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@StickyMinds on Twitter
Follow @StickyMinds on Twitter for regular updates from StickyMinds.com, and follow @BetterSoftware for updates straight from next week's Better Software Conference & EXPO.
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Featured Tool:
Mingle—Agile Project Management tool from ThoughtWorks
Vendor: ThoughtWorks Studios
Address: 200 E. Randolph St.
25th Floor
Chicago, IL 60601
Phone: 312.373.1000
Fax: 312.373.1001
Tool URL: stickyminds.com/STL090604Mingle
Description:
Do your software projects slip because developers,
testers and business experts are not on the same page? Mingle,
the intuitive and flexible project management tool, provides one
shared workspace for the entire team and helps teams deliver
software quickly. It is very flexible and adapts to your
favorite flavor of agile, be it Scrum, XP, or Hybrid.
Give management true-to-life visibility into project status with
a clear picture on what work has been completed and what is yet
to be done. Leverage the industry's best user interface to
capture and visualize all project activity. Track project
progress with out-of-the-box reports, like burndown charts,
velocity, etc.
Mingle leverages ThoughtWorks' 7+ years experience in agile
software delivery and has enhanced the project delivery process
for more than 100 organizations worldwide.
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Sticky ToolLook Interview
Avoiding the Tools Graveyard with Chad Wathington
Chad Wathington is vice president of products at ThoughtWorks.
In this interview, he discusses the value of having
tools communicate with each other and offers some tips on
finding the right test tools and avoiding a software graveyard.
Sticky ToolLook:
Where do you think test automation stands today?
Chad Wathington:
I think automation has come a long way in that
people are actually attempting it these days. There is still an
almost religious debate in certain QA circles about how much,
if any, automation should be done in general. Despite this,
progress has happened on two fronts. First, open source test
automation frameworks, like Selenium, have made automation more
accessible to the masses. Second, given this accessibility,
more people have accepted the notion that automation is
actually valuable, particularly when it comes to end-to-end
tests involving complex GUIs.
Unfortunately, for most, the jury is still out on if automation
is actually viable. By viable, I mean can automation handle
brittle GUIs, can it scale to large test suites, and can it be
efficient vs. manual testing, particularly from a cost or
business-value standpoint. For those of us who believe
automation provides substantial benefit, our main task is to
convince the doubtful and the naysayers that it's viable. We've
designed our functional testing tool, Twist, to address these
concerns. Our collaboration and project management tool, Mingle,
has one of the most robust automated functional test suites in
the world. We certainly believe automation can be done well by
non-rocket scientists, and we're intent on showing it. I think
you'll increasingly see vendors and open source communities
focus on features that address viability. And, I think adoption
will increase accordingly.
STL:
How important is it that different tools from a company
work together? What about communicating with tools from other
companies?
CW:
I think the traditional vendors in this space have
historically sold integrated product suites that a) frankly
weren't well integrated, and b) had products in the suite that
could not stand up on their own. Consequently, a lot of software
development shops have decided that mixing and matching tools is
a better approach, and vendors are responding accordingly.
Additionally, I think people recognize today that every project
and organization is different and that the best tool for the job
should trump buying off-the-shelf solutions from a vendor. We
believe in creating products that are excellent as lightweight
standalone tools. We believe that we should provide the elegant
APIs you need to easily integrate our tools with something else.
However, we believe there is still a lot of value in creating an
integrated tool suite that's actually integrated. There are a
lot of value-added and downright cool things we have in the
works—stuff that will make the suite more powerful than what
exists today or cobbling together your own stack.
STL:
What are some gadgets that you wouldn't want to go without
for very long?
CW:
Wow, that's a hard one. First and foremost, although it
sounds cliche, is my iPhone. A lot of people I know have a
graveyard of apps on their device, but I actually use most of
the apps I own regularly.
STL:
How can an organization efficiently and economically
approach the market for testing tools—that is, without ending
up with a graveyard of its own?
CW:
I think the graveyard effect comes from two phenomena.
First, app stores are almost textbook open markets (I'm sure
some economist is writing a dissertation on them). There is
almost complete information: You have aggregated reviews,
pricing, and a searchable database of competitors and options at
your finger tips. Second, mobile apps have a low barrier to
entry (price and accessibility), such that the cost to try a new
app is low.
