Geographically Distributed Development *

Question

My company is using me as a sort of guinea pig for having developers on both sides of the US. The main office is located in Denver, and I'm in Louisville, KY. I've been trying to come up with ideas to make the remote development experience line up better with the experience in the main office. It obviously will never line up perfectly, but I think we can still make it better.

For reference, we work primarily in Java with Eclipse being the preferred IDE.

So far I've come up with:

• Instant Messaging/Skype - Can act as both a basic in/out/busy system and a quick communication system.
• Development Portal - A simple web page with links to important documentation or references for packages we use in each project and any other useful information.
• Cruise Control - So we don't waste as much time pulling down and then worrying about broken builds.
• VNC - For the times I want to show someone code that has no business being checked into Git yet, or when I need to walk through a series of screens for critique/advice.

What other tools are available that we can use to help me feel less like I'm stranded on a desert island?

Answer

You should maintain some way to communicate design decisions through a medium that retains the flow and content of the conversation. I'm developing in a team that communicates somewhat informally through our blogs (with entries and comments following), but it would probably be more efficient to use a wiki or a threaded discussion system.

What concerns me is that of your choices above, the only thing close to this type of functionality is the concept of a development portal. If you don't have a really convenient means of voicing opinions and plans, you may lose some of the details discussed over phone or a quick IM. It's also nice to have a format where you can take time to think big before posting.

If practical, it would probably really help to have a face-to-face at some point, too.

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