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In my first job ever, I knew each and every one of my users (customers), and it was amazing. The sense of true contact with the market, the intimacy of what's really happening in their life, and the impact my business had on them. What a waste, considering I was 10 or 12 years old... and the fact I only had 60 users. If only I knew then what I know now... It was a hot summer in the previous century, I was 10 or 12 years old, and my parents found me a job. There was this guy, Joe, who would drive around the neighborhood early (very early) in the morning, and deliver breakfast groceries to families in the neighborhood. People would wake up and find the groceries outside the door. Optionally, they could leave specific requests for different groceries before they go to sleep, we'd find the instructions in the morning as part of our delivery round, at which time we'd get the additional products from the stocked truck, and leave it at their doorstep. They'd get the bill at the end of the month, and we'd all be very happy. My job schedule looked as follows: 04:00am Joe would arrive at our house, and blow his horn. I would wake up. 04:01am I would fall asleep again. 04:10am Joe would blow his horn twice, and I would wake up for real this time, wash my face and rush to the truck, and we'd start the route. From now on, for the next 90 minutes or so, we'd follow this pattern: * Joe drives to the next address * during the drive I'd be packing the "standard order" for our next destination * Joe would break - I would jump out of the van, run to the house, check there's no "customization note" waiting for us, leave the order, run back to the van - and off we go to the next place, repeating this process all over again. ** If a house would have a "customization note", I'd run back to the van, update the order (remove two buns since the kids are not at home, add extra milk and butter 'cause they have house guests etc) - and run back with the updated order to leave it at the door. 06:00am Joe would drop me back at my parents house, and I'd go to bed, to catch up on my missing sleep hours. The most challenging part of the job was using the short time in between houses to correctly pack the goods for the next family - the faster I did this - the faster we got our whole job done. Over the two months of the summer vacation, I got to know the ~60 families in the houses. Who was traveling ("no need to deliver between 12-15/August"), who had guests ("need double of everything between 20-19/July"), who was divorcing/separating ("from now on please deliver only...") - there was no end to the amount of information we had about our customers. Knowing this information, allowed me to optimized my work, and to better predict my user's needs - and prepare the package for the next family faster, shaving precious seconds off the packing time, allowing us to complete the route faster. The power of knowing your users. The value of knowing your users. (To Be Continued...) #users #reuven #product

My mother, ever the tech-autodidactic, got Google Home - and I offered to review it. Way to go Mom! TL;DR Great Promise - Yet to be Delivered - and Much to Look Forward to! ==> Total: 3.8 out of 5 I was highly excited to get Google Home - and within 3 minutes of the unboxing, it was set up and we all started "OK Google"ing it... ==> Setup: 5/5 We were mainly focused about asking it all kinds of things, and getting good answers - kind of like googling things - only by voice. Worked like a charm. Then it played my music (which I totally forgot backing up on Google Music a while ago). ==> Performance: 5/5 The main challenge I had (and have) is finding non-anecdotal use for it - I'm looking at the many "smart" devices and still didn't find the one that makes a difference for me - but it being a Google device, and cloud-based, I'm sure we'll be getting many new additions shortly. The one major design flaw is that there's no Bluetooth Audio - or at the minimum - an AUX jack... I mean, they call this a "Smart Speaker"??? WWTT??? What do I mean by "non-anecdotal"? In its current incarnation, out-of-the-box (meaning, without buying additional hardware), Google Home is a fancy voice-operated version of Google... Useful for anecdotal things such as asking it what is the distance between the Earth and the moon (384,400km, if you were wondering), and what is the expected weather in Tel-Aviv on Friday (sunny, 17 degrees centigrade if you have to know). All things cool - but things one could do without. It can be useful if you add this or that - "smart bulbs", a Nest smart-home devices, a Google Smart TVs and other smart-hardware (which at this stage I don't and won't). BUT - and this is why I wanted it - it holds great promise, since it's Google, and they have strong cloud services, which I expect will in the future add functionality. ==> Value/Impact: 3/5 Looking forward to software improvements, and willing to bet the next hardware version will also have Bluetooth Audio or at least an AUX jack... Want to buy it? Here's the link to Google's site. ...and the video promoting it... #product #google #WWTT

