Conk fungus, found all throughout Southeast Alaska is locally referred to as "Bears bread". The bears do not actually eat these things, they usually are really hard and feel like wood. People collect these things and then carve different designs on them.

I took a picture of this one while hiking in the rain forest one sunny afternoon.

The Tongass National Rainforest is the largest rainforest in America. It encompasses an astonishing 17 million acres! That is 80% of Southeast Alaska. Juneau is located within the Tongass National Rainforest and is home to a lot of old-growth forests. Walking inside the rainforest one is surrounded by tall trees and plant growth that you cannot hardly see into. Bears and forest animals can easily be hidden mere feet off of the forest trail unknowing to the people that walk the trails in the forests.

On my last trip down to Juneau, Alaska during a long walk into the rainforest, I snapped these photos.

In this photo, I tried to put the size of the rainforest into perspective by taking a photo of my mom while I lagged behind with the camera trying to capture photos of bugs. When I took this photo we may have been 30 minutes into walking.

This is a picture of the view above while walking into the rainforest. The tree coverage is very thick in most of the parts of the woods. If it were not for the trees that were downed in order to create the path, there would have been even less light than what I captured here peeking through the tops of the trees.

I have taken a lot of college courses online and there are days when people post misinformation. Low and behold, just as soon as that post is up, another student will rush in behind that original person and post an comment stating how wrong the first person was. Occasionally I have seen this bickering go on until the professor eventually steps in and reminds everyone that each and every student is entitled to an opinion. The original poster may have actually been wrong, although somehow, personally, arguing with people online seems to serve no purpose.

What do people get out of arguing online?

(Image source http://www.xkcd.com/386/)

I've had days like these.

(Image source: http://xkcd.com/376/)

To understand how systems are developed one has to have knowledge of the SDLC process. The SDLC or Systems Development Life Cycle model is a conceptual model that is used in project management. A project manager should have knowledge of the different SDLC lifecycle processes in order to recommend or work with the best SDLC cycle for the particular job at hand.

Here I will try to describe the different stages that are involved in developing an information system project. The stages range from everything between feasablity studies through maintanance after the system is designed and put into a production environment.

There are different types of SDLC methodologies that have been developed over the years. These models include:

• Adaptive Project Framework;
• Agile Software Development;
• Build and Fix;
• Crystal Methods;
• Dynamic Systems Development Model (DSDM);
• Extreme Programming (XP);
• Feature Driven Development (FDD);
• Fountain Model;
• Information Technology Infrastructure Library (ITIL);
• Joint Application Development (JAD) method;
• Lean Development;
• PRINCE2;
• Rapid Application Development (RAD) method;
• Rational Unified Process (RUP);
• Scrum;
• Spiral;
• Synchronize and Stabilize;
• TenStep Project Management Process; and
• Waterfall model - The original SDLC method.

Generally speaking, most of the time different SDLC models are combined together to create a hybrid-methodology SDLC cycle. Different projects have different lifecycle needs. Depending on the project requirements would depend on what SDLC cycle would best fit, if there is no exact fit, then a hybrid-mothodology would be best created to suit the projects needs.

In a very general sense, most projects SDLC process follows the general steps outlined below:

• Analyzing Needs:

  Most software development projects stem from customer needs. On the surface it may appear that it is strictly from a business need, but if you delve a little deeper into that scenario, they all usually point towards customer needs. However no matter what the particular need is or what the underlying reasons for the need, it is good to be aware of what the underlying need is and what it is that your business is in need of, this will help make an end product that will do what your business needs requires.

  Just because something new is out and it seems like everyone is using it, does not mean that it is going to be the best solution for your business. You need to analyze your needs and evaluate the product before making that determination. A product that is not easy to use, is not user friendly, is not a technology that you would want to use in your business. A good product incorporates an easy to use interface; a product in which your users cannot utilize the software in an efficient manner is not a good product. The technology as well as the interface is crucial to a successful product.

• Evaluate Current System:

  This process can be tied in or done concurrently with the process of analyzing business needs, but either way an evaluation of what your business currently has in place needs to happen. Any process or program deficiencies that are currently in place need to be identified. A project manager will probably do this by interviewing the different users of the system and consulting with the personnel that support the system.

• Define System Requirements:

  After you analyze the business needs and evaluate the current system then it's time to figure out what you want the new system to do. This process is generally completed with a team of people including the project manager, business managers, users of the system and possibly the businesses customer output. Many businesses like to do a usability study of sorts and evaluate the specific needs of their clients and then define the system requirements from that analysis.

