The document discusses techniques for managing distributed software development across multiple countries. It summarizes EnterpriseDB's approach which blends open source development with a traditional product development lifecycle. Key techniques for communication include video conferencing, email, source code repositories, and documentation wikis to facilitate collaboration between virtual teams.

1. Techniques for Managing Distributed Software Development, Around the World Gary Long SVP for Product Development EnterpriseDB Corporation [email_address]

11. Problem Scope EnterpriseDB has development labs in the United States, England, India and Pakistan—plus individual developers working from anywhere there’s an Internet connection. The PostgreSQL community includes hackers on every continent except Antarctica.

13. The Cathedral and the Bazaar (1997) In his 1997 essay, The Cathedral and the Bazaar 1 , Eric Raymond wrote: “ Linux overturned much of what I thought I knew. I [formerly] believed that the most important software … needed to be built like cathedrals, carefully crafted by individual wizards or small bands of mages working in splendid isolation, with no beta to be released before its time. “ Linus Torvalds’s style of development—release early and often, delegate everything you can, be open to the point of promiscuity—came as a surprise. No quiet, reverent cathedral-building here—rather, the Linux community seemed to resemble a great babbling bazaar of differing agendas and approaches …” “… the Linux world not only didn’t fly apart in confusion but seemed to go from strength to strength at a speed barely imaginable to cathedral-builders.” “ Another strength of the Unix tradition, one that Linux pushes to a happy extreme, is that a lot of users are hackers too. Because source code is available, they can be effective hackers.” Linus’s Law: “Given enough eyeballs, all bugs are shallow.” AKA “Debugging is parallelizable”. Raymond also proposed a necessary pre-condition: “It’s fairly clear that one cannot code from the ground up in bazaar style. One can test, debug and improve in bazaar style, but it would be very hard to originate a project in bazaar mode. Linus didn’t try it. … Your nascent developer community needs to have something runnable and testable to play with.” 1 http://www.catb.org/~esr/writings/cathedral-bazaar/ 1 2 3 4 5 6

14. The Ignorance of Crowds (2007) In his provocatively titled article, The Ignorance of Crowds 1 , Nicholas Carr pointed out that “The open source model can play an important role in innovation, but know its limitations.” “ The open source model has proven to be an extraordinarily powerful way to refine programs that already exist … but it has proven less successful at creating exciting new programs from scratch.” “ First, peer production works best with routine or narrowly defined tasks that can be pursued simultaneously by a big crowd of people. It is not well suited to a job that requires a lot of coordination among the participants.” “ Third, and most important, the open source model — when it works effectively — is not as egalitarian or democratic as it is often made out to be. Linux has been successful not just because so many people have been involved, but because the crowd’s work has been filtered through a central authority who holds supreme power as a synthesizer and decision maker.” “ They’re not two different and incompatible approaches to innovation. Their relationship is symbiotic . Without the bazaar, the cathedral model moves too slowly. Without the cathedral, the bazaar model lacks focus and discipline.” “ The open source model is also unlikely to produce the original ideas that inspire and guide the greatest innovation efforts. That remains the realm of the individual .” 1 http://www.strategy-business.com/press/freearticle/07204 1 2 3 4 5

15. Working with the Community EnterpriseDB EDB AS Code pg Code Sun Skype NTT Fujitsu Core Compatibility

20. Video Conferencing at EnterpriseDB

25. Questions? Gary Long SVP, Product Development EnterpriseDB Corporation (732) 331-1391 [email_address] Q A &

26. Thank you. Gary Long SVP for Product Development EnterpriseDB Corporation [email_address]