The Latest
Top 10 StickyMinds Articles of 2019[article] Teams everywhere are looking to speed up testing without sacrificing quality, so once again, some of the top articles last year were about continuous integration, machine learning, and—of course—how to best implement and use test automation. But readers were also interested in what they shouldn't be doing, with two high-ranking articles about test practices we should stop and a tool you may be misusing. |
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Applying Data Analytics to Test Automation[article] Testers gather lots of metrics about defect count, test case execution classification, and test velocity—but this information doesn't necessarily answer questions around product quality or how much money test efforts have saved. Testers can better deliver business value by combining test automation with regression analysis, and using visual analytics tools to process the data and see what patterns emerge. |
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Improving Test Data Collection and Management[article] There is much published about the data we generate to assess product quality. There is less discussion about the data testers generate for our own use that can help us improve our work—and even less is said about recommended practices for data collection. Test data collection, management, and use all call for upfront planning and ongoing maintenance. Here's how testers can improve these practices. |
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From QA Champion to Testing Hero: An Interview with Stacy Kirk[interview] Stacy Kirk, CEO at QualityWorks Consulting Group, discusses how testers can go from champions of quality to true QA heroes. She says people in testing are the unspoken heroes of software, and details what needs to change so they can find their voices to step up and lead. Stacy also talks about how far women in tech have come and how much value they bring, as well as discusses the challenges she has faced as a female CEO and how much it has taught her, both in and out of the tech world. |
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Rookie Mistakes in Data Analytics[article] It's easy to make simple mistakes in data analysis. But these little mistakes can result in rework, errors, and—in the worst case—incorrect conclusions that lead you down the wrong path. Making small process changes can help you steer clear of these mistakes and end up having a real impact, both in the amount of time you spend and in your results. Here are some tips for avoiding rookie mistakes in data analytics. |
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Getting Testers Out of Their Comfort Zone: An Interview with Janna Loeffler[interview] Janna Loeffler, manager of quality engineering at Ultimate Software, discusses the importance of detailing a test strategy, along with the most crucial aspect: communication. She talks about how testers are often not comfortable saying “I don’t know,” and about how they should get out of their comfort zone to ask for help. She also gives insight into strategies people can take to admit they don’t know without fear, and seeking answers and conversations from others in the testing community. |
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Separating Automation Tooling from Automation Strategy[article] When people do not have good luck with automation, it is hardly ever because of the tool being used, but almost always because of the wrong automation strategy, wrong expectations, and wrong adoption of automation. Automation tools only answer the “how” of automation, while having an automation strategy gives answers to who, where, when, what, and why. Here's why it's so important to have a test automation strategy. |
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Sponsored Article: Enhancing Your Selenium Testing[article] Selenium has widespread adoption as a test automation tool, but it comes with some challenges. We talked to some experts in the test automation industry about Selenium’s reign as the tool of choice for UI testing, whether that crown is warranted, and what they think is important for teams to focus on when it comes to their test automation efforts. Then, Parasoft talks about how teams can solve UI testing challenges and make Selenium more maintainable with its new product, Parasoft Selenic. |
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Continuous Integration and Process Management: An Interview with Melissa Benua[interview] Melissa Benua, a senior technical lead at mParticle, discusses the wide range of topics she will present at the STARWEST conference, including continuous integration, containers, and process management. She also shares details of the projects her team is working on with deep back-end core features, qualities, and dev tools. Melissa also talks about her involvement with Women Who Test, why she made sure to expose her kids to the events at a young age, and how it reinforces the importance of a work-life balance. |
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Racing against Time with Test Automation[article] When you are running against time but still cannot afford to cut corners while testing, automation is a good solution. You can release high-quality software within a short span of time, detect more errors and bugs, and align your testing with agile development. Here’s how you can set up an automated testing initiative to overcome delivery challenges and improve your testing outcomes. |
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Tackling Testing Challenges in an Agile Transition[article] Even though jumping onto the agile bandwagon is tempting for businesses, it is not always easy, and a transition to agile is likely to come with a slew of challenges for testing in particular. In order for agile to enable delivery of quality products at speed, testing has to begin much earlier in the process than ever before. Enabling certain practices will help your organization achieve a more successful transition to agile testing. |
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An Introduction to Web Optimization Testing[article] When testing websites, most software testers check the functionality and the UI of the page. But webpage optimization is another area that should get consideration. There are a variety of factors, such as relevance and readability, that search engines consider in webpages before assigning a position in search results, and testers can help positively influence this ranking by increasing site speed and removing blockers to usability. |
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Excavating the Testing Pyramid: An Interview with Max Saperstone[interview] Max Saperstone, director of test and automation at Coveros, discusses the different types of tests that Selenium helps with, as well as why Selenium is very fragile. He also gets into the testing pyramid and how the layers of the pyramid work break down, the distinction between testing and checking, and which tests developers should be responsible for. |
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Become the Person Everyone Wants to Work With[presentation]
Slideshow
Drawing from her own experiences across twenty years in a range of industry roles, Jaimee Newberry shares true stories of at least a dozen tiny but important things she still sees every day that could make all the difference in how people work with you. |
Jaimee Newberry
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JUnit vs. TestNG: Choosing a Framework for Unit Testing[article] There are multiple frameworks available for unit testing, and for any type of programming language. For Java developers, JUnit and TestNG are the most widely used. These frameworks are siblings and have the same test roots, and the debate over which is better is complex. Let’s look at how these two testing frameworks are different from each other, and which framework is better suited for your unit testing. |