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Typical Road Test Plan for an SBC like Raspberry Pi4

dougw

   asked  "How Long Would It Take for You to RoadTest the Raspberry Pi 4 Model B". I did a bit of a work up to see what it might take, but it was too long to fit in a comment under his question, so I made this discussion.

The times and tasks could vary a lot from these values, but it provides a bit of perspective on what it might take...

Chapter Time-Hours Tasks
1 3

Organize and setup the project

  • Setup project directories
  • Research the product
  • Gather links, datasheets and example material
  • Find and store some images
  • Read the datasheets
  • Work out a project plan
2 3 Introduction of reviewer
  • Introduction of product
  • history
  • reason for review
  • key features
  • mention factoids
  • Design frontispiece image
3 3 Unboxing video
  • Write narration
  • Explain all visual features
  • Shoot and edit video
  • Publish video
4 3 System description
  • Describe system features
  • Design expanded image with call-outs
  • Describe peripherals and their hookup
  • Discuss power requirements
  • Discuss packaging and thermal considerations
5 4 Software setup video(operating system installation)
  • Demonstrate and discuss boot-up
  • Discuss where to get software and how to install
  • Download resources
  • Describe software setup requirements
  • List step-by-step process
  • Discuss GUI and CLI user interfaces
  • Write narrative
  • Video the process & edit & publish
6 4 Benchmark demos
  • Download benchmarks for
    • processor performance
    • graphics performance
    • power consumption
    • thermal performance
  • Video benchmark installation
  • Video benchmarks being run
  • edit and publish videos
  • discuss benchmarks comparing to similar products
7 4 Application software
  • Demonstrate built-in applications
  • List other sources of application software
  • Discuss application software
8 3 Peripherals
  • Discuss available peripherals and their operation
  • Discuss the expansion connector and its applications
9 4 Programming
  • Discuss programming environments and languages
  • Demonstrate workflows
  • Show how to create an autoboot program
10 20 Build a real application or system
  • Publish code
  • Document hardware, packaging and thermal
  • Demonstrate application in action
11 2 Discussion & Conclusions
  • Comparison of features
  • What was done well
  • What was problematic, what were the issues
  • What could be improved
  • Who should buy one
  • Discussion of cost & value
Total 53

Please add any tasks I missed or elaborate on the time estimates in the comments below.

  • 0 in reply to robogary
    robogary said:
    A contingency plan helps you prepare for unanticipated occurrences that might otherwise cost you time, money or even your entire business. Sounds pretty severe.

    yes. I know that sentence. But how do you plan unanticipated occurrences? Finger in the air? A guess?

    And what happens to that contingency once it's planned? Lessons learned show that it'll be taken.

    The issue with contingency is that it's not an error factor. An error factor works plus and minus. 

  • 0 in reply to Jan Cumps

    This is a complex problem that businesses really struggle with. Management always wants an accurate prediction of the future. Planning is an attempt to control the future. With experience you can quickly plan and predict the future of a project with maybe an 80% accuracy. If you need to get more accurate, you need to either spend exponentially more time on the estimate or pad the estimate excessively. An extreme example is trying to estimate how long it will take to develop some new technology that has never been thought of before, and may not even be possible. Most people have a hard time estimating unknows accurately. Project management doctrine often suggests that projects can be broken down into subtasks  that can be accurately planned, but there is always some uncertainty in each task and it all adds up. Contingency is often just a guesstimated cushion to accommodate those issues you can't control or cannot afford to predict.

  • 0 in reply to robogary

    Not knowing what you don't know is the one variable that can derail projects in an instant. Scoping a project that has this variable is difficult. It can either take you to the successful finish of a project fast or terminate a project even faster.

  • 0 in reply to baldengineer

    "LCI" sounds like it is something well planned that allows justification in the corporate world. I can just imagine being in a corporate meeting and explaining... well we went down the garden path and it eventually led to a rabbit hole which dropped us into wonderland and we forgot that the only way out from the Tea Party was to take the door to the Bizarre Room, light the two lamps there and take the exit on the right side for the Queen's Castle.