STARWEST 2008 - Software Testing Conference

PRESENTATIONS

Lessons Learned in Acceptance Test-Driven Development

Acceptance Test-Driven Development (ATDD), an application of the test-first practice of XP and agile development, can add enormous value to agile teams that are proficient in these practices. Moving from awareness of ATDD to being proficient at practicing ATDD comes about only after learning some important lessons. First, no one group can "own" the process. Second, ATDD is first about helping the customer and the team understand the problem; then it is about testing.

Antony Marcano, Testing Reflections
Life as a Performance Tester

At the core of most performance testing challenges and failed performance testing projects are serious misunderstandings and miscommunications within the project team. Scott Barber and Dawn Haynes share approaches to overcoming some of the most common frustrations facing performance testers today.

Scott Barber, PerfTestPlus, Inc.

Man and Machine: Combining Tools with the Human Mind

When you think of automated testing, you usually think of computer software executing unattended tests. When you think of manual testing, you think of a human being executing tests without the aid of software. Instead of thinking of tests as either automated or manual, Jonathan Kohl explores ways you can blend the two.

Jonathan Kohl, Kohl Concepts Inc.

Managing Your Personal Stress Level

In a recent survey of 130 U.S. software testers and test managers, Randall Rice learned that 83 percent of the respondents have experienced burnout, 53 percent have experienced depression of some type, and 97 percent have experienced high levels of stress at some time during their software testing careers. Randall details the sources of these problems and the most common ways to deal with them-some healthy, some not.

Randy Rice, Rice Consulting Services Inc

Patterns and Practices for Model-Based Testing

To apply model-based testing (MBT) to many different applications, simply learning the high-level principles is not enough. You need extra guidance and practice to help orient testers and developers to begin using models for testing. Many people attempting MBT, confused about programming around observation and control, try to duplicate the underlying system functionality in models. Keith Stobie shows you real-world MBT case studies to illustrate MBT ideas you can incorporate into your own practices.

Keith Stobie, Microsoft Corporation

Reloadable Test Data for Manual Testing

Do you need to execute and then quickly re-execute manual test cases under tight timelines? Do bugs marked as "Cannot Reproduce" bouncing back and forth between developers and testers frustrate your team? Would you like to have more realistic, production-like test data? Join Tanya Dumaresq as she explains the hows and whys of developing and using pre-created, reloadable test data for manual testing.

Tanya Dumaresq, Macadamian Technologies
Six Thinking Hats for Software Testers

Our testing is only as good as our thinking—and all too often we are hampered by limiting ideas, poor communication, and pre-set roles and responsibilities. Based on the work of Edward de Bono, the Six Thinking Hats for software testers have helped Julian, and numerous others, work more effectively as testers and managers. The concepts are simple and easy to learn. For instance, we can use these concepts as individuals performing reviews and while testing and in groups during team meetings.

Julian Harty, Google
STARWEST 2008: Automating Security Testing with cUrl and Perl

Although all teams want to test their applications for security, our plates are already full with functional tests. What if we could automate those security tests? Fortunately, most Web-based and desktop applications submit readily to automated testing. Paco Hope explores two flexible, powerful, and totally free tools that can help to automate security tests. cUrl is a free program that issues automatic basic Web requests; Perl is a well-known programming language ideally suited for writing test scripts.

Paco Hope, Cigital

STARWEST 2008: Branch Out Using Classification Trees

Classification trees are a structured, visual approach to identify and categorize equivalence class partitions for test objects. They enable testers to create better test cases faster. Classification trees visually document test requirements to make them easy to create and comprehend. Julie Gardiner explains this powerful technique and how it helps all stakeholders understand exactly what is involved in testing and offers an easier way to validate test designs.

Julie Gardiner, Grove Consultants

STARWEST 2008: Five Things Every Tester Must Do

Are you a frustrated tester or test manager? Are you questioning whether or not a career in testing is for you? Do you wonder why others in your organization seem unenthusiastic about quality? If the answer is yes to any of these questions, this session is for you. Julie Gardiner explores five directives to help testers make a positive impact within their organization and increase professionalism in testing. Remember quality-it's not just time, it's time and quality; it's date and quality; it's functionality and quality.

Julie Gardiner, Grove Consultants

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