ETAs: Follow-Up

Some people took my post No ETAs as if I were arguing against doing software estimates of any kind, ever.

I didn’t actually mean that. If your boss, project manager, or person you’re contracting with asks for an estimate, do your best to come up with something accurate. If you’re writing enterprise software, you may even be contractually bound to provide estimates for when features will ship.

There are ways to get pretty good at this. Pay attention to history and avoid wishful thinking. Don’t assume perfect productivity. Allow for the unexpected, because there’s always something.

What I’m talking about is the case where you’re writing a consumer-facing app — something that would get published on an app store, for instance — and customers or potential customers ask about an ETA for a given feature. Don’t do it! (For the reasons stated in the article.)