So much research, so much money and so many theories. Humanity as whole has (is) always been intrigued about what differentiates people who succeed from those who fail. Just google why do people fail succeed and browse the over-6-million results to see how fascinated we are by this topic. So let me summarize it all for you, in one simple sentence: The only 100%-sure difference between people-who-succeed and people-who-fail is that those who succeed continued trying(*). Read it again. And try again. And again. If you haven't succeeded yet, the single-most-meaningful thing you can do in order to succeed - is to keep on trying. Analyze you failures. Improve on your efforts. But most importantly - keep on trying! As Thomas Alva Edison is rumored to have said after finally getting the lightbulb to work - after 10,000 failures: I have not failed. I've just found 10,000 ways that won't work. (*) Well, with the exception of people who who "got it right the first time". Rumors are such people do exist. #philosophy

The other day we were doing a session in one of our spaces at work, and as the session "warmed up" I noticed many of the attendees started putting on more-and-more clothes... They were freezing! Evidently, the space was too cold for comfort. So, we went in search of the Air Conditioner controller, and checked the temperature. Indeed, it showed 24 degrees celsius (a.k.a as centigrade, and for you Fahrenheit-fans, it's 75 degrees). So, we bumped up the temperature to 27 degrees celsius (~81 degrees Fahrenheit), which should be warmed enough. Fast-forward 20 minutes - and people are still freezing... I rechecked the controller - and took a picture: Indeed, it showed 27 - but things did not improve. We tried many things - until we finally decided to ask the local resident expert (read: someone who spends a lot of their time in the space we worked in :-) They immediately said: "Sure... The air conditioner is off... You need to to not-only set the temperature, but also to turn it on." So we went back to the controller, click the top-right button - got the "I'm on" indicator (see image below), and presently the temperature became pleasant. See the difference? The tiny indication difference? Couldn't they improve the Product so that when changing the temperature, it will change the on/off state? (*** UPDATE: You know this kind of behavior from TV remotes - basically, clicking any button on a TV remote, turns the TV on ***) And if the Product/Implementation for that was/is too complex, couldn't the make a red/green indicator? WWTT? #WWTT #product #reuven

Will try to improve.

I remember my surprise, when I first read (possibly it was in one of the Tarzan books I read as a child) that the most dangerous creature on earth is Man, Homo Sapiens. As a member of the human race, I felt personally insulted. When I read justifications to this claim, I felt there may be some point to this claim. Want to read more about it? just google... (or click here). But that is NOT the subject of this post... You see, part of the claims talk about how humans invent weapons that are much worse than what's needs, and use them much more than what is needed. Other times it'll be about how "unintentionally" we (humans) do something with "unintended" harsh results. I'd like to talk about one of these tools. I'd like to talk about email - and what a dangerous mode of communication it is. I dare claim that: The most dangerous communication method is email. (Or, for many of us, Chat/IM/Whatsapp etc.) In this entertaining 1984(ish) video explaining about email (and the 12 easy steps to get on email), I don't think the creators or viewers (at the time) realized the possible damages of email. The reason is that while the written word can convey emotions, thoughts, feelings - it often doesn't do so, at least no successfully. That's due to two main reasons: It requires many more words to accurately express yourself in writing - and the written word usually does not express the tone of your voice, or the smile on your face, or your overall expression. And not the fact you wrote the email at 2am, full of beer, and just had to shoot out that email you didn't want to forget. Most of us don't have the talents, know-how, drive - or even patience to do so And as a result, we many times write a brief message, that can (and will) be misinterpreted/misunderstood. (If you're not sure you agree, just google for "misunderstood emails examples" or "how to avoid email misunderstanding") So what can we do about it? Be aware. The first rule to weapon safety is being aware of the dangers of the weapon. Where possible, talk to people... That's anyway a good advice, to leave your life, and not to leave it virtually - but it's even more valuable in the context of the dangers of email (or chat...) Use the written word to provide information - not interpretation. Offer the interpretation/context before sending the email, and open the email with "Following our conversation..." Good luck! #culture #workplace #workplaceetiqette

