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Subject:HUMOR: From Computerworld's Shark Tank From:"Ehr, Meg" <Meg -dot- Ehr -at- smartworks -dot- com> To:"TECHWR-L" <techwr-l -at- lists -dot- raycomm -dot- com> Date:Fri, 14 Dec 2001 11:36:01 -0500
Today's Shark Tank column from Computerworld...
____________________________
Shark Tank: Step by step
Part of this mainframe programmer pilot fish's job at the Wall Street bank
where he works is to document procedures for operations staff to follow.
"The documentation has to be painfully detailed, because the operators are
mostly young people just starting out in computing," says fish, "and we have
to assume zero knowledge on their part."
Fish spends many hours of test time working out and carefully documenting a
new procedure before sending it off to them.
After taking such care, fish is surprised when the operations manager calls
him the next day and growls, "Your procedure doesn't work. I just tried it."
"I tested it pretty thoroughly, but we all make mistakes," says fish. "So I
ask him to step through exactly what he did and what happened at each step."
Step One: No problem.
Step Two: Still no problem.
"When he told me what he did after that, I said, 'Wait a minute. That was
Step Four. What happened to Step Three?'"
"I did that later," manager says blithely.
A dead silence stretches on for several seconds before manager's voice is
again heard: "Oh, I guess I should have done it in order."
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