Quality is not an act, it is a habit
Quality is not an act, it is a habit
Together with Rob Arntz I have developed the Information Management Frame as a frame to graft on an effective approach for information analysis, data modeling, and information management. The thoughts on which this frame is based can be traced back to two quotes from literature. De first one is from Ludwig Wittgenstein (1923), and the second from Gartner (2002). Here they are both in plain English:
"The world is all that is the case. The world is the totality of facts, not of things. The world is determined by the facts, and by their being all the facts. For the totality of facts determines what is the case, and also whatever is not the case. The facts in the logical space are the world. The world divides into facts.“......“Of what we cannot speak, we must pass over in silence." (Ludwig Wittgenstein, 1923)
"In spite of all modern vendor products, it is always necessary to obtain a clear-cut model – validated by the end users – of what the end users want to see in their BI-applications. Only from such a perspective one can look for an effective implementation of all necessary data-elements in the finally chosen technical environment for these BI-applications." (Gartner, 2002)
These quotes have been guiding for a number of articles from my hand, which have been compiled in an essay "Over Feiten en Dingen", published by Array Publications at the end of 2010. In 2013 the English translation of this essay appeared at Brave New Books. Since December 2019 an (improved) second edition of both About Facts and Things (left and fig. 3 and 4 top-right) and Over Feiten en Dingen (fig. 1 and 2 top-right) can be bought at bol.com.
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After the publication of About facts and Things I came across yet another very appropriate quote, which reflects even shorter and more precise what should be the driver for any kind of investigation, whether it concerns medical work, police work, information modelling, or any kind of comparable analysis. This quote is widely attributed to Thomas Fuller, M.D. (1654 – 1734), physician and author of "Gnomologia: Adagies and Proverbs" (1732):
"Get the facts, or the facts will get you. And when you get them, get them right, or they will get you wrong."
This quote has been has been received gratefully and with lots of joy by the many participants that have taken our courses on Fact Oriented Modeling. It leads people straightaway towards a wholesome way of working in establishing which information is relevant and needed, and which basic forms this information has.
And because the practice of everyday life is virtually full of infringements of Thomas Fuller's statement above, it was inevitable that time after time Rob or I found sufficient reasons to write a column about something or other on our website. This book is a compilation of a number of these columns till 2020. It is cordially recommended to you.
Both Facts and Stories and Feiten en Verhalen can be bought at bol.com.
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Jethro lives on his own in a quiet corner of North Painesford Falls, a secure and friendly village on the outskirts of King Cydon's Realm. He is a young warrior, who was raised by Mayor Joseph and his wife, and is just past his twenty-first birthday. He usually gets around practicing his military skills with his good friends, but apart from that, he begins to feel some urge for something to happen that could make life more interesting.
Then, one night, he receives a letter with a startling content, starting thus:
"Dear Jethro, I wish I had good news to send you, but unfortunately it looks like things are changing for the worse. We are threatened by a fierce shadow from the south. We do not know the precise nature of this evil shadow nor its strength. But we do know that other cities have already fallen under its attacks. ..."
After reading it, Jethro wonders why this letter is sent specifically to him...
This book leads you into the realm of fantasy with a tale that is both epic and moving...
Both the Dutch and the English version of Jethro can be bought at bol.com.
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