tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4169740113013066976.post5018325266399116804..comments2024-02-10T12:12:06.028+00:00Comments on The Real Blog: The extra costs of the big IT systemsDavid Boylehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11410159311875228620noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4169740113013066976.post-54151281683779059852011-12-22T14:36:55.238+00:002011-12-22T14:36:55.238+00:00The great strength of the internet is that it is &...The great strength of the internet is that it is "loosely coupled". It's lots of small systems with standard connections between them, and the connection standardises the minimum amount.<br /><br />This leaves each system with the maximum amount of flexibility to suit local circumstances.<br /><br />One reason why the Internet's TCP/IP stack prevailed over the OSI stack was that it was so much simpler, because it didn't try to deal with as much stuff, so each manufacturer could add on a TCP/IP stack to their computers without having to change fundamental aspects of the way their computers worked so they worked the way OSI expected them to.<br /><br />What the NHS should have done was work out standard interchanges for data between systems; then each hospital and each GP practice could choose their own preferred systems and capabilities, but the systems would all be able to transfer data to one another.<br /><br />Take "choose and book". Why not just define two standard interfaces:<br /><br />1: Query a hospital for availability of a particular type of appointment.<br />2: Create an appointment for a patient at a particular time and date.<br /><br />Then each GP system can query all available hospitals for availability, make a decision according to the programmed criteria (which might be some clever automated combination of cheapest, soonest and best, or might be as simple as "ask the GP" or "ask the patient") and then book the appointment.<br /><br />Create the minimum central standardisation necessary and then let each separate organisation decide what to do.Richard Gadsdenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10545595590359552775noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4169740113013066976.post-66954981460852271562011-12-22T08:31:47.543+00:002011-12-22T08:31:47.543+00:00Every Liberal should know about the concept of the...Every Liberal should know about the concept of the 'Law of Requisite Variety', one of the historic fundamentals of 'systems thinking'. <br /><br />As Vladimir Nabukov (reputedly) said 'life spills over the edge of every cup'Edishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10852931736127760026noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4169740113013066976.post-2990591013355644622011-12-21T22:38:19.935+00:002011-12-21T22:38:19.935+00:00A very interesting post. My Trust trialed this won...A very interesting post. My Trust trialed this wonderful knew computer system and I was recently told by one receptionist (now safely retired) that the system was so slow in giving out appointments that they started timing them and it took around ten minutes! Some people walked away. Talk about false efficiency.Michael Gradwellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09102079812955383309noreply@blogger.com