<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?><rss version="0.92">
<channel>
	<title>Improving Podcasts</title>
	<link>http://improvingpodcasts.com</link>
	<description>It's what we say.</description>
	<lastBuildDate>Wed, 08 Sep 2010 15:37:05 +0000</lastBuildDate>
	<docs>http://backend.userland.com/rss092</docs>
	<language>en</language>
	<!-- generator="WordPress/abc" -->

	<item>
		<title>Ep. 30 &#8211; Computer Science, Software Engineering, and Software Craftsmanship</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Allen and Mike are joined by the biggest group yet: Ed Grannan, Dave O&#8217;Hara ,Jeff Sharp, Ben Floyd, Chris Weldon, and Allen Parish. The discussion is on whether business software development is a science or an art and what the difference is between Computer Science, Software Engineering, and Software Craftsmanship.]]></description>
		<link>http://improvingpodcasts.com/2010/09/ep-30-computer-science-software-engineering-and-software-craftsmanship/</link>
			</item>
	<item>
		<title>Ep. 29 &#8211; MongoDB and .NET</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Allen and Mike talk to David O&#8217;Hara and Craig Neuwirt about their experiences using MongoDB on a .NET project. Topics: Why MongoDB? What is it? How do document databases differ from RDBMS? How do you connect it to your domain model? How is performance? What&#8217;s next? Links: MongoDB MongoDB-CSharp driver (The one they used.) The [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://improvingpodcasts.com/2010/08/ep-29-mongodb-and-net/</link>
			</item>
	<item>
		<title>Ep. 28 &#8211; Interviews</title>
		<description><![CDATA[In this episode, Allen Hurst and Mike Abney are joined by Mike Doberenz, Mike Deck, and John Woodward to discuss interviewing, being interviewed, and what makes a good candidate. Topics Covered: How important is programming ability? Discerning problem solving aptitude. How we do interviews. A few example interview problems. A few interview stories. What are [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://improvingpodcasts.com/2010/06/ep-28-interviews/</link>
			</item>
	<item>
		<title>Ep. 27 &#8211; One Year Later</title>
		<description><![CDATA[This is our one-year episode! In this podcast Allen is joined by Ed Grannan and Gary McCants to discuss the one year anniversary of Improving Podcasts. The team covers their favorite episodes from the past year and gives some new and different perspectives on those topics. Reflection on Episode 3 &#8211; Throw Away Your Unit [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://improvingpodcasts.com/2010/06/ep-27-one-year-later/</link>
			</item>
	<item>
		<title>Ep. 26 &#8211; Sufficient Design, Death of Refactoring, and Certifications</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Allen and Mike get together on Memorial Day to discuss a few articles from around the Agile web. The tour touches on the &#8220;Sufficient Design&#8221; discussion, whether the term &#8220;refactoring&#8221; is already dead, and whether certifications are good, irrelevant, evil, or all of the above. Links: Joshua Kerievsky &#8211; Sufficient Design Joshua Kerievsky &#8211; When [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://improvingpodcasts.com/2010/06/ep-26-sufficient-design-death-of-refactoring-and-certifications/</link>
			</item>
	<item>
		<title>Ep. 25 &#8211; Spartan Programming</title>
		<description><![CDATA[&#8220;Spartan Programming&#8221; is about making your code as succinct as possible along a few dimensions. In this podcast, Allen and Mike discuss the techniques, benefits, and consequences with Paul Holser. Topics include: How it is and isn&#8217;t code golf &#8220;Programming in the small&#8221; Single-letter variables might not be the root of all evil. Links: Spartan [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://improvingpodcasts.com/2010/05/ep-25-spartan-programming/</link>
			</item>
	<item>
		<title>Ep. 24 &#8211; Agile Adoption</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Agile adoption can and does go wrong. Often this is due to &#8220;playing Agile&#8221; by adopting only a few practices that are easy to implement, but do not fit the situation. In this podcast, Allen and Mike discuss how to avoid this with guest Gary McCants. Links: Agile Adoption Patterns: A Roadmap to Organizational Success [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://improvingpodcasts.com/2010/05/ep-24-agile-adoption/</link>
