Canada moves to 2% GDP end of FY25/26 - PMMC

[daftandbarmy]

One of my biggest concerns honestly is that with all this money flooding in, we don't have the expertise to spend it. Like we have infantry officers trying to understand how to plan area defence against Fractional Orbital Bombardment when talking missile defence. I was joking with my boss the other day that I should go do orbital mechanics lunch and learn for the land staff.

Hey, we're good at some stuff

 

[Colin Parkinson]

Nerds are awesome at building interfaces for non-nerds. What nerds can't do is read the minds of people responsible for articulating the design of whatever is to be modeled.

My experience is different, nerds get to much into the program having a lot of features and bits that the average user won't use and won't separate the two. This is more for boutique programs used by companies or governments, than mainstream programs meant for the general public.

 

[ytz]

Nerds generally suck at building interfaces for non-nerds.

Is a Human Factors Engineer a "nerd"? Cause we literally have Captains with HFE post grads in the RCAF who certify cockpit design changes.

 

[Furniture]

Is a Human Factors Engineer a "nerd"? Cause we literally have Captains with HFE post grads in the RCAF who certify cockpit design changes.

So in one instance the CAF has managed to realize human factors/user interface is important, and that means the rest of the CAF/GoC have no issues...

There are myriad examples of poor UI in software commonly used in DND and other government departments. MM, RDIMS, DRIMS, etc..

 

[dapaterson]

So in one instance the CAF has managed to realize human factors/user interface is important, and that means the rest of the CAF/GoC have no issues...

There are myriad examples of poor UI in software commonly used in DND and other government departments. MM, RDIMS, DRIMS, etc..

MM is every bad design choice layered on top of every bad security choice, every bad business process choice, all wrapped up in a bloated , horrible package.

 

[ytz]

So in one instance the CAF has managed to realize human factors/user interface is important, and that means the rest of the CAF/GoC have no issues...

I didn't say that?

I am responding to the idea that "nerds" don't understand proper UI. I would argue that the bigger problem is that the rest of the CAF and GoC don't consider user interfaces much at all. There's nothing stopping any project from hiring a UI designer. For example, right now the Space Wing does a lot of their software in-house. They contracted a UI designer who isn't even in Ottawa, and reviews all the software for best practices usability and based on operator intentions. Nothing stopping any other operational unit from doing the same.

 

[ytz]

MM is every bad design choice layered on top of every bad security choice, every bad business process choice, all wrapped up in a bloated , horrible package.

It's a culmination of a series of bad choices. I don't think people understand that you can't have good software with shit business practices. Fix the business first.

 

[Furniture]

I didn't say that?

I am responding to the idea that "nerds" don't understand proper UI. I would argue that the bigger problem is that the rest of the CAF and GoC don't consider user interfaces much at all. There's nothing stopping any project from hiring a UI designer. For example, right now the Space Wing does a lot of their software in-house. They contracted a UI designer who isn't even in Ottawa, and reviews all the software for best practices usability and based on operator intentions. Nothing stopping any other operational unit from doing the same.

To be more precise; my point was that highlighting specific examples of one type of nerd not acting in the typical manner does not disprove the point that nerds are generally bad at making things for other users. If it wasn't the case, we would not need UI specialists to exist.

The fact we need UI specialists kind of prooves the point that most developers don't have the ability to step back and view their software from a user's perspective. They view things from an expert perspective, and in my experience, tend to get quite touchy when users point out the difficulty/lack of user friendliness in their software.

The CAF, being cheap, often fails to hire the correct specialists, which results in most of our software being terrible to use.

 

[Kirkhill]

It's a culmination of a series of bad choices. I don't think people understand that you can't have good software with shit business practices. Fix the business first.

How often do you receive a Microsoft update?

It is futile to debate which needs to be done first. The exercise of improvement is continuous and iterative. There is no end state. There is no straight line from "here" to "perfection" that can be tracked efficiently for the accountants.

This is what the Ukrainian experience is drumming into us. In peacetime we have the luxury of stasis. In wartime the standard is continuous and rapid change.

 

[Czech_pivo]

Some good news for Southern Ontario.

The mayor hasn’t stopped smiling since’: Battery plant in St. Thomas, Ont. officially under construction​

Ground has officially been broken on Volkswagen’s PowerCo electric vehicle battery gigafactory in St. Thomas.

the facility is set to create up to 3,000 direct jobs while protecting Ontario’s auto manufacturing supply chain amidst the trade war.

“It’s the world’s largest automaker. They don’t do a plan for just this year when Donald Trump’s got tariffs, they’re doing a plan looking forward,” said Preston.

‘The mayor hasn’t stopped smiling since’: Battery plant in St. Thomas, Ont. officially under construction

Ground has officially been broken on Volkswagen’s PowerCo electric vehicle battery gigafactory in St. Thomas.

www.ctvnews.ca

 

[Cloud Cover]

Some good news for Southern Ontario.

The mayor hasn’t stopped smiling since’: Battery plant in St. Thomas, Ont. officially under construction​

Ground has officially been broken on Volkswagen’s PowerCo electric vehicle battery gigafactory in St. Thomas.

the facility is set to create up to 3,000 direct jobs while protecting Ontario’s auto manufacturing supply chain amidst the trade war.

“It’s the world’s largest automaker. They don’t do a plan for just this year when Donald Trump’s got tariffs, they’re doing a plan looking forward,” said Preston.

‘The mayor hasn’t stopped smiling since’: Battery plant in St. Thomas, Ont. officially under construction

Ground has officially been broken on Volkswagen’s PowerCo electric vehicle battery gigafactory in St. Thomas.

www.ctvnews.ca

I hope it succeeds. used to live in that area. Remember how Sterling Trucks was a game changer, going to anchor the community for 50 years? And 15 years later it closed. Everything in St Thomas seems to have great promise, and then shut the doors. That poor city has taken too many beatings over the years.

