Re: Who yields - client or developer? Your opinion

Thank you all for your comments. Especially to Tom Ellison for going further and offering a solution suggestion (though not being able to use Eval() in my queries puts a big stopper on this), and to Albert D. Kallal for so bluntly showing me the folley of my question. However I would like to remind readers that not everybody (especially me) is a professional at db creation, and that some (me included) don't do this for a living. Being a rookie, as I mentioned, I have never done a 'functional spec of features', wouldn't have a clue on how much time it would take me to create the certain features I was after. Lacking experience, I also lack the foresight of all that would need to be included to get what I want. I am treating this project as a learning experience. I have not quoted a fixed price for a finished product. The customer has agreed to view the project along the way, and decide if, and how far, he wants me to continue till the next point. I won't try to validate my original post, as I know it's flawed in concept. If the customer wants it, you should be able to tell him how much time (=cost) it will require. Then it's over to him. At the moment, I am not able to do that. So I guess I accept the forthcoming headache, and try to figure out a way to do what I need. And if I can't.. the customer won't get it.

...I might start looking for a Toyota - and see if I can put a sunroof in it :) Humbly,
Graham

"Albert D. Kallal" <kallal_at_msn.com> wrote in message news:f_0H8.123769$GG6.10471190_at_news3.calgary.shaw.ca...
> "Tom Ellison" <tellison_at_jcdoyle.com> wrote in message
> news:3CEC7EFD.8F3B0D8E_at_jcdoyle.com...
>
> > - the hard line on price ruins relationships with the customer and doesn't
> lead
> > to further work.
> >
> > - a good product can't be built on a fixed bottom line, and I won't build
> > anything less
> >
>
> The above two points are very good points indeed. So many projects fail due
> to the lack of resources (time and money). Hence, to do something right,
> ones needs enough time. You of course are telling me that you want to build
> good software, and that is a very good attitude.
>
> However, the reality is that we all have to live with limits. The reality is
> that we all must deal with deadlines. The results of this is that we have to
> build a "function spec". We also have to limit the features we want. If we
> did not have budgets, and did not have deadlines, then there would be no
> problems.
>
> I perhaps was a bit tough on the original post in this thread. However, it
> really is my desire to point out that everything ones does, and every
> feature added does cost time. One simply cannot ignore the fact that
> features = cost = time.
>
> The answer to the original question is much easer then to explain what the
> Matrix is....
>
> I good article on specs can be found at:
>
> http://www.joelonsoftware.com/articles/fog0000000036.html
> --
> Albert D. Kallal
> Edmonton, Alberta Canada
> kallal_at_msn.com
>
>
>
>
Received on Tue May 28 2002 - 20:07:25 CEST