			</item>
	<item>
		<title>Ep. 23 &#8211; Intro to Agile Estimation</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Allen and Mike are joined once again by Ed Grannan in this episode. The group discusses how and why estimation on agile projects is different from traditional estimation. Topics: How traditional estimation uses wisdom of crowds, experience, and statistics Wide-Band Delphi Problems with traditional estimation What agile estimation does to account for those problems Justification [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://improvingpodcasts.com/2010/04/ep-23-intro-to-agile-estimation/</link>
			</item>
	<item>
		<title>Ep. 22 &#8211; AgileDotNet &#8211; Part 1</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Allen and Mike run through a series of clips featuring speakers from AgileDotNet, a conference sponsored by Improving Enterprises and Microsoft. In part one of an expected two-part series, we hear from our hosts and occasional podcast contributor, Gary McCants. Topics: Acceptance criteria Presenting advanced design to a beginner audience Agile adoption and NUMMI ASP.NET [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://improvingpodcasts.com/2010/04/ep-22-agiledotnet-part-1/</link>
			</item>
	<item>
		<title>Ep. 21 &#8211; What Have We Learned about Programming</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Mike reviews some lessons learned as shared by a number of Improvers including Allen, past podcast guest Ben Rady, and podcast new-comers Jane Prusakova and Paul Holser. Topics: Programming in the small for readability. Whatever happened to programming? Balancing flexibility, structure, consistency, and cost. Keep tasks small to avoid &#8220;yak shaving&#8221;. Beware local maxima. Don&#8217;t [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://improvingpodcasts.com/2010/03/ep-21-what-have-we-learned-about-programming/</link>
			</item>
	<item>
		<title>Ep. 20 &#8211; Visual Studio 2010 Testing Tools</title>
		<description><![CDATA[In an all-Microsoft show, Allen talks with Chris Tullier and Todd Girvin about Microsoft&#8217;s new innovations in the area of software test. Topics Covered: Visual Studio testing today New Visual Studio SKUs New Coded UI testing Microsoft Test Manager QA Tools IntelliTrace and Developer/QA Interaction Recommended Tests/Test Impact More on new SKUs Lab Management Licensing [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://improvingpodcasts.com/2010/03/ep-20-visual-studio-2010-testing-tools/</link>
			</item>
	<item>
		<title>Ep. 19 &#8211; Bringing Order to Chaos</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Agile is often viewed as a reaction to Waterfall. Chaotic projects may be more common than Waterfall. In this episode of Improving Podcasts, Allen and Mike are joined by Ed, Gary McCants, and Ken Howard to discuss how agile values and techniques can bring order from chaos. Topics Covered: What is chaos and what are [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://improvingpodcasts.com/2010/02/ep-19-bringing-order-to-chaos/</link>
			</item>
	<item>
		<title>Ep. 18 &#8211; Spring 3 and Roo</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Craig Walls, author of Spring in Action, joins Allen and Mike once again, this time to discuss the recently released Spring 3.0 and the brand new Roo 1.0. Topics include: Spring 3: REST support Spring Expression Language New annotations for wiring, validation, asynchronous methods, and scheduling Roo: Optional Rails/Grails-style scaffolding Extensive use of AspectJ Intertype [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://improvingpodcasts.com/2010/02/ep-18-spring-3-and-roo/</link>
			</item>
	<item>
		<title>Ep. 17 &#8211; RESTful Services</title>
		<description><![CDATA[In episode 17, Mike and Allen discuss RESTful services, tradeoffs, and tools. Links: Flickr API REST on Wikipedia MIX Conference Videos PDC Videos Amazon Web Services Netflix REST API Twitter API]]></description>
		<link>http://improvingpodcasts.com/2010/01/ep-17-restful-services/</link>
			</item>
	<item>
		<title>Ep. 16 &#8211; QA in Agile</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Ed Gannan joins Allen and Mike for a discussion of Quality Assurance in an Agile environment. Topics include: Teams, not just testers provide for QA Acceptance Test-Driven Development Who should test the system? It&#8217;s about transparency Types of tests Testers are failed developers. Not. Links: Dean Leffingwell&#8217;s in-progress Agile Requirements (chapter 10 on acceptance testing [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://improvingpodcasts.com/2010/01/ep-16-qa-in-agile/</link>