 

[ytz]

If we're going to lose ICEV auto assembly to the US, I hope we can somehow get some EV assembly once the battery plants are up. An opportunity here while Trump thinks EVs are a passing fad.

 

[Czech_pivo]

I hope it succeeds. used to live in that area. Remember how Sterling Trucks was a game changer, going to anchor the community for 50 years? And 15 years later it closed. Everything in St Thomas seems to have great promise, and then shut the doors. That poor city has taken too many beatings over the years.

I thought it was the Ford plant that was going to anchor the community for 50yrs?

 

[Czech_pivo]

If we're going to lose ICEV auto assembly to the US, I hope we can somehow get some EV assembly once the battery plants are up. An opportunity here while Trump thinks EVs are a passing fad.

This is the kind of stuff that will continue to occur and will for certain piss off Trump if it continues among other auto manufacturers and grows.

Subaru Canada to source more vehicles from Japan, not U.S.

Switches in production locations could potentially reduce U.S. imports from 26% to 10%

driving.ca

Subaru Canada to source more vehicles from Japan, not U.S.​

Switches in production locations could potentially reduce U.S. imports from 26% to 10%

 

[FJAG]

This is the kind of stuff that will continue to occur and will for certain piss off Trump if it continues among other auto manufacturers and grows.

Subaru Canada to source more vehicles from Japan, not U.S.

Switches in production locations could potentially reduce U.S. imports from 26% to 10%

driving.ca

Subaru Canada to source more vehicles from Japan, not U.S.​

Switches in production locations could potentially reduce U.S. imports from 26% to 10%

My three Foresters - 2010, 2017, 2025 - all came from Japan because they don't build them in North America.

As an aside as we move forward on figuring out how to spend more money - the Disney 3 - 2 - 1 rule:

"The '3-2-1' model started out as a business suggestion from Disney CEO Bob Iger.

The method states approval chains shouldn't involve more than three individuals, it should only take up to two weeks for decisions to be made, and one person should take accountability."

 

[RangerRay]

I love my Forester, but now I want a Forester Wilderness.

 

[Kirkhill]

My three Foresters - 2010, 2017, 2025 - all came from Japan because they don't build them in North America.

As an aside as we move forward on figuring out how to spend more money - the Disney 3 - 2 - 1 rule:

"The '3-2-1' model started out as a business suggestion from Disney CEO Bob Iger.

The method states approval chains shouldn't involve more than three individuals, it should only take up to two weeks for decisions to be made, and one person should take accountability."

Mind you that model recently brought you Snow Woke.

 

[Brad Sallows]

My experience is different, nerds get to much into the program having a lot of features and bits that the average user won't use and won't separate the two. This is more for boutique programs used by companies or governments, than mainstream programs meant for the general public.

Obviously experiences can vary.

Generally a real-world company doesn't have the luxury of indulging its developers (time and money), and all the time pressure tends to flow all the way to the bottom where developers are acutely aware they have none to spare. Nor, in any environment following any kind of methodology which requires frequent round tables, is it possible for a developer to hide exactly what he has been doing. (So a wise customer ought to be at least a little interested in what the processes are.) All the big fuck-ups I witnessed on the vendor side were due to business analysts, project managers, and other assorted non-developers getting their fingers into the feature pie. On the customer side, they were due mainly to failure to select and maintain the aim (aka "feature creep"). Ultimately, these were all failures of institutional self-discipline.

A key to good software management is to separate the "project owner" role from "project manager" (and thus all the roles downstream from the latter) and ruthlessly confine all feature decisions to the former. A developer who is approximately 3 or more status levels underneath a PO will not twice create a situation in which he is called out in front of a group meeting for doing something that wasn't on his assigned list.

 

[Brad Sallows]

It's a culmination of a series of bad choices. I don't think people understand that you can't have good software with shit business practices. Fix the business first.

That is the essence right there. You can have the best OA/SA/BA standing behind the workers observing and taking notes and then go out and implement a model, and it should faithfully duplicate everything you are doing poorly as much as whatever you are doing well.

Everyone has foibles. Developers shouldn't have to remind UI designers (in QC of all places) that the French language text is likely going to break their carefully allocated screen layout designed in English, but it happens...

 

[Czech_pivo]

Obviously experiences can vary.

Generally a real-world company doesn't have the luxury of indulging its developers (time and money), and all the time pressure tends to flow all the way to the bottom where developers are acutely aware they have none to spare. Nor, in any environment following any kind of methodology which requires frequent round tables, is it possible for a developer to hide exactly what he has been doing. (So a wise customer ought to be at least a little interested in what the processes are.) All the big fuck-ups I witnessed on the vendor side were due to business analysts, project managers, and other assorted non-developers getting their fingers into the feature pie. On the customer side, they were due mainly to failure to select and maintain the aim (aka "feature creep"). Ultimately, these were all failures of institutional self-discipline.

A key to good software management is to separate the "project owner" role from "project manager" (and thus all the roles downstream from the latter) and ruthlessly confine all feature decisions to the former. A developer who is approximately 3 or more status levels underneath a PO will not twice create a situation in which he is called out in front of a group meeting for doing something that wasn't on his assigned list.

100% - the Project Owner is the 'Champion', the person pushing both 'downwards' and 'upwards' to ensure that the project is successfully implemented. The Project Manager is the person on the hook to meet all deliverables as per the project timelines and to escalate when necessary up the Project Owner of any roadblocks that they themselves can't unblock.

The more invested the Project Owner is, the greater chance of success the project will have.