers and obfuscators and installer-generators. It might not seem so, but look under the covers and you will find a wealth of costs and potential savings…

Lifecycle of the Developer

The developer has a concept he needs to translate into software. He (or she) does not sit and meditate until it comes to him, then streams it effortlessly into the computer. Rather he tries something, and tries something else, and writes some conditions (tests) to limit the scope of his options, and cycles over and over and over again between four main activities: creating -> building -> executing tests -> discovering. The developer then wraps around, having discovered and learned (found the bug or identified a future direction) and begins to create again.

If you break this down, there are two states – active and waiting – that the developer is in at any point. He is active when he is learning and he is active when he is creating. He is waiting when he is building and executing tests. So the developer’s ability to do further learning/creative work comes from how long he has to wait for building/executing the software.

Continue reading The cost of building →

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