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Welcome to the ITSLM wiki site.

Sadly, this site has been subject to attack by spammers. I'm cleaning it up, removing the jerks and rebuilding elements of the database.

This also means I've prevented new account creation. If you're interested in becoming an editor then please contact me and I'll manually create an account. Once I've sorted out the mess I'll re-enable account creation with some additional safeguards.

Getting started
You are encouraged to get involved and contribute to this wiki by adding and editing content. Before you get started though, please read these guidelines.

Why 'System' Lifecycle Management
Really? Another acronym? What's wrong with ALM?

In a nutshell, ALM is too parochial as it implies (or rather states) that it applies only to applications. Similarly Software Development Life-Cycle (SDLC) is specific to one field (software development). The name System Lifecycle Management is intended to be all encompassing; covering hardware, software, documentation, locations, products, services, people, and every other thing that goes in to making a system.

Hang on. Isn't that ITIL?

No. ITIL focusses more on service delivery (although ITIL V3 has broadened and clarified the scope somewhat). ITSLM is broader even than this and, importantly, ITSLM is Open. Free. Community controlled.

So, what do we mean by System?
The dictionary definition is straightforward enough:

This is what we mean by System in the context of ITSLM. The objectives of ITSLM are to manage in an appropriate manner the development and operation of IT systems, so we limit ourselves only to the IT domain.

The ITSLM challenge
IT systems have become the most complex systems ever devised by mankind. If you consider the complexity involved in just one home PC (the chip design, disk design, timing challenges, and software) you realise that it is a remarkably complex system. Compound this complexity by connecting several machines together, each using different software and hardware combinations and the new system is even more complex. Now connect millions of machines together on the Internet and the system as a whole is extraordinarily complex. Managing this complexity is just one of the challenges that ITSLM attempts to address.

Next, the development and maintenance of these complex systems must be controlled to overcome system entropy.

What's wrong with...
No doubt many of you have your own favourite best practice, standard, framework, or tool, and you're asking why you should take part in the ITSLM co-operative which seems like just another effort duplicating the work others have already done.

Well, in some ways you're right. ITSLM will undoubtedly cover much of the same ground as these other standards etc. The ITSLM is not attempting to replace these, it is simply trying to make them more accessible, extend them, and make them directly relevant to practitioners.

Fundamentally, there's nothing wrong with any of these other sources of information. At least not so far as what they say is concerned.

However, one big problem everyone but the most fortunate faces in their professional career is access to these formal documents. Take ITIL for example, it costs around £300 for a set of V3 documentation, and then more money for training (and a LOT more if you want to take all the training), and that training needs to be retaken every time ITIL is updated (assuming you want to 'stay up to date'). Similarly, access to standards documents from IEEE, ISO, and others, all cost a lot of money for individuals, meaning individual professionals only get access to them through organisations they work for (and again, the training can amount to a lot of money).

ITSLM is non-profit, run by volunteers, contributed to by a community of volunteers, and all its output are provided free (or at cost of production). We aim to make good practice and advice totally accessible to everyone in the hope that more people and organisations can benefit from it.