Agile, DevOps and software development methodologies
Agile software development, and popular variations such as Scrum, underpin the work of many developers and testers. Regardless of the team or methodology you currently use, read expert advice on process, structure and skills for Lean, Agile, DevOps, Waterfall and more to make it work in your enterprise.
Top Stories
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News
28 Jun 2023
Banks dump Terraform for Crossplane infrastructure as code
Two EU banks favor Crossplane's reconciliation approach over Terraform's dependency graph, saying the former hastens deployments -- with a few migration caveats. Continue Reading
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News
27 Jun 2023
HashiCorp Vault to expand in DevSecOps with BluBracket buy
HashiCorp expands Vault's focus to include DevSecOps with the acquisition of a secrets scanning startup, setting the stage for a potential showdown with Microsoft and GitHub. Continue Reading
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Tip
27 Jun 2023
Accelerate software delivery by practicing Lean DevOps
The Lean methodology focuses on increasing efficiency and reducing waste -- practices that can also streamline DevOps projects. Review the benefits of combining the two approaches. Continue Reading
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Feature
21 Jun 2023
Using Fibery to build The Ultimate Workspace for solopreneurs
The no-code digital workspace vendor for SMBs brings total customization to online knowledge hubs and generative AI tools to build online workspaces and create content quickly. Continue Reading
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News
21 Jun 2023
Retail companies gain DORA metrics ROI from specialist tools
DORA metrics and other measures of engineering efficiency are popping up in add-ons to existing DevOps tools. But third-party vendors added more value for Puma and Sensormatic. Continue Reading
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Quiz
20 Jun 2023
More Scrum master certification exam questions
To pass the Professional Scrum master exam, you need to know the tricks. These Scrum master exam questions will show you how to answer even the toughest questions on the test. Continue Reading
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Quiz
20 Jun 2023
Scrum master certification exam questions and answers
Are you ready for the Scrum master certification exam? Test yourself on these 10 tough Scrum master exam questions and answers. Continue Reading
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Quiz
20 Jun 2023
More Scrum product owner certification exam questions
Want to get Scrum product owner-certified? These tough practice exam questions test your ability to apply the Scrum framework in the capacity of a Professional Scrum Product Owner. Continue Reading
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Quiz
20 Jun 2023
Scrum product owner certification exam questions and answers
Here are 10 tough sample Scrum product owner exam questions and answers to help gauge your readiness for the certification test. Continue Reading
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Opinion
19 Jun 2023
App development trends and their security implications
Enterprise Strategy Group analysts look at how organizations are modernizing software development processes and how security teams can support the growth and scale. Continue Reading
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Tip
12 Jun 2023
OKRs vs. SMART goals in software development
OKRs and SMART are two goal-setting approaches. Knowing their differences and how to implement each is essential to steer your business objectives in a clear direction. Continue Reading
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News
05 Jun 2023
Atlassian cloud preps threat tool as security boss departs
Atlassian Beacon shores up cloud security as it adds transparency around security issues, but the chief trust officer role at the company is also changing hands. Continue Reading
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Conference Coverage
15 May 2023
Red Hat Summit 2023 news and conference guide
Use this Red Hat Summit conference guide to stay up to date on current trends, emerging technologies and information from keynote speakers and industry experts. Continue Reading
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Tip
11 May 2023
5 Scrum servant leader examples
The term 'servant leader' was removed from the 2020 Scrum Guide, but that doesn't mean it's not important. Here are five examples of a Scrum master as a servant leader. Continue Reading
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Tip
08 May 2023
Scrum vs. Waterfall: What's the difference?
