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There is never enough time. I cannot recall a single software project that ran according to schedule. They either overran until they were finished or they finished on time with a reduced functionality or they stopped when the money ran out and were never finished. After nearly 20 years developing software, I still cannot guarantee to predict how long a piece of software will take to develop and I would challenge anyone to predict accurately how long their current project will take. I am getting better at it and I would not say it’s impossible but it is very, very difficult. In the end, the best you can do is to overestimate the amount of work in the hope that it will give you enough time to complete the job. Since we are in the business basically of inventing something new every time, it is impossible to predict what technical blind alleys we might encounter. Most projects are scoped according to how much time people can afford to give them. An ideal situation from a creative point of view is to have unlimited time available. It’s not at all realistic but the best software comes out of a process of evolution, which is almost organic in the way it develops. Eventually when it’s full grown, it is harvested. I think it’s insane to be starting a major project in August that you have commitments to deliver to the retail stores in time for Christmas. It’s mostly a fear of being beaten to it by someone else. If your product is genuinely well designed and of a high quality and offers something unique, you will beat your competition on those grounds. That’s far better than being there first and getting slagged off for poor quality and still being beaten in the long run by someone who took it a little more carefully.
Check out the whole list of Cliff's pithy tips for Web developers.
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