			</item>
	<item>
		<title>Ep. 15 &#8211; Navel Gazing</title>
		<description><![CDATA[A little year-end reflection from your hosts Mike Abney and Allen Hurst. In this episode we talk a little about how the podcast came about, the techniques and tools we use to record and produce the podcast, and a little bit about Improving Enterprises and Improving Rural Sourcing. Links: Skype Audio Hijack Pro WireTap Studio [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://improvingpodcasts.com/2009/12/ep-15-navel-gazing/</link>
			</item>
	<item>
		<title>Ep. 14 &#8211; Getting Things Done</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Mike and Allen are joined again by Ben Rady, this time we&#8217;re discussing personal productivity and Getting Things Done (GTD). Give it a listen, then get back to work! Topics Covered: Getting started with GTD Stopping and starting GTD overview Common problems applying GTD Benefits and best practices Productivity tools GTD and life goals Contexts [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://improvingpodcasts.com/2009/12/ep-14-getting-things-done/</link>
			</item>
	<item>
		<title>Ep. 13 &#8211; Agile Games</title>
		<description><![CDATA[It&#8217;s time to have a little educational fun in Episode 13. Allen and Mike are joined by Ed and TastyCupcakes.com founders Michael McCullough and Don McGreal for a discussion of games that can be used to learn Agile and Lean principles and techniques. We explore the mysterious origins of the term &#8220;tasty cupcakes&#8221;, review a [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://improvingpodcasts.com/2009/12/ep-13-agile-games/</link>
			</item>
	<item>
		<title>Ep. 12 &#8211; TDD and Technical Debt</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Episode 12 finds Allen and Mike in discussion with Ed. The group cover a few web articles on Test-Driven Development (TDD) and technical debt. Send feedback and topic requests via e-mail to &#8220;feedback&#8221; at &#8220;improvingpodcasts.com&#8221; Links to the articles discussed: - Robert C. &#8220;Uncle Bob&#8221; Martin&#8217;s &#8220;TDD Triage&#8221; article: http://blog.objectmentor.com/articles/2009/10/08/tdd-triage - Janie Chang&#8217;s &#8220;Exploding Software [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://improvingpodcasts.com/2009/11/ep-12-tdd-and-technical-debt/</link>
			</item>
	<item>
		<title>Ep. 11 &#8211; Naked Planning</title>
		<description><![CDATA[In episode 11, a fully clothed Mike and Allen talk Naked Planning with fellow Improver Ben Rady. Topics covered: - The value of value-based planning - The what&#8217;s and why&#8217;s of Naked Planning &#160;&#160; &#8211; Requirements waste &#160;&#160; &#8211; Queues and flow &#160;&#160; &#8211; Minimum marketable features &#160;&#160; &#8211; The ultimate definition of done - [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://improvingpodcasts.com/2009/11/ep-11-naked-planning/</link>
			</item>
	<item>
		<title>Ep. 10 &#8211; Windows 7 Experience</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Our intrepid hosts, Mike and Allen, reach double-digits via a revisit of Windows 7 with Microsoft MVP Todd Girvin who has been beta testing since early 2009. Todd provides us with experience reports on some of the features we covered in Episode 7 and fills us in on a few we missed as well. Links: [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://improvingpodcasts.com/2009/10/ep-10-windows-7-experience/</link>
			</item>
	<item>
		<title>Ep. 9 &#8211; TechFest, GTD, and Streamlined Modeling</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Episode 9 finds our hosts reminiscing about the recent Houston TechFest. Allen and Mike discuss talks attended and given. Specifically, Allen reviews the content of his talk on using Getting Things Done (GTD) techniques in a development team environment. Hint: It starts to look a lot like Agile. Mike also gives an overview of Streamlined [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://improvingpodcasts.com/2009/10/ep-9-techfest-gtd-and-streamlined-modeling/</link>
			</item>
	<item>
		<title>Ep. 8 &#8211; Real Estate and Agile Team Rooms</title>