Most organizations choose between Waterfall and Agile methodologies, which often means comparing Scrum vs. Waterfall. Here are the differences and some guidance on how to choose. Continue Reading
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News
28 Apr 2023
Amid supply chain attacks, emerging vendor rethinks SBOM
Early adopters such as Swisscom have used startup Codenotary’s notarization system to establish and track the provenance of software artifacts in pipelines and production. Continue Reading
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News
24 Apr 2023
Slack releases updated API platform for developers
The instant messaging collaboration vendor released its updated API platform for developers to create functions that interact with APIs. Continue Reading
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News
19 Apr 2023
Atlassian demos ChatGPT tie-ins for Confluence, Jira Cloud
Atlassian teased early previews of cloud platform AI that supports natural language queries and automated links between Jira, Confluence and third-party products. Continue Reading
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Answer
13 Apr 2023
How to write a business requirements document in Agile
An Agile software team shouldn't rely on rigid processes or a control board to get the job done, but it still needs to make business requirements a central focus. Enter the BRD. Continue Reading
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News
05 Apr 2023
Securing remote access grows crucial for DevSecOps
Between remote work and hybrid cloud lies a menacing security gap that experts warn more and more businesses will fall into without a cohesive approach. Continue Reading
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Tip
30 Mar 2023
Ways to get by when Waterfall development reigns
Against all odds, the Waterfall methodology maintains a tight grip over countless numbers of software development teams. Fortunately, there are a few ways to make the most of it. Continue Reading
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News
26 Jan 2023
Lens Kubernetes developer portal expands with Shipa buy
The early stage startup, co-founded by Juniper and CloudBees vets, adds a "stupid easy" option for application auto-discovery and ongoing management, according to Mirantis. Continue Reading
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Tip
09 Jan 2023
Mob programming benefits for Agile development teams
Mob programming brings the whole team together for simultaneous code creation and review. If they specify roles and engage, Agile teams can benefit from mobbing practices. Continue Reading
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News
16 Dec 2022
Salesforce DevOps Center ships to rein in low-code apps
Salesforce DevOps Center rolled out with features meant to bring low-code and pro-code custom apps on its CRM platform up to date with current software development practices. Continue Reading
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News
16 Nov 2022
Atlassian Open DevOps tools stitch together more workflows
As all-in-one DevOps tools vendors grow, Atlassian argues users want choice; customers say third-party tools integration is a timesaver, but the company faces headwinds. Continue Reading
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News
29 Sep 2022
Climate LLC taps feature flags for mobile app development
Feature flags facilitated fast rollbacks and trunk-based mobile development for a digital farming software maker amid volatility due to business growth and climate change. Continue Reading
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News
21 Sep 2022
Harness CTO: Where shift left goes wrong
In this Q&A, Harness' field CTO Nick Durkin shares his thoughts on the impossible burden that shift left places on developers and what can be done to lessen the load. Continue Reading
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Tip
13 Sep 2022
Make quality a priority in your software engineering culture
A software team needs quality to ensure a strong product. Here are some ways to implement quality in all facets of development and build it into every software release. Continue Reading
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Tip
26 Aug 2022
How you can incorporate lean coffee for Agile, QA meetings
Don't let formal meeting agendas turn away attendees. The lean coffee format encourages participation and idea sharing on topics to drive conversation in numerous settings. Continue Reading
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Tip
23 Aug 2022
The 5 prevailing Agile pitfalls that prevent true adoption
To successfully implement Agile and maintain its momentum, teams must often overcome a predictable series of both technical and cultural adoption challenges. Continue Reading
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Tip
22 Aug 2022
Why security chaos engineering works, and how to do it right
While 'chaos' doesn't sound like something software security managers would want, chaos engineering has an enticing amount of value when it comes to identifying potential threats. Continue Reading
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Tip
19 Jul 2022
Emphasize culture in your Agile implementation approach
Team structure and culture should be a primary focus during any shift to Agile principles and methodologies. Continue Reading