The best-ever management and self improvement book - doesn't exist!? You see, in my opinion, most such book are based on a one-line idea (or 3 of them) and fluffed up into many (many, many, many) words, wrapped up in some anecdotes and stories, bound in hard-copy - and sold in millions. So why not create a short blogpost with the one-line and the justification for it? Think I'm cynical? Think I'm over simplifying? You may be right. But at least now I know I'm not alone in this opinion. Checkout this summary, by Business Insider, 25 Popular Business Books Summarized In One Sentence Each... (Read the original article as published by Business Insider.) #quote #philosophy

A PESSIMIST sees a dark tunnel An OPTIMIST sees light at the end of the tunnel A REALIST sees a freight train The TRAIN OPERATOR sees 3 idiots standing on the tracks... - Unknown Yes, I know - this is less than 100 words in the post, but for QOTD post, I felt it's ok. Hope you enjoy it. Will fluff this up with useless trivia (too many credits to give them out, but I found this as past of a Quora answer): 111,111,111 X 111,111,111 = 12,345,678,987,654,321 "Dreamt" is the only English word that ends in the letters "mt" "Forty" is the only number which has its letters in alphabetical order. "One" is the only number with its letters in reverse alphabetical order. Charlie Chaplin once won third prize in a Charlie Chaplin look-alike contest A "jiffy" is actually a proper time unit for 1/60th of a second A horse can sleep standing up A peanut is not a nut or a pea, it's a legume Average length of a coat hanger when straightened: 44 inches #quote #philosophy

A blog post in Hebrew, about Hebrew, but the concept works just as well in English (see this link or simply consider the seven different meanings of the following sentence, based on different punctuations: I never said she stole my money). בסדרה האלמותית לילדים, נוער ומבוגרים, ״הפיג׳מות״, בעונה השלישית, פרק 46, רוני נעזרת באביה גרי בחזרות לטלנובלה, וגרי מסתבך באפשרויות הדגשה שונות של הטקסט: "הכל יהיה בסדר בסוף את תראי. רגע אפשר גם ככה.. הכל יהיה בסדר. בסוף את תראי. אפשר גם הכל יהיה בסדר בסוף. את תראי…" (חיפשתי, באמת שחיפשתי קליפ של הקטע הרלבנטי - אבל לשווא... אם מי מקוראינו המסורים יכול/ה לשלוח קישור youtube רלבנטי, נגמול לה/לו באיזכור שמה/שמו.) התופעה הזו, של שינוי משמעותי במשמעות משפט בעיקבות שינוי זעיר כגון הוספת/הורדת/שינוי-מקום של פיסוק לא ייחודי לשפה מסויימת, ועם זאת מהווה את אחת התופעות היפות של מורכבות השפה והמוח האנושי. בספר בראשית, פרשת נוח מתוארת כניסתו של נוח ומשפחתו לתיבה, בעת שמי המבול גואים: וַיָּבֹא נֹחַ וּבָנָיו וְאִשְׁתּוֹ וּנְשֵׁי בָנָיו אִתּוֹ אֶל הַתֵּבָה מִפְּנֵי מֵי הַמַּבּוּל: (בראשית, פרק ז´, פסוק ז´). חז״ל התקשו בהבנת הפסוק, ותהו מפני מה הוסיפה התורה את המילים האחרונות בפסוק - ״מפני מי המבול״ - הרי הפסוק היה שלם ומובן גם בלעדיהם - שהרי ברור שנוח נכנס לתיבה בגלל המבול - וכי איזו סיבה אחרת יש לו להיכנס לתיבה? רש"י מביא את תשובתם (שימו לב לפיסוק) – ״אף נח מקטני אמנה היה, מאמין ואינו מאמין שיבוא המבול, ולא נכנס לתיבה עד שדחקוהו המים״ - במילים אחרות, רש״י אומר כי נוח לא האמין שיקרה המבול, ולכן המתין עד שמי המבול דחקו אותו להיכנס לתיבה... כידוע, חז״ל נחלקו בהערכתם את רמת צדיקותו של נוח, ופירושו זה של רש״י נוקט עמדה המחמירה עם נוח, ודנה אותו לחובה. והכל בגלל מיקום הפסיק... למה כוונתי? ראיתי בדבר תורה יפה (בשם מהר״י מוורקה) כי החסידים מזיזים את מיקום הפסיק הראשון לאחר המילה מאמין - ומשנים את פירוש רש״י להיקרא כך: ״אף נח מקטני אמנה היה מאמין, ואינו מאמין שיבוא המבול, ולא נכנס לתיבה עד שדחקוהו המים״ - רוצה לומר כי נוח היה מאמין גדול, לא רק בקב״ה אלא אף בבני האדם, והיה משוכנע ומאמין אף בקטנים שבאנשים שיימצאו בעצמם גדלות לשוב לדרך הישר - ואז לא יבוא המבול. רק כשלא הייתה לא ברירה, ברגע האחרון ממש, נאלץ ״להרים ידיים״ מהאנושות ולהיכנס לתיבה. שינוי מיקום הפסיק, שינוי מ-״...היה, מאמין ואינו...״ ל-״...היה מאמין, ואינו...״ משנה את תפיסתינו את נוח, ומעודד אותנו ללמוד מנוח, להאמין באנשים, באנושות - ואפילו בעת בה אנו נערכים לרע מן הכול, למבול שלנו - להמשיך להאמין בבני האדם וביכולתם לתקן. #philosophy #דברתורה #עברית