I think that both these trends are happening on a smaller scale
for development tools in general. The information available to
the average tool evaluator is much greater than it was five
years ago because of the pervasiveness of Web content. And, open
source tools have an extremely low barrier to entry that
everyone must compete with. For organizations looking for
testing tools, evaluate as many tools as you can, and I don't
mean via simple checklists. Look for blog reviews. Download
tools. Go to webinars/user group meetings to make sure you're
getting the most out of a tool you're evaluating. Pilot tools on
real projects. Try them to see if they work for your team's
toughest problems before you buy them. Get informed, because the
information is out there—the old enterprise software buying
model is dead.
Keep the Conversation Going
Have you found yourself in a development tools graveyard? Send an email to jmcallister@sqe.com and keep the conversation going.
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Software Quality Engineering Offers
Become a certified software tester from your desktop!
Get trained. Get certified. Get the same expert instruction and
valuable content hundreds of organizations have come to expect
from SQE Training. Software Tester Certification is now
available in an eLearning format, including a 400-plus-page
downloadable course manual and a sample exam.
Register for the eSoftware Tester Certification–Foundation
Level course using online promo code "JSF09" and receive $100 off
the course AND a $50 Amazon.com gift card. Offer ends June 30,
2009.
Register today!
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What's Happening at StickyMinds.com
Featured Web Seminar
Habits of a Highly Effective Testing Organization—Proven Practices to Improve Your Quality System
Sponsored by MKS
The quality assurance function in an organization defines effective and efficient processes and standards for the entire software development process, including, but not limited to, testing. In this Web seminar, author and testing expert Lee Copeland reviews the essential habits of a highly effective testing organization as part of an efficient, organization-wide quality system. Lee also provides context and commentary on the key changes for testing in recent years (and tells you which ones are here to stay). Ryan Lloyd, product manager for MKS, will join Lee to provide an insider's view on effective techniques for integrating testing into the application lifecycle and tips for achieving a more "holistic" view of software quality. We'll host two broadcast dates for this event, one for American audiences on Tuesday, June 16, at 2 p.m. ET and another for European audiences on Wednesday, June 17, at 3 p.m. GMT.
Register now!
Featured White Paper
Case Study: Ensuring Quality of Outsourced Java Development
One of the world's top fifty banks has adopted AgitarOne technology
for delivering generated unit tests for their Java software
development. The bank services millions of customers and is a
leading provider of current accounts, savings, personal loans,
credit cards, mortgages, etc. AgitarOne was able to
reduce the cost of software development substantially and
improve the software quality process significantly.
Learn More!
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Outside the Tool Box
Electronic Bubble Wrap Keychain
There are few things so therapeutic—so absolutely, truly,
mind-numbingly peace inducing—as destroying a sheet of unpopped
bubble wrap. The sight of a fresh sheet of tiny plastic bubbles
brings such waves of joy.
Some offices offer in-office calisthenics as a means of both
stress relief and exercise for their workers. How would you feel
about arriving at your desk each morning to find a brand new
sheet of bubble wrap to pop at your leisure? I feel calmer just
thinking about it.
WAIT! Even better! The Electronic Bubble Wrap Keychain appears
to have only eight bubbles, but they're always there for you!
Instead of popping in the traditional sense, the little rubbery
bubbles issue a comforting, familiar popping sound.
You will go from crazed to sedate in a matter of moments. It
might have the opposite effect on your nearby office mates, but
that's just another reason for them to get their own.
Read more about the Electronic Bubble Wrap Keychain.
Send Us Your Outside the Toolbox "Tool"
Do you know of any fun or unusual tools, toys, or other items that might be slightly outside the software development toolbox? Send them via email to jmcallister@sqe.com and they might end up in a future issue of the Sticky ToolLook.
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The Sticky ToolLook 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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You are receiving this issue of the Sticky ToolLook as part of your
www.StickyMinds.com
membership,
Better Software
magazine subscription, or Sticky ToolLook subscription. We hope this publication will be a useful
and enjoyable benefit. To ensure optimal receipt of these emails, please add
stickytoollook@lists.stickyminds.com to your address book or all messages from
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SOFTWARE QUALITY ENGINEERING • 330
CORPORATE WAY • STE. 300 • ORANGE PARK, FL 32073
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