So I’m at work, and I’m reading up on how to write a functional specification, which seems to be my next task. Now, I’ve never written one of these before, so the Google is my friend.
I stumbled across Joe Spolsky’s blog in my search for how to write one of these, and in reading the sample functional spec he provides, I found:
(Your results may vary. We are not responsible for delays in transmission or on your computer which could cause the actual time to be a bit later than the time displayed. This service is provided as-is and is merely for entertainment purposes, not for accurate time-keeping. Do not stick WhatTimeIsIt.com in your ear or use it to clean your ear.)
I spent several minutes in my cube just giggling madly at the thought of using a web interface to clean your ear. Of course, this is work, and there’s nobody to share with, so I am sharing with the Internets.
EDIT: Later, in the same document:
The exact wording of this email is still being debated hotly by the board of directors and will be provided sometime before shipping. [ Developers: for now I suggest using a nasty word. That will light a fire under Chucks’ seat. ]
So funny, and yet, so true.
About 6 or 7 years ago I was the UK IT Systems Manager for an automotive plastics company (we pressed up plastic dashboards, bumpers, etc) now sadly long since gone. The first Board report I knocked together was for a complete company-wide IT survey, and I started the opening synopsis with:-
“Like any good surveyor, I’m only going to tell you what’s wrong with the system, not what’s right. Over the next 2,000 pages…”
Every bugger commented that I had made a mistake with the page numbers – but it got the darlings reading the damn thing to see if I had made any others.
Mind you, come IT Budget time, I used to bring in the new batch of mobile phones, so while they were looking at the bright & shiny things I could get some money screwed out of them for desperately needed upgrades.
Great company – but diddly idea of how to make technology work for them.
TTFN!