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The Interim Fiddler

Written by Martin Belam
Published 30 November, 2005
Categories: BBC

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I've written before about how dangerous it is to allow software engineers to name projects without the restraining arm of a product manager, which is how I came to be product owner of a piece of bbc.co.uk software called the A-Z-o-tron.

Having dropped the ball again, this week our naming hit a new low. We've been rolling out onto the www.bbc.co.uk servers a bit of software that somehow came to be known as 'the interim fiddler'.

It is a nifty temporary solution to a problem we had mid-project roll-out, and I'm dead impressed with the work, and the people, behind it.

But...

From the first time I heard the name I have been unable to shift the mental image of a load of advertising execs presenting the market segmentation of the sex offender population, outlining the continuum between the 'tabloid serial sex monster' on the one hand, and 'the harmless heavy breather' on the other.

And somewhere in the middle there is a group of people designated with the persona 'the interim fiddler'.

Posted by Martin Belam, November 30, 2005
Read more posts on currybetdotnet about: BBC

The views expressed on currybetdotnet are my own, and do not reflect the views of my current or former employers.

1 comment so far

Ross Heritage commented on December 1, 2005:

Just be thankful we're not going to have to "Fiddle" CBBC... :-)

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About Martin Belam

I'm a London-based internet consultant and writer, with 8 years experience in product management, information architecture, and user experience design for global brands like Sony, Vodafone, The Guardian and the BBC. I specialise in advising on search, widgets, RSS, online news publishing and bulk email delivery.
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