App dev: The notion of boosting developer productivity via fewer people has Zack Urlocker pointing out five key findings that begin with small team size, a modular approach and, ultimately, focus on team chemistry. Over at the Advice Line blog, meanwhile, Bob Lewis addresses a reader’s question about what really has the most impact on software quality. At the heart of this student vs. professor debate is the question of whether requirements or testing is more important. “After thinking it over, I have to disagree with your professor,” Lewis asserts. Best of the blogs: It’s a bit premature, perhaps, to say that 2007 is winding down. Nonetheless, Gartner is already looking ahead to 2008, and David Marshall checks in on Gartner’s top 10 predictions for 2008, wherein he finds that the outlook is virtual and green. What else? WOA and SaaS, among others. “Gartner also talks about Virtualization 2.0 saying that virtualization technologies can improve IT resource utilization and increase the flexibility needed to adapt to changing requirements and workloads. However, by themselves, virtualization technologies are simply enablers that help broader improvements in infrastructure cost reduction, flexibility and resiliency.” The news beat: The U.S. DOJ says it opposes extending antitrust regulations against Microsoft. Intel’s general counsel maintains that it’s time to fix problems with the patent system, particularly when it comes to those who purchase patents with litigating in mind. A security researcher says that the Storm Worm is now just a squall as the majority of infected PCs have been cleaned. And a chemical industry group slams Greenpeace’s iPhone report claiming that all the substances reported by Greenpeace are approved for use. Software Development