Category Archives: community

An automated testing journey

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I did a presentation this evening in Brisbane on an automated testing journey that one may embark on. The whole thing was centered around this tube map style diagram I came up with recently: (download in PDF)

Here’s a link to my prezi slides and it should appear below (if you have flash enabled that is).  You can also download them in very printable PDF if you so choose.

I feel the presentation was well received, but I really shouldn’t have tried to squeeze three days of thinking into 30 mins. Oh well.

As always, I welcome your feedback.

Watir Day is happening in San Francisco on Sunday April 3rd 2011

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Just to let everyone know Watir day is happening in San Francisco on Sunday April 3rd, 2011. It’s the day before the Selenium Conference officially starts, to which most of the core Watir team will be attending.

I am hoping to share some of the stuff I have been doing with Watir, Watir-WebDriver, Selenium & Cucumber.

We’re hoping the Watir day will be less formal than the conference, and this includes hacking, so please bring along your laptop.

Hope to meet you there! http://watir.com/watir-day/

A new blog for the new year: Testing with Vision

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I’ve recently started a new blog, co-editing it with Bret Pettichord from Austin, Texas. I was a follower of Bret’s writing on his testing hotlist update blog for some time, but since he hadn’t updated it in 18 months, I jumped at the opportunity when he recently asked me to co-edit a new blog titled “Testing with Vision“.

I set it all up on wordpress.com, because it’s a rock solid and aesthetic blogging platform for minimal cost and we’ve begun publishing posts on Cucumber and Watir. We are hoping to present together at the upcoming Selenium Conference in San Francisco in April this year.

In the meantime, please check it out and subscribe.

This Thursday is ‘R U OK’ day

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This Thursday is R U OK? Day, aimed to preventing suicide in Australia by asking people to connect to someone they care about and make sure they’re OK.

Thursday 7 October, 2010

Thursday 7 October, 2010 is R U OK?Day. A national day of action that aims to prevent suicide by encouraging Australians to connect with someone they care about and help stop little problems turning into big ones.

On that day we want everyone across the country, from all backgrounds and walks of life, to ask family, friends and colleagues: “Are you OK?”.

Because staying connected with others is crucial to our general health and wellbeing. Feelings of isolation and being alone are major contributing factors to depression and social issues that can ultimately result in suicide. Regular, meaningful conversations can protect those we know and love.

It’s so simple but in the time it takes to have a coffee, you can start a conversation that could change a life.

Why start a conversation?

Research shows that talking about suicide with someone at risk actually reduces the chance of them taking their own life. It is the one thing we can all do to make a real difference.

Staying connected and ensuring your colleagues, friends and loved ones do so as well is as simple as having regular meaningful conversations. So every day can be R U OK?Day.

Thoughts on Thoughtworks Australia Team Hug September 2010

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I haven’t started yet at Thoughtworks (it’s still a week away), so I felt very privileged to be invited to the the bi-annual Thoughtworks Australia Team Hug over the weekend in country Victoria.

The weekend consisted of a series of talks and heaps of fun. I really enjoyed the talks by Martin Fowler on DSLs (Domain Specific Languages) and Chris Bushell on how to avoid branching code which was interesting as it relates to the new focus on Continuous Delivery.  I also enjoyed the two Dev-Ops talks, one frightening story by Tom Sulston and a much calmer one by Evan Bottcher. I need to look more closely into the Twist automated testing tool after seeing a demonstration of its features.

Besides the talks, there was a great Wild West themed party on Saturday night, complete with a photo booth that produced lots of hilarious photos. I dressed up as a cowboy, complete with chaps, boots, hat and guns. People went to huge effort in getting dressed up, there was even someone in a giant cow costume!

I managed to fit in a nice morning stroll on Sunday morning to enjoy the fresh country air and surroundings, which was very pleasant as I live in the city-city.

It was a great introduction to Thoughtworks culture and people and an all round enjoyable event.

Australian Software Testers (who blog)

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I was thinking it’d be a good idea to share my list of software testers I know in Australia. Of no coincidence, most of the great people in software testing in Australia write a blog about the craft. I wish everyone who worked in software testing wrote a blog because, as a manager, it sure would make my hiring decisions easier! In case you were wondering, yes, hiring managers do Google.

It’s pretty obvious to me if you’re a tester why you should write a blog. Not only does it showcase your skills, and code, but it allows you to connect to a whole bunch of others who have similar, or different, mindsets, who agree with you, or want to challenge you. Add in the fact that it needn’t cost a cent to set up your blog, only your time, and there’s really no reason not to.

Well here’s my list. Please don’t feel offended if I’ve left you off, it’s probably an oversight on my behalf. Also, this list is presented in no particular order.

Tim Koopmans: Tim lives in Melbourne and works as an open source performance test consultant as Altentee. His blog, once known as 90kts, is now written on Altentee’s blog site.

Jared Quinert: Jared is a software testing consultant who also lives in Melbourne, and is a self described: “Agile-literate contrarian uber-tester“. He has a huge amount of experience which he shares through his blog: Illiteration – Testing times in Software Testing.

Marlena Compton: Marlena lived in the USA until recently when she was hired by Atlassian in Sydney as part of their 32 engineers recruitment drive. I imagine one of the reasons they hired her is how much expert knowledge she shares on her frequently updated blog: Marlena’s Blog: Testing and coding concurrently.

Trish Khoo: Trish works as a test lead in Sydney for Campaign Monitor, a very cool organization who were recently featured on 37Signal’s SVN blog. Her blog, Purple Box Testing, is thought provoking and updated regularly.

Eric Petersen: Eric is a well known agile testing consultant who lives and works in Melbourne. He writes a blog  at Testing Reflections.

