[Info-vax] Java on VMS, was: Re: So is there still a hobbyist program or not

[Arne Vajhøj]

On 7/21/2019 1:29 PM, Scott Dorsey wrote:
> Bill Gunshannon  <bill.gunshannon at gmail.com> wrote:
>> I would disagree with that. The Custom Application was, in most
>> cases, written to specifically match a business paradigm.  The
>> typical canned package will require the business model to be
>> modified to match the software.  That's like changing the design
>> of your house to use nothing but nails because the builder doesn't
>> have anything but hammers.
> 
> Modern canned business packages are configurable to the point where they
> can be forced to match your business paradigm rather than trying to change
> your business to match the software (as you might see in a small business
> using a generic accounting package with no customization possible).
> 
> The problem with this is that a lot of skilled labour is needed to configure
> it to make it work at all, and that labour needs to be done by people who
> not only understand the business paradigm but have a detailed day to day
> understanding of how every employee in the business works.

And that is where I believe many IT project disasters are born.

Modern standard applications can be customized a lot.

But that does not mean that it is smart to do so.

All customization should be justified by real business
value.

The fact that the old system worked a given way is not
a good reason to customize if the out-of-the-box way
achieve what it has to do just a slightly different way.

Arne