The average developer starts writing some code for such-and-such application right? Then their app becomes popular, and they realize: uh oh…my data is not encrypted, my procs don’t scale, it’s all too slow, it needs history tables, it needs auditing, it needs to talk to some other systems, it has all kinds of locking issues, and so on.
I want this book to prevent or remedy these situations AND also showcase the cool new 2005/2008 stuff and how it fits into the equation.
The rule of thumb for content inclusion would be: Does it provide a solution that addresses real-world issues that developers face or will likely face if their applications take off? And, of course, I must make sure I address all the basic architectural concerns before addressing the gravy.
Alex, I think this is a great start. One of the things developers really need is core information about indexing -- when to do it, how it works, and so on. Are you going to be covering that topic in depth?
The first paragraph of your post describes Twitter to a tee. The current web/tech business environment ENCOURAGES exactly this kind of scenario.
From a business perspective, does it make sense to take the time, up-front, to prepare to go big time -- when it might never happen -- or does it make sense to develop highly iteratively, put something beta in front of the market, and garner recognition first?