Kristan Vingrys: Kristan is one of the most clued on people I have met in Australia when it comes to testing, so it’s no surprise he is Global Test Practice Lead for Thoughtworks. He hasn’t blogged in a while, , but there is some older content on VinkTank.

Dean Cornish: Dean is an agile consultant with Thoughtworks in Melbourne and has a blog, although, like other Thoughtworkers, it hasn’t been updated in over a year. See Testing, Though and Observations.

Nathaniel Ritmeyer: Nat no longer works in Australia, he’s in London, but he has worked in Australia, and writes an excellent blog with lots of great Watir content: Nat on Testing.

Let me know if you feel I have missed anyone out!

Update: 19 July 2010

I knew, I’d miss a couple. Here they are:

Joel Deutscher: Joel is a Performance Test Consultant based in Sydney, Australia. He writes a blog called Headwired: An eye on application performance.

Craig Smith: Craig is a agilist & software developer based here in sunny Brisbane, but writes quite a few posts on his blog about testing and testing meetups. See CDS 43.

Please sponsor me to read and help over 18,000 Australians living with MS

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About Me

I am taking part in The Novel Challenge to raise funds for people affected by Multiple Sclerosis (MS).

My goal is to read 12 Jonathan Kellerman novels in 30 days. I bought these novels recently at the Lifeline Bookfest in Brisbane, another very worthy cause. I am hoping to raise $1000 for MS.

All donations over $2 are tax deductible, and since we’re coming up to tax time, there’s no excuse not to Donate.

About MS

MS is the most common disease of the central nervous system and affects more than 18,000 Australians.

Did you know?

  • The average age of diagnosis of MS is just 30 years
  • MS affects three times as many women as men
  • Since identification, MS has been the subject of intense, world-wide research but still its cause and cure remain elusive

MS Australia aims to minimise the impact of multiple sclerosis on all individuals affected by the disease, as well as their families, carers and the community, by offering a wide range of services, equipment and support. MS Australia’s goal is to assist everyone affected by MS to live life to their fullest potential and secure the care and support they need, until we ultimately find a cure.

Please Donate by visiting my page on The Novel Challenge: http://register.thenovelchallenge.org.au/The-Novel-Challenge/alisterscott and help MS Australia support all people affected by multiple sclerosis.

Update: for those interested in the 30 day timeframe:

First day of challenge: Sunday 16 May 2010
Last day of challenge: Monday 14 June 2010

Update: I have raised $650 so far. Thanks to those who have sponsored me. This puts me in 5th place currently. Let’s hope I can keep my position!

Update 30 June 2010:

I recently completed my Novel Challenge.

Whilst it took a bit longer than I expected, I am happy I did manage to finish, especially with the busyness I have seen lately in working in a financial services company at the end of a financial year.

I managed to raise $825 $875 for MS which is fantastic! A big thank you to everyone for your support.

It was challenging to read so many books by the one author, but it was an interesting exercise nonetheless. The big question is what was my favourite Jonathan Kellerman book? It would have to be ‘The Web’ (1996), mainly due to its very interesting setting on the fictitious Pacific Island of Aruk.

I enjoyed them all but his latest book ‘Deception’ was probably my least favourite as it was very similar to most of his earlier novels set in Los Angeles.

I recently bought a Kobo eBook reader so I am hoping to keep up my velocity in reading in a slightly more modern way.

Thanks again,

Alister

Upcoming agile testing meetup in Brisbane, Australia

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I just got this email from Thoughtworks, and have registered to attend. See you there if you’re in Brisbane.

You are invited to the launch meeting of the Brisbane chapter of the Agile Alliance Australia (AAA). Last year’s inaugural Agile Australia conference established the AAA and it is envisaged that local chapters will provide ongoing education and knowledge-sharing.

ThoughtWorks Global Testing Practice Lead Kristan Vingrys will be our guest speaker discussing the Changing Role of a Tester. Kristan has over 10 years experience in software testing encompassing a wide range of testing practices for both products and applications within a diverse range of industries. He has presented on agile testing and articles – including a chapter in the ThoughtWorks Anthology Book. He has been involved in solution delivery, coaching and mentoring teams with a focus on testing, agile processes and how the two compliment each other.

The Changing Role of a Tester

IT development is getting faster business now expects applications in months not years. Testing has to keep up and can not afford to be seen as a bottleneck. Traditional ways of testing no longer work with the rapid software development methodologies being used; there is no time to do big up-front test case design or multiple cycle test executions. Testers have to become more agile and embrace change while still providing quality information about the application being developed.

Testing on an agile project is different to a waterfall project; it is not just about doing waterfall in smaller iterations. Nor is it focused on finding as many defects as possible, instead the goal is to work as a team delivering quality working software that satisfies customer need. There are some new skills that testers will need to learn, but they do not need to throw away everything they already know. Changing the mindset about how, when and why of testing will help a tester adapt their existing skills to become an invaluable resource on any agile team.

When: 5:30pm, Thursday 13th May
Where: See the meetup site

After the discussion, we will go locally for drinks, food and networking for those interested, location TBA

Please register at the Brisbane Chapter meetup.com site: Brisbane Chapter – First Meeting

Look forward to seeing you there!

Update 19 July 2010:

Link to a great write up by Craig Smith is here, plus slides are here (pdf).

Watir.com

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I have spent a bit of time over the last few days setting up Watir.com, hosted here on WordPress.

We were originally aiming to host our own version of Confluence and JIRA and use Confluence to serve the Watir.com homepage, but this ended up being a lot more complicated and expensive than originally planned.

The great thing about WordPress is, although it was originally a blogging platform, its functionality also works as a very neat CMS. Whilst wordpress.com has some limitations over wordpress.org, we can live with these limitations for now as we have a free (as in beer) hosted site that the world can see.

Check it out.

watir.com