Fresh Ink - An advance look at what's inside this month's issue of Better Software magazine
Fresh Ink - An advance look at what's inside this month's issue of Better Software magazine
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November 13, 2009

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This Issue

Featured Article

Blurring the Line
Inside Analysis
Test Connection
Management Chronicles

Editor's Note

Fresh Ink is now delivering the Better Software magazine digital edition to our subscribers. Click here to read the November/December issue today!

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StickyMinds.com Now Featuring Blogs
Join the conversation at StickyMinds.com blogs where you can find blog posts from experts like James Whittaker, Naomi Karten, Daniel Wellman, and others.
Check it out at blogs.stickyminds.com

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Better Software Magazine
     
 
Featured White Paper
Test Data Management
The ever-increasing complexity and scale of IT applications has made quality and reliability of paramount importance. However, delivering the same through testing is becoming a challenge. Test teams not only have to follow exact test methodologies but also must ensure accuracy of test data. Test teams also need to ensure that tests correctly reflect production situations, both functionally and technically. A well-rounded test data management strategy can help. Download Infosys's white paper to learn more!
 
 
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Your Guide to Testing for Success!
Budget cuts, fewer resources, new technologies/processes—it's tempting today to look at quick fixes. Ultimately though, this could expose your business to more cost, time, and risk. To avoid making costly mistakes, HP developed a collection of best practices and research on testing tools and processes to help you deliver value in difficult times.

Download Your Guide to Testing for Success.
 
Writer's Block
A user story isn't an ideal user problem description, software specification,test script, or project management task. It's the token that allows these communities to think about their own needs while they collaborate over their mutual concern—the software they'd all like to see developed.

~Jeff Patton, "Telling Better User Stories"
 
Featured Article
Countdown to Agility: Top 10 Characteristics of an Agile Organization
Jean Tabaka
Jean Tabaka believes in the power of an entire agile organization. These ten characteristics of an agile organization may seem counter to market success, but she explores why they are wholly embedded in twenty-first century business success.

Click here to view this article.
 

Blurring the Line
These articles appear simultaneously on StickyMinds.com. We encourage you to log on and post your comments and questions for the authors.

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Inside Analysis

Managing Your Analysis Debt
By Mary Gorman and Ellen Gottesdiener
What is your project's analysis debt load? What's the difference between good and bad analysis debt? What are causes and remedies for such debt? Mary Gorman and Ellen Gottesdiener explore the concept of analysis debt and consider strategies for prudent investing.

Keep reading and join the discussion on analysis debt.


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Test Connection

Constructing the Quality Story
By Michael Bolton
Knowledge doesn't just exist; we build it. Sometimes we disagree on what we've got, and sometimes we disagree on how to get it. Hard as it may be to imagine, the experimental approach itself was once controversial. What can we learn from the disputes of the past? How do we manage skepticism and trust, and tell the testing story?

Keep reading and join the discussion on testing and test design.


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Management Chronicles

Par for the Course
By Patrick Bailey
What can happen over a game of golf? You learn what you don't know, you learn more about what you do know, and you learn to listen to what others know. See how two managers and a caddy team up for some valuable lessons about staying out of the rough.

Keep reading and join the discussion on communication between development and maintenance teams.

 
ADVERTISEMENT
PowerPass Special—$99
A PowerPass is the key to getting the resources you need economically and fast! Access the complete Better Software magazine archive, conference materials from every major Software Quality Engineering event, online reference books, and industry salary surveys and receive discounts on all Software Quality Engineering products and training. *Upgrade to a PowerPass by December 31 with Promo code PP09 to receive this special pricing*

Supercharge Your Membership to StickyMinds.com with a PowerPass! Order yours today!
 
Featured Web Seminar
Keys to Successful Release Planning: A Guide for Agile Teams
The latest Web seminar brought to you by StickyMinds.com and Better Software magazine *Sponsored by Rally Software*
Release planning is a crucial agile practice in which teams commit to delivering key features to customers on a regular basis. Without intelligent release planning processes, your team's iterations will stand alone and fail to result in meaningful functionality that your stakeholders need. Join expert agile coach Ronica Roth to learn crucial tips for successful release planning,  understand the difference between fixed-scope and fixed-date release planning,  discover the secrets of running an effective release planning meeting, and  hear common stumbling blocks to success and how to overcome them. Join us Thursday, November 17 at 2 pm ET. Register Now!
 
Multimedia Spotlight
James Whittaker at STARWEST 2009
In this video from STARWEST 2009, James Whittaker describes the tourist metaphor and demonstrates tours taken by test teams from various companies including Microsoft and Google. He presents results from numerous projects where the tours were used in critical-path production environments. Learn about the collection of test tours, test cases, and bugs from these case studies and recommendations for using tours on your own products.
View Large-scale Exploratory Testing: Let's Take a Tour.
 
Editor's Note
It's Not Just for Software

Fresh off my trip to Anaheim for our STARWEST 2009 conference, I find myself reflecting on the week with a mixture of pride and appreciation. We have a fairly small staff at Software Quality Engineering, so it always amazes me to see the way the company pulls together to produce such a large event successfully.

Everyone, from the CEO to the newly hired former intern, happily jumps into the fray and pitches in. It's not unusual to see VPs running microphones, editors directing lunch traffic, and managers passing out morning announcements. This level of cooperation and dedication is indicative of an organization with a strong mission and core set of values. And, based on what I've learned from this month's cover story, it's also very agile.

In "Countdown to Agility," Rally's Jean Tabaka reveals the core values and top ten characteristics that she feels are essential to building a great agile organization. Included in this list are ideas to help you deliver your product consistently and still maintain your staff's work/life balance, hire managers who act as both servant and leader, and contribute to the community while remaining profitable.

Also in this issue, find out how to implement user story mapping as a way to organize, decompose, and prioritize user stories, as well as hot to keep the conversation about your product alive throughout its construction.

Don't miss our exclusive digital edition content. The 2009 Better Software magazine/StickyMinds.com Salary Survey results will only be published in the digital edition this year, so make sure to check your inbox or follow the link below.

As always, I hope you enjoy this issue of Better Software magazine. Email me to let me know how you've put this issue to work for you.

Happy Reading!
Heather Shanholtzer
HShanholtzer.com

Find out what you missed in past issues in the Fresh Ink archive. Check out the digital edition here.

 
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Receive $250 off the eSoftware Tester Certification Course when you register by December 31 using promo code ENY2.

For more information, visit www.SQETraining.com/eLearning
 
Fresh Ink is an extension of StickyMinds.com and Better Software magazine—and a reminder that your "online resource for building better software" is just a click away at www.StickyMinds.com.
 

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