Build Something...real

Don't allow yourself to become isolated from real-world problems. Building a deck, a microcontroller that actuates a pool refill valve, or a craft for your child or spouse will bring you back in touch with implementation details. Or maybe open an appliance that has a label "No user serviceable parts inside." Fun!

Too many "enterprise" architects are space cadets.

My dad told me a story about his days at G.E. as a technician: The engineers said, "Tom, you're a smart guy. You'd make a great engineer."

He said they liked that he approached them with a troubleshooter's mindset, and suggested solutions to problems they hadn't even encountered. Dad had three kids already and didn't make it through the four-year program for engineering. But I learned everything from him. He always said, "Know your fundamental physics."

Basic physics covers stuff that even my IoT architecture is concerned with. Just last week, I asked some questions about a power line run to a network element that had been troublesome, and I learned the installation teams were using DC runs instead of AC over longer distances. I recommended a rewire to AC and the problem was solved.

If you think you're immune to physics because you're an enterprise software architect, consider this: Years ago, a friend of mine was troubleshooting an apparent application or OS problem with web servers that were mysteriously rebooting. He looked at the logs and found nothing. Eventually, he looked at the current draw of the motherboards in the servers and found the servers were out of spec -- not enough power was being supplied. A Java app server was failing due to wattage.

I can give examples from four different systems and three different employers where physical layer issues needed to be addressed and understood by the software team.

Humility, folks. As Scotty said, "I cannot change the laws of physics."

;-)