Fantasy LIMS, you know… for the kids, not for your lab

Fantasy LIMS, you know… for the kids, not for your lab

by Ephraim Gadsby – contributing author

A recent press release on this website prompted a very funny picture in my head that I thought I would write about…

Some of you may remember an old 70’s television program called “Fantasy Island” where a group of people would pay this guy named Mr. Roarke and his sidekick, Tattoo to make various arrangements to fulfill a personal fantasy.  Things usually never turned out quite as expected for the person with the fantasy but it did, arguably, provide an hour of entertainment in a way that most always provided for a happy ending.  Unfortunately, that’s not real life.

This picture came to mind when I read the following press release from a LIMS vendor:   Autoscribe’s LimsBuilder – Reduce the time needed to create a LIMS Requirements document …. And have fun doing it!

While I commend this vendor for being creative, I do have some cautionary advice for the LIMS buyer/user.

It is fine to imagine and to create a “Fantasy LIMS” but the danger is that you may try to actually live that fantasy.  The potential problem with such a cool tool is that you may be able to build a fiction LIMS that is not practical and may set you up for expectations that lead to disappointment.  Don’t let fantasy  get in the way of the reality of the generally defective world of computer software.  It might be best to orient your goals based upon real needs and not based upon fantasy.  Just because you can dream it up on a computer screen does not mean that it will be good for your lab.

This holds equally true if you use a consultant who never says NO and only documents what you say and want.  They really don’t consult, they simply parrot what you say and then present it as if it were an original creative work.  One would think that they get paid on a per word or page basis.  I have seen some recent RFP’s on this site that list requirements that are simply over the top.  Clearly a bad case of “Fantasy LIMS” and it didn’t require a cool software tool to promote the fantasy.

Sometimes simple is better and less is more.  Set your expectations low and work hard to exceed those expectations.  Now that is a recipe for happiness that beats fantasy.

 

Sincerely,

 

Ephraim Gadsby – Bertie’s alter ego