		<description><![CDATA[What should a development company look for in real estate? What makes for a good team room? In Episode 8, Allen, Mike and Ed Grannon discuss current and past searches for office space, what to expect when negotiating a lease, and some of the requirements for good team rooms. An article on Joel Spolsky&#8217;s Fog [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://improvingpodcasts.com/2009/09/ep-8-real-estate-and-agile-team-rooms/</link>
			</item>
	<item>
		<title>Ep. 7 &#8211; Snow Leopard and Windows 7</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Episode 7 takes Allen and Mike on a bit of a detour. With Snow Leopard just released and the Windows 7 release available to partners, we take a tour of the new features of each with fellow Improver Leo Sakhvoruk. The feature lists are long and so is this episode. Find it interesting? Have a [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://improvingpodcasts.com/2009/09/ep-7-snow-leopard-and-windows-7/</link>
			</item>
	<item>
		<title>Ep. 6 &#8211; Modular Java</title>
		<description><![CDATA[In this episode we get a bit more technical as Mike talks modularity with Leo Sakhvoruk and Modular Java author Craig Walls. We cover OSGi and Spring-DM in some depth. Topics include: - Defining modularity - Publishing Modular Java - Describing OSGi and Spring-DM - Answering complaints about OSGi complexity - Differences in OSGi containers [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://improvingpodcasts.com/2009/08/ep-6-modular-java/</link>
			</item>
	<item>
		<title>Ep. 5 &#8211; Improving Presentations</title>
		<description><![CDATA[In Episode 5, we&#8217;ve gathered some of Improving&#8216;s most seasoned presenters to share their experiences and advice on technical presentations. Mike and Allen are joined by three of Improving&#8217;s Microsoft MVPs: Improving co-founder Jef Newsom, Presenter Mentor founder David O&#8217;Hara, and INETA speaker Caleb Jenkins. Topics: - How to fail successfully - Getting people involved [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://improvingpodcasts.com/2009/08/ep-5-improving-presentations/</link>
			</item>
	<item>
		<title>Ep. 4 &#8211; AQuA &#8211; Part 2</title>
		<description><![CDATA[In Episode 4, we return to the AQuA series and tackle four more questions. Joining Allen Hurst and Mike Abney this week are Gary McCants, Brett Bim, Ed Grannan, and Mike Deck. Topics: What Ron Jeffries says Agile is, is not, and may be. (http://xprogramming.com/xpmag/jatAgileIsIsNotMayBe) My group doesn&#8217;t develop software. Can we be Agile? Can [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://improvingpodcasts.com/2009/07/ep-4-aqua-part-2/</link>
			</item>
	<item>
		<title>Ep. 3 &#8211; Throw Away Your Unit Tests</title>
		<description><![CDATA[In Episode 3, Allen Hurst and Mike Abney are joined by Brett Bim, Mike Deck, and Mike Doberenz to discuss unit testing. Alternate titles for this episode were &#8220;Tests? We don&#8217;t need no stinking tests!&#8221; and &#8220;A Fistful of Mikes.&#8221; Episode topics include: Testing doesn&#8217;t give you what you think it does. Throw away your [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://improvingpodcasts.com/2009/07/ep-3-throw-away-your-unit-tests/</link>
			</item>
	<item>
		<title>Ep. 2 &#8211; Infinitest with Ben Rady</title>
		<description><![CDATA[In Episode 2, Allen Hurst and Mike Abney discuss continuous testing in general and Infinitest in particular with Ben Rady. Ben is the original author of Infinitest. Topics: What is continuous testing (CT)? What are the benefits? Can&#8217;t you just run the tests manually? Do you still have to run tests manually? The history and [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://improvingpodcasts.com/2009/06/ep-2-infinitest-with-ben-rady/</link>
			</item>
	<item>
		<title>Ep. 1 &#8211; AQuA &#8211; Part 1</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Agile Questions, our Answers. Discussed: user stories, Agile's success, and managing non-dedicated resources.]]></description>
		<link>http://improvingpodcasts.com/2009/06/ep-1-aqua-part-1/</link>
			</item>
	<item>
		<title>Improving in Progress&#8230;</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Welcome to the Improving Podcast! site. We&#8217;re in process establishing infrastructure for this site. Our primary goal is to facilitate delivery of and listener participation in the Improving Podcast.]]></description>
		<link>http://improvingpodcasts.com/2009/05/improving-in-progress/</link>
			</item>
</channel>
</rss>
