Among Oracle database administrators (DBAs), "Agile" is widely regarded as a dirty word, a synonym for "sloppy programming." But in the most commercially and technically successful projects I've ever worked on, the principles of the Agile Manifesto have defined our work (specifically, the implementation of the Agile Manifesto called Extreme Programming (XP), as explained by Kent Beck). In fact, further than that: the principles of Agile, implemented as XP, have profoundly enriched my entire life—not just professionally, but personally. The contradiction between the typical DBA's perception of "Agile" and my own is, thus, stunning. This session describes my experiences with Agile values and our implementation of them. I describe the circumstances that have led me to believe passionately that it's XP that will best assure the success of my projects. I describe what has worked for me and why, and I describe what hasn't worked and why.

1. My Case for
Agile Methods
Cary Millsap
@CaryMillsap / cary.millsap@method‐r.com
ODTUG KScope 2011, Long Beach CA
11:15a–12:15p Monday 27 June 2011
© 2011 Method R Corporation
1

2. 2

3. follow professional comedian
2

4. follow professional comedian
2

5. follow professional comedian
yell at audience
2

6. follow professional comedian
yell at audience
2

7. follow professional comedian
yell at audience
mandate awkward social contact with your seatmate
2

8. follow professional comedian
yell at audience
mandate awkward social contact with your seatmate
2

9. Cary Millsap
Teaching Consulting Business Method Software
1985–1987
1988–1989
1990–1992
1993–1995
1996–1999
2000–2003
2004–2008
2009–2010
2011–201x
0 25 50 75 100
3

10. MeTHOD R Cary Millsap
If you’d like to talk about software this week,
tweet me at @CaryMillsap
4

11. 1. Agile and me
2. Five practices from XP
3. How Agile has helped me
4. What has not worked
5. Discussion
5

12. ❶❷❸❹❺
Agile and me
6

13. Agile as a joke...
7
Photo: http://www.sxc.hu/browse.phtml?f=view&id=1174739

14. DBAs Developers
8

15. 9

16. DBAs Developers
10

17. DBAs Developers
11

18. Why Agile?
Embrace change.
—Kent Beck
12

19. 1
Realization
Change is unpredictable, inevitable, multidimension
al, comple x, ...
13

20. 2
Realization
Responsiveness to change is an advantage.
14

21. 3
Realization
Traditional design‐build methods
were not working for me.
15

22. XP == “Embrace Change”
seeking a discipline for responding to change
16

23. agile ≠ undisciplined
If agile looks undisciplined to you, then you’re doing it wrong.
17

24. 18

25. Developers
18

26. Believers of
Developers agile values and
principles
18

27. Believers of
Developers agile values and
principles
Disciplined agile
practitioners
18

28. 19

29. Everyone
19

30. Everyone Says X
19

31. Everyone Says X
Does X
19

32. a) Satisfy the customer through early and
continuous delivery of valuable software.
b) Working software is the
primary measure of progress.
20

33. Manufacturing
optimization
21

34. Manufacturing
= Database Application
optimization optimization
21

35. Manufacturing
= Database Application
= Software Development
optimization optimization optimization
21

36. Manufacturing
= Database Application
= Software Development
= Baseball Club
optimization optimization optimization optimization
21

37. Manufacturing
= Database Application
= Software Development
= Baseball Club
optimization optimization optimization optimization
Global goal: maximize...
❶ net profit ❷ cash flow ❸ return on investment
21

38. 22

39. Agile?
Why
22

40. Why Agile?
✓ better ❶ net profit ❷ cash flow ❸ return on investment
22

41. Why Agile?
✓ better ❶ net profit ❷ cash flow ❸ return on investment
✓ higher quality
22

42. Why Agile?
✓ better ❶ net profit ❷ cash flow ❸ return on investment
✓ higher quality
✓ more fulfillment
22

43. Why Agile?
✓ better ❶ net profit ❷ cash flow ❸ return on investment
✓ higher quality
✓ more fulfillment
✓ more enjoyment
22

44. Why Agile?
✓ better ❶ net profit ❷ cash flow ❸ return on investment
✓ higher quality
✓ more fulfillment
✓ more enjoyment
Not because it’s easy.
22

45. Why Agile?
✓ better ❶ net profit ❷ cash flow ❸ return on investment
✓ higher quality
✓ more fulfillment
✓ more enjoyment
Not because it’s easy.
It’s not.
22

46. ❶❷❸❹❺
Five Practices from XP
23

47. Incremental Design
The question is not whether or not to
design, the question is when to
design. Incremental design suggests
that the most effective time to design
is in the light of experience.
—Kent Beck
24

48. Plans fail.
There are ways to prevent a failed plan
from failing your project.
25

49. 26

50. 26

51. 26

52. Big
Design Up
Front
26

53. Big
Design Up
Front
Increment
al Design
26

54. Rapid Iteration
Working software is the
primary measure of progress.
—Kent Beck
27

55. 28

56. The worst software in the world?
28

57. The worst software in the world?
“...90% complete, but nobody can run it yet.”
28

58. 29

59. 29

60. 29

61. 29

62. Test‐First Programming
Continuous testing reduces the
time to fix errors by reducing
the time to discover them.
—Kent Beck
30

