
A funny thing about developing software is demand - blasdel
http://waffle.wootest.net/2010/12/18/demand/
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wccrawford
I think he's got it all wrong. The customer knows what they want. They're
asking for it.

The problem isn't the 'demand', it's the execution. They produced a sub-par
game based on an old amazing game. It failed in all the ways they predicted...
Clearly, they knew they were unable to provide a suitable experience. I'm sure
all those issues could have been overcome if they were actually motivated to
do it, instead of proving themselves right.

Aiming, for instance, could be fixed by having a proper camera and providing
enough of a guide to know where you're aiming, without showing the exact spot
it'll hit. Underground, by having proper cut-aways.

Coda is the same way. There are tons of problems to solve, sure, but there
were tons of problems to solve to create Coda in the first place. Either you
can solve them or you can't. If you can't, you probably shouldn't put time
into it. You'll only disappoint your customers.

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alanh
I’m skeptical Team17 is still selling software as claimed in this 2010
article, as their website reads “© 2002 Team 17” and purchase links end in a
404 error!

Still, a good article, even if the idea that users don’t always know what they
really want isn’t so new.

 _Edit:_ somehow I was on their old site. <http://worms.team17.com/> \- odd
they let that subdomain stagnate!

~~~
stoney
Not sure you got the right site - <http://www.team17.com/> seems to be alive
and well.

