Re: Seeking Input On CM-Idiot Issue

["Susan W. Gallagher" <sgallagher -at- EXPERSOFT -dot- COM>]

At 10:28 AM 1/8/99 -0500, Gil Yaker wrote:

>Why is Version Control/CM/SC so vital to a project?

Scenario #1 -- A developer or writer has a really good idea, but it'll
be a major change to the product as it exists today. The team decides
to try the idea, but when it's done (or almost done), it doesn't look
as good as it sounded. Without CM, yer screwed. It'll take just as long
to return things to the way they were as it did to make the changes and
the product's due out the door next week. With CM, you delete the version
with changes and retrieve the last version you saved before the changes
started.

Scenario #2 -- Worker A is supposed to add significant material to a
group of files and worker B is going through all the files to perform
routine tasks (adding comments, editing, whatever...). Without CM,
workers A and B both copy the files from the network to their local
machines and start work, each unaware that the other one is working
on the same files. Worker A finishes first and copies the files with
the significant changes onto the network. Because A's local machine
is underpowered and lacks sufficient disk space, A deletes those files
from the local machine and prepares to go on to a new project. Worker
B then finishes making routine adjustments to the same files and
copies them onto the network overwriting all the changes that A made.
With CM, when A checks out the files to work on them, the system locks
the files. So, when B requests the same files, the system issues a
warning that the files are in use by another worker and does not allow
B to make changes to the files in the central repository until they
are released by A.

Scenario #3 -- You're working on an exceptionally large file and the
software package you're using to prepare the file is having problems
handling the file size. Two days before release, the file is suddenly
hopelessly corrupted. Without CM, you start over from scratch and the
product is two months late. With CM, you revert to the last good copy
of the file and try to aviod whatever caused the file to be corrupted
the next time.

Scenario #4 -- The company just got downsized and you're the last
team member left standing. Without CM, you run around to all the
abandoned machines trying to find the bits and pieces of projects
your collegues left behind and hope you've got them all. With CM,
you check out the most recent versions of the files from the central
repository and you're good to go.

I used to work on CM software, is how I know. Check out StarTeam
from StarBase Corp. ( www.starbase.com ). It incorporates version
control, bug tracking, threaded communications, etc. and the new
versions even work over the Web. It's a good product. I use it here
at Expersoft.

HTH!
-Sue Gallagher
sgallagher -at- expersoft -dot- com

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