(This whole series started with Hotel Room Lighting. And we're closing the circle once again...) Checked into a very nice hotel room in South Miami Beach. As usual, the room was too dim for me, so I started looking for light switches, and turned the lights on. As I was turned the lights on, I noticed that the light above the TV didn't turn on. I started looking for a way to turn it on, when I finally figured out where the light switch for it was. It's in visible site in the image above. Can you see it? No? Hint? Look on the TV shelf. Didn't find it? See the image below... Nice, right? Elegant? Useless!!! It may be "smooth", but What Were They Thinking putting this in a hotel room, an environment that by definition is unfamiliar, and the one thing people want is to quickly and easily find the light switch??? What Were They Thinking? #WWTT #reuven #product

For any given project, pick two of the above... You can't have all three. So, in the past couple of days, we've had some discussions oabout Effort Estimates (a.k.a Effort Guesstimates) for a specific project we were discussing. Different numbers were thrown around, mostly more than a couple of days. This lead me to the following statement regarding Effort Estimates: Any estimate longer than a week is at risk Any estimate longer than two weeks is unknown This rule-of-thumb statement basically means that if you want to predict or at least estimate the required effort, you better break the effort into chunks that are less-than-or-equal-to one week chunks. Good luck with that... #quote #philosophy

A while ago, as I was contemplating the latest software project one of the teams was (and still is) working on, I was frustrated with the complexity of the project, and the (resulting) unclear timelines, and was fighting to urge to tear it apart and just have the project do just one thing, and do it right, and then start adding to it, I ran across Dr. John Gall's law on Complex Systems. I was sure Dr. Gall (1925-2014) was some PhD of Computer Science from some Ivy League university - and was surprised to find out he was a Pediatrician (Children's Doctor) and he's not a PhD (Philosophy Doctor) but an MD (Medical Doctor)... Reading his law, I knew it correctly "captured" and expressed my intuition. In my words it says: If you see you project planning is becoming complex, stop. Then, start with the smallest working part. And add to it. (Yes, there are details. But that's the spirit). And here's the "official" version, from Wikipedia: Gall's Law is a rule of thumb for systems design from Gall's book Systemantics: How Systems Really Work and How They Fail. It states: A complex system that works is invariably found to have evolved from a simple system that worked. A complex system designed from scratch never works and cannot be patched up to make it work. You have to start over with a working simple system. – John Gall (1975, p.71) This law is essentially an argument in favour of underspecification: it can be used to explain the success of systems like the World Wide Web and Blogosphere, which grew from simple to complex systems incrementally, and the failure of systems like CORBA, which began with complex specifications. Gall's Law has strong affinities to the practice of agile software development.