[theforum] weo 2b: to OSS or not?
David Kaufman
david at gigawatt.com
Mon Nov 8 13:52:16 CST 2004
Madhu Menon <webguru at vsnl.net> wrote:
> There's also the issue of dumping all the development knowledge
> accumulated over the years that we've spent working on the current
> system. During that time, we've probably encountered issues that
> seemed trivial but were a PITA later, etc. The "start from scratch"
> approach is not always a good one, especially if you're not going to
> involve the original developer(s). (see
> http://www.joelonsoftware.com/articles/fog0000000348.html )
> Apart from customising whatever software you pick, you will also have
> to migrate the existing data - articles, users, comments, ratings,
> etc. without losing any of it. Is everyone here confident it will all
> go without a hitch?
That was exactly my point, too. If we expect to move off of the current
server in 90 days, we don't really have time to dick around debating new
features, new publishing workflows, and writing new software.
I'm normally the loudest evangelical proponent of OSS solutions, but in
this case, for the project to succeed on time (i.e. by January 31st,
which everyone just voted was the plan), I think we must consider the
easiest, quickest option, which is to just run the same system we have
now, by porting it to ColdFusion for Linux, which is not as big a job as
you might think... Two years ago, I ported thee fairly huge high traffic
sites, AsiaSource.org, AsiaBusinessToday.org and AsiaFood.org from
Netscape Server and Oracle on Solaris, to Apache and MySQL on Linux.
It's still ColdFusion to this day, but that now runs on an open source
operating system, webserver and database.
It took about 2 months, full-time, and the day we relaunched (in Jan
2002) the sites all looked and acted exactly the same as they did before
the switchover, but Asia Society has saved tens of thousands in
dedicated Sun machine hosting, Oracle and Netscape server licenses.
> And lastly, how are we already making software recommendations without
> putting down actual functional requirements? I'd really like to see
> that first.
+1 to that!
This is why I'm pushing for the no-spec spec. There will be ~plenty~ of
issues to resolve in this short period of time, just moving these sites,
all the lists and their archives and settings, and getting the *current*
content publishing backend working *without* changing the functionality,
too.
I fear that much of the current debate *presumes* that a complete
rewrite is GOING to be performed before 31 Jan, and seeks to pick a
platform first, and then spec new features for a ground up rewrite. To
me, that's Back Asswards! First, you define features and functionality
needed (the goals). Only then can you devise a strategy for meeting
those objectives, like choosing a technology platform. Then you remove
all tasks which do not directly support the goal.
The goal is what is being muddied in these waters. I think that the
goal should be limited right now, to JUST moving leo, weo, deo and beo
(did i miss any?) successfully to our ServerMatrix machine on schedule.
Then we can start rebuilding! To make the deadline I really do think we
have to limit the scope to simply matching the functionality we already
enjoy, and not than beginning a nebulous and ambitious redesign of the
entire system from it's underlying language to it's workflow and
"business rules".
C'mon guys, I like Drupal too, and this discussion represents great
progress that is very important to the long-term success of evolt, but
it is not urgent. Moving, on time is urgent and important. Can we
really hope to iron out all the new features being proposed, write all
this new code, integrate all these OSS tools, fix the inevitable bugs
and problems and convert all of our existing data, all while also moving
to a new O/S and hosting provider? Isn't that like converting your car
from gasoline to hydrogen, while driving it down the highway?
Let me repost Madhu's very relevant link that also sums up my (obviously
strong) opinions on this matter:
http://www.joelonsoftware.com/articles/fog0000000348.html
Joel hits the nail right into our heads, methinks :-)
-dave
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