• Design the New System:

  The plans for the new system are constructed and everything is laid out and defined. The physical construction of the system, what hardware requirements it has, what the users requirements are, what are the operating system requirements, what type of programming requirements does it have, what language will it be programmed in? What communication means does this system require; does it require a database back-end? Will it require XML, use of Web Services, RSS feeds...etc.? What are the security issues with the new system and how will those services be tested? All of the different concerns need to be addressed during the design phase so that the development of the system will go smooth.

• Development of the New System:

  After all of the plans are laid out and everything is approved to progress to the next step then the system is developed. Any programmers, designers and other technical expertise that is needed get to work on actually designing and programming the new system. The components that are required are installed, the programs are written. The users of the system are actively used in the development process to make sure that the product is going to meet their needs on the system.

• Rolled out to Production:

  This is when the system gets the ultimate test. The system that has been worked on gets rolled out and put to use in its' live environment. There are different ways that a new system can be rolled out into production, there are ways to bring the system in with phases, which is generally used when a system will be rolled out to multiple locations or when the system may be taking over different sections or functions of a legacy system. Sometimes it is better to shut down legacy systems and implement the new system all at once. No matter what the production needs are for roll out a new system can be brought in either in phases or all at once.

• Maintenance:

  Every system that is in place requires some maintenance. The operating system for your computer, for example has regular updates and fixes that are rolled out to it from the developing firm for the operating system. If you are using an open-source operating system perhaps you have to do the maintenance and fixes on the PC yourself, no matter whom or how often maintenance is done, every system requires some form of maintenance. Maintenance plans are put into place or a process for maintenance is used. Perhaps your business requires regular maintenance or maybe only maintenance when a problem is found or a new requirement is made? No matter what your maintenance needs are, they are done during this stage.

Copyright © September 5, 2008
Melissa Nava Consulting
http://www.melissanava.com

I had been planning on coming up with a design for the site for a while but just as a mechanics car generally needs repairing, a web programmers work is never quite done. Now that the site layout is complete I still have a lot of work to do with filling the site with all of the information that I had on the site prior. I have a few hundred pages of information to wade through from the last layout.

I hope that you enjoy the new site design and come back later and check out the progress at Melissa Nava Consulting.

A list of some of the past and current clients straight out of Melissa Nava's portfolio. Melissa Nava Consulting is not affiliated, nor responsible, for any of the content or actions of these websites or their respected owners. Melissa Nava may work as subcontractors for other design firms and not all work will be displayed in this portfolio.

The work in this portfolio ranges from project management and systems development lifecycle oversight, graphic design services, custom application programming, and various website development and programming projects.

• Analytical Technologies: Internet Consulting Services
• Arizona Balloon: Flash Animation
• Aurora Equine, LLC: Business Card Design Services
• Bicknell Inc. and Southeast Alaska Paving: Website Design Services
• Box Chevy Riders: Website Design Services
• CampusBedding.com: SEO Optimization Services
• Canvases Unlimited: Graphic and website design services.
• Cindy Libman: Site Optimization Services
• Crazy Quilter: Website Design Services
• Deborah Bicknell's Yukon Quest: Website Design Services
• Debt Solution 101: Website Design Services
• Eagle Chiropractic Clinic: Website Design Services
• The Feeling Better Center: Site Optimization Services
• Good Therapy: ROR/XML and various web services; Search Engine Optimization; Site Analysis; Project Management
• Grand Frisson: Internet Consulting Services
• H&W Tool: Logo Design Services
• Home Marketing 123: Graphic Design Services
• Own Your Car: Website Design Services
• Pack & Mail: Website Design Services
• Parents Beware: Website Design Services
• RBA Engineers, Anchorage: Custom Web Site Design and Development
• Red Hat Society - Violet Femmes: Website Design Services
• Simple PC's of Texas: Graphic Design Services, Website Design Services
• The Stallion Source: Graphic Design Services
• Straight Shooter Investments: Business Card Design Services
• Sugar Peas Nursery: Website Design Services
• Susans Upholstery: Business Advertisement Services
• University of Alaska - Disability Support Services: .NET Application Program Modification and Enhancements
• University of Alaska - Disability Support Services: Custom VBA Access Programming
• Ward Air: Website Design Services
• WCDesigns: Various Website and Graphic Design Services
• Work at Home Project: Logo Design Services