[AccessD] OT - My union grievance

Second half of rant follows...

-----Original Message-----
From: accessd-bounces at databaseadvisors.com
[mailto:accessd-bounces at databaseadvisors.com] On Behalf Of Bruce Bruen
Sent: Wednesday, 9 July 2003 10:09 PM
To: 'Access Developers discussion and problem solving'
Subject: RE: [AccessD] OT - My union grievance


>The reason that I am writing to the list, is that I want ammo for my
hearing tomorrow. It >is just an initial hearing, but I would like to
make some solid impressions. To do this I >.....snip

Hope it all went ok John.  Maybe a bit late, but I certainly went eeeek
when I read this in TechRepublic tonight:

<QUOTE> "USE THE INDEXED PROPERTY TO PREVENT DUPLICATE ENTRIES <QUOTE>
Primary key fields automatically prevent users from entering duplicate
values. 
<QUOTE> However, the primary key can only be set for one field per
record. To prevent 
<QUOTE> duplicate entries in the other fields, you must set their
Indexed property. <QUOTE> For example, a patient information database
table includes a Patient_ID field and 
<QUOTE> a Social_Security_Number field, both of which must be unique.
The Patient_ID field 
<QUOTE> is set as the primary key field. In this example, take the
following steps to set 
<QUOTE> the Social_Security_Number field's Indexed property:

<snip>

<QUOTE> When the table is run, Access will display an error message if
an attempt is made <QUOTE> to enter a duplicate value in the field."


Now, if that isn't the greatest add for surrogate keys,  professional
data modelling, professional business analysis skills, decent error
handling, better than grade 4 high school UI design, I don't know what
is.  Far be it for me to make comments on the US health system but I can
just imagine the scneario.

ER NURSE: Mr Gungahaljoi,  I'm sorry but the SSN for your son is not
valid.  Its already been used by someone else on the system. MR G: But
he's 4 months old and bleeding....  Its my number ...Please do something
ER NURSE: Im sorry, he must be registered on the oomputer before we can
treat him, please give me his proper Social Security Number. MR G:
Please... Do something ....

(Nor am I trying to denigrate the nursing profession in any way at all).

Its just that blatant attitudes to data (read "information") like that
expressed in the quote is exactly what 
A) gives IT professionals a "bad" name because they didn't understand
the business situation in the first place, or it wasn't explained to
them, or
B) gives IT professionals dispepsia, ulcers and shortened life
expentancies when the "business" has designed and implemented systems
when they didn't understand the ramifications of what they were doing in
the first place.

...........continued........

Here lies the difference between the business use of a power tool like
Access and the profession of IT aka Information Technology.  

Many of the situations we (listers) face day to day, both on and off the
list are concerned with the understanding of what and how the
information is being used BEFORE we leap to technical solutions based on
the latest bit of technology we have learnt.  The archetypal(?)
"business user" learns a bit, thinks 'Hey, I can  do this' and
implements a solution that meets todays needs. Tomorrow it doesn't. Then
he comes bleeting to the IT department "This Access stuff doesn't work,
look I did this and now all the patients are dieing".

My point is this.  No matter how technical we talk on this list, there
is always an undercurrent of "information analysis" in the
conversations. Notice how the Brock, Colby, Fuller, Shamil, Smolin, etc
(sorry if I've left anyone out) replies always carry the implied "but
what are you trying to achieve" questions.  Many, many times, as
professional information technologists, they can read the implied bigger
or business issue into the expressed question and equally many times,
when they don't, they ask the question directly.

	Colby "However... I saw mention of "going to SQL" later.  If you
are talking 
		about SQL Server then you should 
		design your app from the gitgo with that in mind." 
	Fuller "Presumably the data you're grabbing is emitted on a
serial port or somesuch"
	Etc.

JC was looking at the business issues - if the questioner's corporation
was going to move to a large scale SQL server then short term solutions
should be aligned with long term goals.  Arthur was looking for the "and
the outcome will be?" answer - once you've got the data what are you
going to do with it.

The "computing" profession is somewhat interesting. Unlike the masons
and other trades, we love to try and educate the remainder of the
population not only in how wonderful our art is, but how to do it
themselves - sort of.   Thinky number 2, between the Pope and one, M.
Vespucci.

P: Hey Michaelangelo, why am I paying all these guys to stick colored
plaster on your pencil lines. I thought you were gonna do alla tha
painting?
M: Well, Mr Pope, these guys are just "quoders".  I give them tha tools
and tella them where to sticka da plaster and they do exactly as I say
and it all works.
P: But this costa da fortuna! How we gonna make the revenue targets this
year if you gonna hire all these quodas?
M: Well, hey you got all these guys and gals doing nulla but praying all
day, watta bout I give em all these new e-brushes and they do half the
work?  Tell you what, these e-brushes are so good they do twice as much
in half-a the time as my guys do anyway!  They could do the lot in a
week.  OK?
P: But you gotta stay and tell em where to stick it.
M: Na problema - even school bambini use the e-brush today, they'll be
right mate.
P: Hmmm..
M: Tella you what - you take the e-brushXII today - I giva you special
intro price, included upgrade to e-brushXLI no worries - solva alla you
problemo, sava your soul and hey where you wanna go today - heaven or
else?


.....



And the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel would look like?........


To get back to my point, which was what is it that differentiates the IT
professionals "attitude", why do we work with these damn machines and
what are we trying to achive. 
Probably, the true answer lies in the name - in IT, information comes
before technology.