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Tip
11 Jul 2022
Explore common types of Agile teams
Agile methodologies can take many forms, and one Agile team can look and perform very differently from the next. Communication, however, is always key. Continue Reading
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News
07 Jun 2022
DataRobot AI hits Google Cloud Marketplace, adds GitHub
The AI vendor puts its products on Google Cloud Marketplace and integrates with GitHub and other major online platforms including Sumo Logic, Splunk, Datadog and Zendesk. Continue Reading
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Tip
11 May 2022
How to scale Scrum with Scrum of Scrums meetings
Enterprise-scale software development can be difficult to coordinate across multiple teams. For Agile-adhering IT organizations, Scrum of Scrums is one way to stay organized. Continue Reading
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News
11 May 2022
Appian awarded $2B in trade secret espionage case
Appian was awarded damages in its lawsuit against Pegasystems, which it accused of spying. Continue Reading
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Tip
25 Apr 2022
Choose a software testing model by weighing these 5 factors
Software development teams have options for their preferred software testing methodology. Consider these five key metrics before choosing a testing model for your team. Continue Reading
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Tip
01 Apr 2022
Developer vs. DevOps engineer similarities and differences
What does a DevOps engineer do? What does a developer do? The two roles sound alike, but their roles, skills and tools are quite different and require unique expertise. Continue Reading
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Tip
24 Mar 2022
Collaborative analytics model boosts decision-making
Organizations are adopting a collaborative analytics model to tap the full potential of their workforces and increase data sharing and decision-making through collaboration. Continue Reading
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Tip
21 Mar 2022
The basics of working with declarative programming languages
While imperative programming is often a go-to, the declarative approach has proved useful in the face of demands for complex, feature-heavy business applications. Continue Reading
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Guest Post
17 Mar 2022
What can urban sprawl teach us about UX design issues?
UX design sprawl mimics urban sprawl, both in its push for growth and its potentially dangerous pitfalls. Here are a few things to keep in mind during the UX design process. Continue Reading
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Answer
14 Mar 2022
How does a NetOps strategy affect enterprise network teams?
A NetOps approach uses DevOps frameworks to help network teams enable virtualization, automation and AI to create Agile networks and deploy applications faster. Continue Reading
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Tip
10 Feb 2022
A brief breakdown of declarative vs. imperative programming
While imperative programming is both an established and approachable method of coding, the declarative model is gaining appeal as demands for complex, flexible features increase. Continue Reading
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Tip
03 Feb 2022
6 strategies for better software project portfolio management
When implemented correctly, software portfolio management can help enhance communication across multiple IT teams for better product delivery. Here are six ways to do it right. Continue Reading
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Tip
12 Jan 2022
Why and how to hold a sprint retrospective meeting
Software development teams can learn from past mistakes to streamline and improve processes. Retrospectives help them do just that. Continue Reading
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Tip
28 Dec 2021
How to manage and reduce technical debt in Agile
Don't let technical debt snowball. Here's how to monitor, maintain and reduce this problematic element of Agile and continue application development projects. Continue Reading
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Opinion
09 Dec 2021
Cloud application developers need built-in security
Enterprises plan to increase cloud application security spending in 2022. Find out how security vendors and cloud application developers can meet their needs. Continue Reading
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Tip
19 Nov 2021
Don't fall victim to these 5 Scrum anti-patterns
Scrum is meant to adapt and change to different scenarios. Here are five common anti-patterns that can arise in Scrum when teams get complacent or comfortable with their old ways. Continue Reading
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Tip
29 Oct 2021
Are you really doing Scrum? Follow these guidelines to be sure
Let's examine how the proper implementation of Scrum elements like timeboxing, the product owner and Scrum Master ensure a team will actually benefit from the Agile framework. Continue Reading
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Tip
26 Oct 2021
Managed DevOps services or in-house DevOps: Which is best?
