"customers" entries

What is DevOps (yet again)?

Empathy, communication, and collaboration across organizational boundaries.

Cropped image "Kilobot robot swarm" by asuscreative - Own work. Licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons.http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Kilobot_robot_swarm.JPG#mediaviewer/File:Kilobot_robot_swarm.JPG

I might try to define DevOps as the movement that doesn’t want to be defined. Or as the movement that wants to evade the inevitable cargo-culting that goes with most technical movements. Or the non-movement that’s resisting becoming a movement. I’ve written enough about “what is DevOps” that I should probably be given an honorary doctorate in DevOps Studies.

Baron Schwartz (among others) thinks it’s high time to have a definition, and that only a definition will save DevOps from an identity crisis. Without a definition, it’s subject to the whims of individual interest groups, and ultimately might become a movement that’s defined by nothing more than the desire to “not be like them.” Dave Zwieback (among others) says that the lack of a definition is more of a blessing than a curse, because it “continues to be an open conversation about making our organizations better.” Both have good points. Is it possible to frame DevOps in a way that preserves the openness of the conversation, while giving it some definition? I think so.

DevOps started as an attempt to think long and hard about the realities of running a modern web site, a problem that has only gotten more difficult over the years. How do we build and maintain critical sites that are increasingly complex, have stringent requirements for performance and uptime, and support thousands or millions of users? How do we avoid the “throw it over the wall” mentality, in which an operations team gets the fallout of the development teams’ bugs? How do we involve developers in maintenance without compromising their ability to release new software?

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The sorry state of ebook samples, and four ways to improve them

A good ebook sample can turn a browser into a buyer.

Joe Wikert: "My gut tells me the revenue missed by not converting samples into sales is a much larger figure than the revenue lost to piracy. And yet, the publishing industry spends a small fortune every year in DRM but treats samples as an afterthought."

Strata Week: Unfortunately for some, Uber's dynamic pricing worked

Dynamic pricing angers some Uber users, Hadoop hits 1.0, a possible set back for open-access research.

Uber's dynamic pricing worked as intended on New Year's Eve, but not everyone is happy about that. Elsewhere, Hadoop reaches the 1.0 milestone and proposed legislation seeks to repeal an open-access research policy.

The paperless book

The problem for publishers is that customers don't know what a book is anymore.

The publishing world needs some new language that describes what happens and, more importantly, what is possible when the words are separated from the paper.

How Twitter helps a small bookstore thrive

Omnivore Books follows a simple Twitter rule: 1/3 personal, 2/3 professional.

Learn how Omnivore Books, a cookbook store in San Francisco, uses Twitter to solidify relationships with customers and break through the publisher blockade.

Ebook refunds and absolute satisfaction

Why no-questions-asked ebook refund policies work.

Joe Wikert says if you trust your customers with a generous ebook returns policy, they'll pay you back with loyalty and future business.

Utility attracts customers but fun creates evangelists

Stephan Anderson on how emotion feeds strong consumer relationships.

Stephan Anderson says engaging consumers on an emotional level while still providing a dependable product is the way to create long-term customer loyalty.

Ebook pricing power is undermined by perceived value

Wide ranging ebook pricing and deep print book discounts leave consumers scratching their heads.

BizBookLab owner Todd Sattersten discusses the issues surrounding ebook pricing and perceived value, and he suggests it might be time to bring back the serial novel.

Vendor Relationship Management workshop

Nobody knows you as well as you do. Or do they? Let's run a test. Do you
know what percentage of your food bill went to processed products? Or
what type of coupons (store coupons, newspaper coupons, etc.) is most
likely to get you to switch brands? I bet someone out there knows.This kind of data mining is the modern companion to Customer Relations Management, which is the science of understanding customers and trying to get repeat business. CRM can offer many valuable benefits, but ultimately the control lies
with the vendor. A Vendor Relationship Management workshop at
Harvard looked at what it would take to leave control with the
customers.