63. Ever been afraid to improve your code?
31

64. 32

65. Test‐First Programming works:
How
32

66. Test‐First Programming works:
How
1. Add a case
32

67. Test‐First Programming works:
How
1. Add a case
2. Add a test
32

68. How Test‐First Programming works:
1. Add a case
2. Add a test
3. Run all tests (✔✔✔✔✗ ...new test fails)
32

69. How Test‐First Programming works:
1. Add a case
2. Add a test
3. Run all tests (✔✔✔✔✗ ...new test fails)
4. Write code
32

70. How Test‐First Programming works:
1. Add a case
2. Add a test
3. Run all tests (✔✔✔✔✗ ...new test fails)
4. Write code
5. Run all tests (✔✔✔✔✔ ...all tests succeed)
32

71. How Test‐First Programming works:
1. Add a case
2. Add a test
3. Run all tests (✔✔✔✔✗ ...new test fails)
4. Write code
5. Run all tests (✔✔✔✔✔ ...all tests succeed)
6. Refactor
32

72. Pair Programming
Silence is the sound of risk piling up.
—Kent Beck
33

73. Stuck?
Not in the mood?
Skipping steps?
34

74. Programmer Wingman Wingman
(option 1) (option 2)
Wingman
(option 3)
35

75. Ten‐Minute Build
Practices should lower stress. An
automated build becomes a stress
reliever at crunch time. “Did we make
a mistake? Let’s just build and see.”
—Kent Beck
36

76. [exec] Result: PASS
[echo]
[echo] mrtim
[exec] # ./t/4154.test
[exec] # ./t/4160.test
[exec] # ./t/4163.test
[exec] # ./t/4175.test
[exec] # ./t/4176.test
[exec] # ./t/core01.test
[exec] # ./t/opt01.test
[exec] # ./t/pod01.test
[exec] ./t/test.t .. ok
[exec] All tests successful.
[exec] Files=1, Tests=14, 29 wallclock secs ( 0.02 usr 0.00 sys + 26.73 cusr 3.22 csys = 29.97 CPU)
[exec] Result: PASS
[echo]
[echo] mrtimfix
[exec] # ./t/opt01.test
[exec] ./t/test.t .. ok
[exec] All tests successful.
[exec] Files=1, Tests=7, 6 wallclock secs ( 0.02 usr 0.00 sys + 4.52 cusr 0.56 csys = 5.10 CPU)
[exec] Result: PASS
[echo]
[echo] mrcallrm
[exec] # ./t/4119.test
[exec] # ./t/4137.test
[exec] # ./t/4138.test
[exec] # ./t/4139.test
[exec] # ./t/pod01.test
[exec] ./t/test.t .. ok
[exec] All tests successful.
[exec] Files=1, Tests=11, 5 wallclock secs ( 0.02 usr 0.00 sys + 4.28 cusr 0.54 csys = 4.84 CPU)
[exec] Result: PASS
BUILD SUCCESSFUL
Total time: 3 minutes 20 seconds
37

77. ❶❷❸❹❺
How Agile has helped me
38

78. Big Spec == Big Mistake
the testing‐is‐too‐expensive problem
the antigravity problem
the gluttony problem
the I‐know‐it’s‐what‐I‐asked‐for‐but‐it’s‐not‐what‐I‐want problem
39

79. ‘‘
Maintain only the code and the tests as
permanent artifacts. Generate other
documents from the code and tests.
—Kent Beck
40

80. Regression Testing == Awesome
far less expensive than I thought
makes refactoring so much easier
inspires confidence
makes support and documentation better
41

81. Incremental Design == Better Design
makes decisions easier, more obvious
thus less expensive and just better
creates inspired innovation
42

82. !""#
$%"&
'(#"
43

83. Here’s what I thought I wanted
when I designed big up front...
time
features
time
44

84. features
time
Build something valuable that runs,
and release it.
features
time
45

85. features
time
Build a little more and release,
a little more and release...
features
time
46

86. features
time
...and discover.
features
time
47

87. features
time
What I want is
not what I imagined.
features
time
48

88. features
features
time
✓ Usable software earlier
✓ Experience informs the design
✓ Better design in the end
49

89. Awesome
features
Not
features
Awesome
time
✓ Usable software earlier
✓ Experience informs the design
✓ Better design in the end
49

90. ❶❷❸❹❺
What has NOT Worked
50

91. 6
No CRACK Customer
Collaborative + Representative + Authorized + Committed + Knowledgable
nobody to say No, so everything is Yes
Suicide!
team doesn’t know what to do, makes it up as it goes along
51

92. 6
Too Many Customers
just as bad as no customer
Suicide!
great design is also about No
52

93. 6
Cultural Mismatch
agile is about decentralization of responsibility, accountability, ...
centralization + agile == hypocrisy
agile requires openness, honesty about where failures are
53

94. 6
Talent Mismatch
undisciplined + agile == chaos
participants must actively design, optimize
key skill: project factorization to produce running, valuable software every n weeks
54

95. ❶❷❸❹❺
Discussion
55

96. Cary Millsap MeTHOD R
http://method‐r.com
http://carymillsap.blogspot.com
@CaryMillsap @MethodR
56

97. 57