How do you prepare your projects?

[eluser]Mahmoud M. Abdel-Fattah[/eluser]
I totally agree with you Daniel

[eluser]Daniel Moore[/eluser]
I've decided to try to find a better alternative to flow charting myself.

I have been doing it with pencil and paper, and once complete, putting it into Open Office Draw, which works, but has been a real pain.

I have just discovered Dia. It's open source, and it is available for Linux and has been ported to Windows. It's not available for the Mac, so I suppose Mac users will continue to use Omnigraffle or something similar.

http://live.gnome.org/Dia

You can get the Windows installer at the following link.
http://dia-installer.de/index_en.html

I know there has been a bit of discussion about good flow charting software in the past, and I've never seen a consensus on what is a good program for either the Windows platform or Linux platform. Have a go at it and report back what you think. It's free, fun, and easy to use.

Use the drop down box below the main buttons, and select "Other Sheets>" then select "Flow Chart" or what ever else you would like to design.

Take a few minutes to learn it, and you won't be sorry. I've spent 10 minutes learning it, just playing around, and already I can now create a flowchart easier in this than on paper.

[eluser]Ñuño Martínez[/eluser]
[quote author="Daniel Moore" date="1237422878"][quote author="Ñuño Martínez" date="1237396712"]This method is a simplified version of "Extreme Programming". I use it on my current job because I never have all the information about the project. That's not my fault. My boss never, never, never explains me everything I need, he always hides something. Once I've finished something he says "Oh, nice work! Now, add this new little feature that seems simple but actually it will ruin everything you've already done". I think it's the worst way but I can't do anything else. u_u"[/quote]

I hate that. That's why I quit my "job" and went freelance. Now, if a client tells me that, I can say, "Sounds great, but it's not in the contract we signed. I'll get back to you with a quote for the additional work involved in that."[/quote] Some day I'll do the same. Some day...

[edit] I use GNU's Dia too. I think it's a good tool.

[eluser]steelaz[/eluser]
Can someone post an example of website flow chart, I know I should do them, but never get around to it and usually am the one to suffer consequences.

[eluser]Fero[/eluser]
Currently, my cousin wants me to create a system for him. It's frustrating to keep explaining him that "I want user authentication" is not enough information if it's client-warehouse system with several user privileges.

and that I want to know 100% what it's going to take and how much I may charge. Plus this stupid crisis and he'll expect to go down with price.

+ I want a flowchart, charts, charts, to know everything everywhere, no stress

[eluser]Ñuño Martínez[/eluser]
I was too busy, sorry.

[quote author="steelaz" date="1237938527"]Can someone post an example of website flow chart, I know I should do them, but never get around to it and usually am the one to suffer consequences.[/quote]

I think websites hasn't flowcharts. I think they have "maps". That is, a rectangle that represents a document and some arrows to the documents linked by it.

[eluser]Daniel Moore[/eluser]
Ñuño,

Not talking about site maps here. Talking about flow chart diagrams of how to lay out your programming code before you build the site. Google "flow chart".

Flow charts have been replaced with UML diagrams over the years. Some still call them flow charts, but UML provides a greater degree of control over the structures in the diagram.

Mind maps are another great tool. It helps you "map out what you're thinking" by allowing you to lay things out in much the same way as your mind works. Great for brain-storming sessions. FreeMind (open source) is a great app for this.

I use FreeMind for my mind maps and brainstorming sessions, and I use Dia (open source) for creating charts that I may need to present to clients.