Spreadsheets: Let’s Just Be Friends by Timothy Powers.
From the post:
Have you ever had that awkward conversation with a significant other where they tell you they just want to be friends?
Sometimes the news is hard to swallow. It forces you to ask yourself, “What could I have done better?”
This same tough conversation needs to happen with certain software applications too. People just stay in relationships with software for too long. That said, it’s time to have the “friend talk” and break up with spreadsheets.
You’ve never really loved them. It’s been a relationship of convenience – they just showed up one day on your laptop and the rest was history. Yes, they’re nice and have a good personality (as much as software can), but it’s time to cut the cord and just be friends.
You have to really admire the copy writers for IBM. Without a hint of a blush, the post concludes with notice of an upcoming presentation (March 7, 2012) that promises you will: “…see new solutions that will give you a more personal relationship with your data.”
So we go from “just being friends,” to a “more personal relationship” in a scant number of lines.
To be honest, I have never really wanted a personal relation with my data. Or with my computer for that matter. One is a resource and the other is a tool, nothing more. Maybe that view depends on your social skills. 😉
This piece may help you cast doubt on the suitability of spreadsheets for all cases but I would avoid promising that topic maps or any other technology offers a “personal relationship.” (Do you know if common law still has a breach of promise of marriage action?)