A successful DevOps adoption requires significant time and resources. That is why organizations use managed DevOps services to streamline the process -- but is it still DevOps? Continue Reading
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Tip
19 Oct 2021
An introduction to TDD benefits, risks and examples
Programmers, looking to implement -- or improve -- your team's TDD practices? Review the fundamentals and examples below to remember how TDD can be a benefit and not a burden. Continue Reading
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Feature
12 Oct 2021
New Scrum Master guide covers both theory and practice
In his new book, a senior software engineer shares his in-depth hands-on knowledge to both prep readers for cert exams and guide them on the job. Continue Reading
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Tip
23 Sep 2021
What productive backlog grooming sessions entail
Backlog grooming is essential for smooth Agile software development. Here's what it takes to get user stories straight and organize a grooming session that yields results. Continue Reading
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Tip
30 Jul 2021
How Agile team culture can help improve software quality
Any Agile team that wants its team's culture to be squarely centered on improving software quality, should consider the following incentives and tactics. Continue Reading
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Tip
09 Jul 2021
Condensed Agile sprint timeline pros and cons
Is a condensed Agile sprint possible for your dev team? Here's how to shave off some sprint time and what perils to look out for in a smaller Agile sprint window. Continue Reading
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Tip
14 Jun 2021
How to build a CI/CD pipeline with Azure and GitHub
Some organizations need to build and deploy apps to specific cloud platforms. This walkthrough shows you step by step how to create a CI/CD pipeline using GitHub and Azure DevOps. Continue Reading
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Tip
10 Jun 2021
10 Scrum benefits and how to realize them
Scrum can be difficult to implement and manage, but the effort is usually rewarded. When run correctly, Scrum delivers valuable benefits for the business and the development team. Continue Reading
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Feature
08 Jun 2021
Hardening sprint: Scrum anti-pattern or necessity?
Are hardening sprints a burdensome necessity or a Scrum anti-pattern? Let's explore how to make these iterations less exacting and how Agile organizations can avoid them altogether. Continue Reading
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News
03 Jun 2021
AI, new skills and self-defense code emerge as app-dev musts
Gartner analysts paint an app-dev vision for 2021 and beyond marked by AI-driven tooling, novel approaches to app security and new skills. Continue Reading
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Guest Post
20 May 2021
The role of DevOps practices in application design
Fancy architecture diagrams and aesthetically pleasing code are nice things to have. But they don't mean much without the support of DevOps-centric design practices. Continue Reading
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Feature
13 May 2021
CI/CD pipelines explained: Everything you need to know
CI/CD can transform an organization, but there's a lot to consider. This comprehensive guide explains the CI/CD pipeline stages, benefits and challenges, best practices and more. Continue Reading
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Tip
30 Apr 2021
Flow efficiency is one of the trickiest DevOps metrics
Let's take a look at what it takes to measure flow efficiency, how it can help DevOps teams improve development practices and why it's not an easy metric to track. Continue Reading
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Tip
28 Apr 2021
Compare design thinking vs. Agile for QA
Design thinking helps a team figure out what problems to solve, while Agile is a framework that helps a dev team build better software faster. Let's compare the two approaches. Continue Reading
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News
15 Apr 2021
Tasktop brings new visibility to value stream management
Value stream management is central to digital transformation at scale. VSM vendor Tasktop has a new dashboard that gives users a clearer view of their software delivery processes. Continue Reading
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Tip
12 Apr 2021
The 3 essential Scrum team roles
Every successful Scrum team needs a product owner, a Scrum Master and developers. Here's why each role is essential and how effective collaboration between the three happens. Continue Reading
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Answer
31 Mar 2021
How do you become a developer advocate?
