RAD = Rapid Application Development

RAD, man!

Rapid Application Develpment means you can fly from idea to reality. Yeah, right.

I spend entirely too much of my development day being harassed by Microsoft products that are incredibly STUPID. A person with an IQ of 40 would not have to be told the same thing over and over and over...

Windows consistently gets in the way and offers up defaults that are bone-headed and wrong. It's not bad the first time you correct it, but it doesn't remember the correction even one time. How about a little artificial intelligence rather that an Aero interface?

The web has been terrific in translating error messages into actions to be taken to fix the problem. But when the error message is " has encountered a problem and needs to close" is so general that it could mean anything, you can't get any relief. What "has encountered a problem and needs to close" means is this: poor software design.

Google for that phrase and you will find hits for these products: Windows printer spooler, Internet Explorer, Windows Media Player, Microsoft Messenger, Microsoft Front Page, Access (!), Microsoft Word, and more. The "solutions" are dubious. For Access, the theme is "you have a corrupted database... simply do this..." Yeah, right! I do NOT have a corrupted database and to do what is suggested would compromise my work.

Lately, a well-crafted database file running under Access produces the error just by loading it and then waiting for a while. Just when you are enjoying your experience (XP), the horrid message comes up. "Microsoft is sorry." By the way, "XP" used to stand for Extreme Programming before Microsoft bastardized the name.

Imagine taking a road trip. You get several miles down the road and a light comes on on the dash that says, "Sorry, but you need to go back home and start again."

Good grief.