bitwix

Tangential comments about Software Development

Saturday, March 29, 2014

Video killed the RAD star

We value "working software over comprehensive documentation". Who wouldn't?

These days, the greatest drag to my Rapid Application Development, or RAD, (doesn't that have a nice 1990s ring to it?) is the suggestion that I have to make a video to go with the software. It was always hard work updating documentation when a program changed. But that used to mean checking some text and updating the screenshots. At least the manual stopped being a printed thing about ten years ago.

Now I have to re-record the whole video walkthrough for a process. There's so much to think about - screen size, how much time to record, and worst of all what voice-over to add. It's quick to make a bad video. Unfortunately it takes a whole morning to make a poor one.

So this post comes without links to my videos. If I close my eyes, might they all go away?