A dot on a graph with no context is often fairly useless unless you have already established a sense of context. A good example from my last job: if I tell someone that they used 200 kWhs last month, for the large percentage of the population, that doesn’t mean anything unless they also know howContinue reading “Drawing Lines, Not Dots”
Author Archives: Jeff Ammons
Prioritizing Tech Debt and Opportunity Cost
Last week I found myself arguing with one of our engineers at Simple Energy about the ‘correct’ implementation of a feature. This argument centered around the issue of accruing ‘tech debt.’ (If you’re not familiar with the concept, check out the wikipedia page.) He argued that a longer implementation time to add additional functionality wouldContinue reading “Prioritizing Tech Debt and Opportunity Cost”
Should I Use a P&L as a Product Manager?
I was recently trying to determine the value of building a P&L for some development projects. Concerned that it might end up being a time sink that doesn’t pay off in the end, I asked a mentor of mine for his thoughts. Here’s his reply: I think if you approach the per project P&L withContinue reading “Should I Use a P&L as a Product Manager?”
Black Boxes and Filling in the Blanks — Early Dating and Compatibility
Dating has long been a subject I’ve avoided on my blog. First, because I tend to want to write things about dating when I’m feeling frustrated with it and I don’t want all that logged in the public record. Second, it’s usually a lot of personal things. I try to write when I feel thatContinue reading “Black Boxes and Filling in the Blanks — Early Dating and Compatibility”
Premature Optimization and the 95/40 Rule
I drew this diagram on my whiteboard several months ago to explain to a friend why eating a Standard American Diet (SAD) and trying to fix it with supplements is foolish. The SAD is the column on the right, achieving, for argument’s sake, 40% of an optimal 100%. The column on the left is somethingContinue reading “Premature Optimization and the 95/40 Rule”
Technology for Learning Vocal Music
My typical method for learning new music is something like this: Get the music and look over it for general patterns in the music like repeats, etc. Find a recording if possible and familiarize myself with the music Learn the music by singing/playing through it with a keyboard Make clips of the music and listen/runContinue reading “Technology for Learning Vocal Music”
Converting Audio Files to MP3 in Nautilus
If you’re like me, you didn’t always make good decision growing up when choosing what tools you used to rip music onto you computer. I have a lot of music, much of which is a smattering of mp3, ogg, flac, wav, m4a, wma, etc. formats. Unfortunately, the stereo in my car only understands a smallContinue reading “Converting Audio Files to MP3 in Nautilus”
Books That Changed My Life
I’ve recently finished a book recommended to me and realized that it belonged in a small handful of books that I’ve read which have changed my life and the way I see the world. I recommend everything on this list wholeheartedly. I plan on keeping this list up-to-date as I remember things that I’ve leftContinue reading “Books That Changed My Life”
Venturing Into the Unknown and Getting Things Done There
I’m a big fan of checking off boxes. There’s something satisfying about marching my way through a series of checkboxes and knowing I’m accomplishing some larger task. If you don’t already, I highly recommend using to-do lists as part of your daily routine of getting things done. (As a side note, the book Getting Things Done isContinue reading “Venturing Into the Unknown and Getting Things Done There”
The Cost of Continuation
I have often wondered why I don’t feel the same pull towards activities that I’ve noticed in others. Have you ever met someone that you were convinced couldn’t survive without partaking in a hobby of theirs? (be it music, dancing, biking, running, etc.) I have, and I always envied those people. It felt as ifContinue reading “The Cost of Continuation”