Besides building software and usability engineering aspects of computer science if I had to pick another segment I enjoyed spending time on, performance monitoring has to be it.
I am obsessed with monitoring transaction performance, and the impact transactions have on the database, CPU usage, and the various errors returned. Its all in the service of ensuring that the end-user has a great experience using the software you spend so much time building.
I would assume before that the user would let us know when the software was too slow or when it crashes. As I started to look through my habits, I realised that I hardly do this myself. If the software is too slow, I slowly stop using it. If it crashes, I will let the support team know, but unless the software is an integral part of my workflow, I will switch to an alternative.
I like being proactive about software performance and enjoy making small tweaks to improve performance and fix errors before they become a significant customer issue.