For those who love to code and want to share their IT knowledge, the developer advocate job might be a good fit. Learn how to make the transition from developer to advocate. Continue Reading
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News
22 Mar 2021
Saltworks, Secure Code Warrior team up to secure the SDLC
Saltworks and Secure Code Warrior have forged a partnership to help developers integrate security into the lifecycle and learn to write more secure, higher-quality code. Continue Reading
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News
18 Mar 2021
Sonatype buys MuseDev to boost code analysis
Sonatype has expanded its addressable market for developers with the acquisition of code analysis tool vendor MuseDev. The move builds out Sonatype's software quality platform. Continue Reading
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News
11 Mar 2021
Developer-first security raises Snyk's tides, among others
Armed with a developer-first focus on security, Snyk has been able to draw $300 million in new funding. It also quadrupled its valuation to $4.7 billion in just over a year. Continue Reading
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News
04 Feb 2021
IBM turns to open source software to build quantum ecosystem
IBM plans to create an ecosystem made up of open source software developers that will work collaboratively to speed delivery of production-ready quantum applications. Continue Reading
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Feature
28 Jan 2021
A guide to testing in DevOps and key strategies, practices
Here's why testers and testing are such big parts of DevOps, and some ways to further incorporate testing for better software application development. Continue Reading
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Tip
05 Jan 2021
Waterfall or Agile? Predictive vs. adaptive SDLC explained
Waterfall and Agile epitomize the differences between predictive and adaptive SDLCs. Here are some considerations that a dev team should know before it chooses a methodology. Continue Reading
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Podcast
23 Dec 2020
DevOps news and trends to watch in 2021
Join veteran IT journalists in a conversation about the top development, DevOps, low-code and CI/CD news in 2020, and where these trends will take us in 2021. Continue Reading
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Opinion
17 Dec 2020
How to use Agile swarming techniques to get features done
Agile teams can produce a viable product in no time when they swarm, but this all-hands approach to produce a user story or feature isn't easy. Continue Reading
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News
10 Dec 2020
GitHub Universe announcements hint at a bigger plan
Stronger automation and new corporate partnerships with open source developers are major additions to GitHub's strategy announced at the GitHub Universe virtual event. Continue Reading
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Podcast
09 Nov 2020
Jeff Gallimore: Psychological safety for remote teams
Can chatter about household appliances contribute positively to digital transformation? Jeff Gallimore thinks so. Here's his take on psychological safety for remote dev teams. Continue Reading
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Feature
09 Nov 2020
Infrastructure as code benefits and DevOps use cases
Code flexibility, automation and security top the list of reasons to use IaC for DevOps use cases. But without careful management, they can quickly present problems. Continue Reading
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Feature
02 Nov 2020
Product vs. project mindset: Differences in software development
The rise of Agile and DevOps highlight the differences between project and product thinking in software development. Establish these roles and principles to deliver business value. Continue Reading
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Tip
30 Oct 2020
Harness these three types of developer collaboration tools
More than ever, developers must work as a team to achieve business goals. Here are three types of collaboration tools to help developers work with ease. Continue Reading
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Feature
29 Oct 2020
How to improve the developer experience
Developer experience matters in the fast-paced and customer-focused culture of DevOps teams. Software development leaders from major corporations share their tips for a good DX. Continue Reading
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Tip
22 Oct 2020
Waterfall vs. Agile vs. iterative development explained
Componentized software architectures gave way to new forms of software development. Learn when to implement simple iterative development versus wholesale changes with Agile. Continue Reading
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Tip
22 Oct 2020
How to hold Three Amigos meetings in Agile development
Three Amigos is an Agile development strategy to keep projects on track with specifications, timeline expectations and more. Here's how to host the meetings, and who should join in. Continue Reading
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Feature
19 Oct 2020
How to implement Scrum the right way
Not sure where to start with Scrum? Check out a book that covers Scrum implementation from pre-development work through retrospectives, and details the frameworks to scale Scrum. Continue Reading
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Opinion
18 Sep 2020
Comparing Waterfall vs. Agile vs. DevOps methodologies
