This kind of goes with my prior post, The Importance of HCLs.
As a technologist I have some very long-held beliefs and preferences as far as technology goes. I know what I like to use, why I like to use it, and could talk for hours about why someone else should use a certain technology or consider trying it out (at the very least).
However, when does that fight become counter-productive? When does trying to fit my preferences and wants, my assumptions, start to fight against me and create more harm than good?
There is certainly something to be said about loving the tools that yo use, but what if those tools, for the current job, just don’t work not because they are incapable … but because of factors outside of your control.
Say that you want to use a vendor’s virtual appliances in order to add some much-needed new technology to make things better … but that vendor doesn’t support your virtualization platform. What do you do? Do you spend the time and effort either:
- Trying to get their virtual appliance to work on your infrastructure.
- Try and convince the vendor to support your infrastructure.
Even if #2 might create a little less work for you in the short-term, think about what that time might mean for your vendor. More resources devoted to supporting more platforms can mean a slower-moving vendor. Apple is the prime example of this … if you want to use Apple’s stuff, USE APPLE’S STUFF. Everywhere. As much as possible.
It is a good fight to get all technologies to inter-operate together, but there are so many things to do, so many improvements to make in all facets of IT that maybe, just maybe, fighting the good fight in this instance might not be worth it not just for you … but for everyone else too.