

Product Development: How do you handle killing features? - mviamari
http://namesake.com/conversation/f8c8c600-50d1-11e0-9769-12313f014066

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tomkarlo
The really hard part sometimes is getting political support within an
organization. Someone usually went to a lot of trouble to argue that a feature
was worth building, and a lot of senior people had to agree to it. A bunch of
folks worked on it. Now you're asking them to admit that it didn't get
traction, and more work should be done to remove it (and maybe annoy some
customers along the way.)

It's necessary, and it should be done, but it's often unpalatable and doesn't
happen, leading to bloatware.

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bugsy
As the question is posed, it's not clear to me if the feature is in a product
that customers are using, or if this is a feature that just didn't work out
and never was in a distributed product.

The two are quite different. Killing a feature customers are actually using
can create problems. But in some cases not killing it enforces the wrong
architecture on the program.

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mcoliver
It's an interesting question but I think the main focus has got to be that
you're trimming fat. I'm sure that all the effort produced still provides some
valuable lessons that will save you time in the future. Focus on the positive
and keep moving forward. Don't be a hoarder.

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chrisdumler
Attachment. So tricky.

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mcoliver
Yeah it has got to feel like killing off a child

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ohharrow
Great thread.

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nicw
like a boss.