The software development process can be organized around a variety of methodologies, each with its own advantages and disadvantages. Is your team on the right path? Continue Reading
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Quiz
16 Sep 2020
Application performance monitoring tools and metrics quiz
Sharpen your pencil; it's APM quiz time. Test your knowledge of application performance monitoring and management, including tools, systems, concepts and best practices. Continue Reading
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Tip
10 Sep 2020
How to approach Agile team organization
Should an Agile team have an architect? Does cross-functional mean constantly changing? How do teams set velocity and quality? Get the answers to set up and lead Agile teams. Continue Reading
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Tip
09 Sep 2020
How to calculate project completion times
Good project managers deliver on schedule, despite the challenges they encounter. Become a time and resource management pro and deliver on the expected completion date. Continue Reading
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Tip
27 Aug 2020
How Lean value stream mapping cuts delay, boosts efficiency
You have a backlog, work in short sprints, and track metrics on test coverage and defect rates -- so why does it still take so long to move code to production? Try visualizing it. Continue Reading
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Feature
27 Aug 2020
Composable benefits from infrastructure-as-code techniques
Learn why composable infrastructure is an effective infrastructure as code delivery model and can serve as a foundation for orchestrating and automating IT resource provisioning. Continue Reading
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Feature
18 Aug 2020
'Secure by Design' principles include failures, exceptions
Using design principles with built-in security, along with properly defining exceptions, can help developers not only build safe code, but do so while meeting deadlines. Continue Reading
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Feature
18 Aug 2020
Exception handling best practices call for secure code design
Making software secure by design requires tremendous consideration about how failures are handled. Learn more from these exception handling examples. Continue Reading
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Feature
07 Aug 2020
Agile FAQ: Get started with these Agile basics
Check out these tips on Agile basics for a quick catch-up or a great head start on maximizing the value of using Agile methods in your organization. Continue Reading
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Tip
30 Jul 2020
7 techniques for better Agile requirements gathering
Avoid headaches when you gather software requirements. Learn these seven Agile techniques to understand requirements without reverting to Waterfall. Continue Reading
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News
28 Jul 2020
Snyk shows developers top-priority vulnerabilities
Snyk's new prioritization capabilities help developers decide which security vulnerabilities to address first in order to shore up enterprise systems. Continue Reading
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Feature
24 Jul 2020
What does DevOps mean for development and operations?
Get answers to your questions about what DevOps means to development and operations teams, how DevOps works, DevOps vs. Agile and more. Continue Reading
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Tip
08 Jul 2020
Choose the best programming language for DevOps workflows
DevOps is a rapidly evolving set of technologies and practices; choosing the right programming language -- or languages -- makes a big difference in terms of functionality, efficiency and speed. Continue Reading
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08 Jul 2020
A Deep Dive Into Agile Project Management
Plan, guide and execute projects as effectively as possible. Here is everything you should know about Agile methodologies -- from basic concepts to adapting to change. Continue Reading
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Tip
29 Jun 2020
Efficient test case design techniques to boost coverage
Too much testing can make application code hard to read and remediate, let alone confuse both dev and QA teams. Use these test case design techniques for a higher-quality test suite. Continue Reading
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News
12 Jun 2020
GitLab makes two acquisitions to shift fuzz testing left
GitLab has scooped up fuzz testing startups Fuzzit and Peach Tech, a move that will shift fuzz testing left in the DevSecOps toolchain. Continue Reading
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Tip
08 Jun 2020
How to hold effective Agile sprint planning meetings
Successful Agile sprints aren't about 10x developers or all-night testing sessions. It all comes down to how you plan. Here's how to plan sprints that run in an effective way. Continue Reading
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News
04 Jun 2020
Microsoft fuels 'developer velocity' with Azure, new tools
Microsoft is pushing the theme of 'developer velocity,' or how coders can quickly transform an idea into viable business software. Experts vary on how new the concept really is. Continue Reading
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Feature
29 May 2020
What matters most in an Agile organizational structure
Forcing an Agile approach onto team members causes more problems than it solves. 'Doing Agile Right' distills real-world experience into advice -- including when to delay change. Continue Reading