Presentation: TweetA Retake on the Agile Manifesto Part I

The Agile Manifesto was the spark that brought about a shift in how software was being developed and as a result a wave of new Agile Methodologies such as SCRUM, XP, and Continuous Delivery have been introduced as  “better ways of developing software”.  Many development organizations have adopted these agile methodologies to improve their communication, increase customer involvement, and create happier and more efficient software teams.  

Fast forward to today, 13 years later, a discussion has emerged on what has happened since the Agile Manifesto was first published.  Prag Dave Thomas, one of the original 17 authors,  has written a blog post which has been heavily discussed online and on twitter titled "Agile is Dead (Long Live Agility) where he points out that the term "Agile" has become a marketing buzzword for companies and consultants to use as a way to commercialize the ideas behind Agile Software Development.  He also goes on to suggest that developers should program with “agility” rather then hoping solutions that are simply "coined" as  "Agile" will be able to solve some of the difficult problems that they encounter when developing software.

At GOTO, we think it is time to take a closer look at what has happened in the last 13 years since the Agile Manifesto was published and evaluate where the development community is going in the future.

Presentation: TweetA Retake on the Agile Manifesto Part II

The Agile Manifesto was the spark that brought about a shift in how software was being developed and as a result a wave of new Agile Methodologies such as SCRUM, XP, and Continuous Delivery have been introduced as  “better ways of developing software”.  Many development organizations have adopted these agile methodologies to improve their communication, increase customer involvement, and create happier and more efficient software teams.  

Fast forward to today, 13 years later, a discussion has emerged on what has happened since the Agile Manifesto was first published.  Prag Dave Thomas, one of the original 17 authors,  has written a blog post which has been heavily discussed online and on twitter titled "Agile is Dead (Long Live Agility) where he points out that the term "Agile" has become a marketing buzzword for companies and consultants to use as a way to commercialize the ideas behind Agile Software Development.  He also goes on to suggest that developers should program with “agility” rather then hoping solutions that are simply "coined" as  "Agile" will be able to solve some of the difficult problems that they encounter when developing software.

At GOTO, we think it is time to take a closer look at what has happened in the last 13 years since the Agile Manifesto was published and evaluate where the development community is going in the future.

Presentation: TweetOur Responsibility to Defeat Mass Surveillance

Our talk will begin with one of the core themes of the early development of agile software - that  those involved in software development should take a more collaborative role, not just building software but helping to determine how software can help its users. We believe that this engagement requires greater knowledge of a user’s goals and also responsibility for the user’s welfare and our impact on the world. While the internet has brought great benefits in communication, it’s also led to an unprecedented opportunity for mass surveillance, both by states and private corporations.

We’ll discuss how defeating such surveillance requires greater security in our communication, reversing recent centralization, and attention to user experience. For the last year Erik has been leading a team to apply these principles to email. We will explain why the argument of “I have nothing to hide” is flawed and why it is our our responsibility to take up this task.