Workshops

W1. Introduction to Performance Testing and Capacity Planning

Goranka Bjedov, Facebook

Introduction to performance testing tools, with a focus on developing working scripts in JMeter. We will also cover some basic and popular open source performance tools, some monitoring tools (focused on Unix systems) and the basics of performance testing process. This is a basic introductory course, thus no performance debugging will be included. However, the attendees will learn how to set up a performance testing process in their own environments.

When the workshop is completed, the attendees will be able to:

1. Write a simple web service testing script in JMeter
2. Understand and use performance monitoring tools
3. Analyze monitoring and performance testing results
4. Understand available open-source tools and pros/cons of most popular ones
5. Set up a performance testing process

Target Audience: Intermediate

View Goranka Bjedov Bio

W2. Just In Time Testing

Rob Sabourin, AmiBug.Com, Inc.

Turbulent development projects experience almost daily requirement changes, user interface modifications, and the continual integration of new functions, features, and technologies. Keep your testing efforts on track while reacting to changing priorities, technologies, and user needs. This interactive workshop offers a unique set of tools to help you cope with, and perhaps even flourish in what may seem to be a totally chaotic environment. Practice dynamic test planning, test idea development and test triage.

Get ready for almost anything they can throw at you. Learn to identify, organize, and prioritize your testing “ideas”. Adapt the testing focus as priorities change. Decide on purpose what not to test — not just because the clock ran out! Just-In-Time Testing (JIT) approaches are successfully applied to many types of software projects — commercial off-the-shelf applications, agile and iterative development environments, mission-critical business systems, and just about any Web application. Real examples demonstrate how JIT either replaces or complements more traditional approaches.

Examples are drawn from insurance, banking, telecommunications, medical, and other industries. The tutorial is packed with interactive exercises in which students work together in small groups to apply JIT concepts.

Just In Time Testing received the EUROSTAR BEST TUTORIAL award in 2010.

When the workshop is completed, the attendees will be able to:

1. Generate many different types of great testing ideas
2. Triage testing and do dynamic test planning
3. Implement effective decision making
4. Do session based exploratory testing
5. Work with minimal up front documentation

Target Audience: Anyone who works in fast-paced development environments, including test engineers, test managers, developers, QA engineers, and all software managers.

View Rob Sabourin’s Bio

W3. Test Framing: Constructing Tests and Telling the Testing Story

Michael Bolton, developsense.com

To test is to compose, edit, narrate, and justify two stories. One is a story about the product–what it does, how it does it, how it works, and how it might not work–in ways that matter to your clients. The other is a story about your testing–how you came to know and understand the product story. The testing story comprises several crucial elements–how you designed your tests; how you configured, operated, observed and evaluated the product; what you haven’t tested yet or won’t test at all; why what you did was good enough and what you haven’t done isn’t so important. Of course, the story must be a true account of the testing work. To build the tests and the story expertly requires a skill that we call test framing.

In this workshop, we’ll discover, discuss, and practice aspects of test framing–designing tests, evaluating the results, telling the testing story, and making the connection between the testing mission and the test performed, in an unbroken chain of narration, logic, and justification of cost versus value.

When the workshop is completed, the attendees will be able to:

1. Learn test framing’s role in fulfilling the testing mission and explaining testing to our clients.
2. Identify the elements of test framing.
3. Practice constructing and describing the chain of logic that structures and informs a test.
4. Use test framing to debrief and coach new testers

Target Audience: Intermediate

View Michael Bolton’s Bio

W4. Agile Team Flow

Selena Delesie, Delesie Solutions Inc.

These days, it’s hip to be Agile. Companies who want to be industry leaders are adopting Agile as their improved software development lifecycle. Or are they? While many companies are fully committed to adopting Agile, some are adopting it in name only. Some Agile teams flourish, while others can barely move ahead. As a tester, you may be struggling to fit into an Agile team, or perhaps you discovered that Agile isn’t working well and you have mini-Waterfalls instead. Maybe you are interested in learning how great Agile teams work.

You are invited to come learn about agile project delivery, a tester’s role, and how high-performing agile teams flow. In this interactive tutorial we will experience what it is like to work on agile teams, both good and bad, and discover what it takes to become a part of a strong Agile team. Whether you are curious about Agile, or are working in an Agile organization, you will leave with valuable insights and practical techniques you can readily apply at work.

When the workshop is completed, the attendees will be able to:

1. Understand the different Agile frameworks and the benefits and considerations in using each of them.
2. Shift into the Agile Mindset, and learn the importance of adopting this different way of thinking and working in order to be successful as an individual, a team, and a company.
3. Discover the rhythm of high-performing Agile teams: How they think, how they work, how they act.
4. The role of a tester on an Agile team, and the importance of creative and critical thought processes.

Target Audience: This workshop is suitable for all audiences.

Selena Delesie is a consulting software tester and agile coach, and the owner of Delesie Solutions Inc. Selena has been managing and coaching on software, testing, and agile practices for a range of leading-edge technologies for 10 years. She facilitates the evolution of good teams and organizations into great ones using individualized and team-based coaching and interactive training experiences. Selena is an active speaker, participant, and leader in numerous industry associations and conferences. Links to her published works, blog, and contact information can be found at DelesieSolutions.com.

W5. Better Thinking Frameworks for Better Software

Julian Harty, eBay

For (software) engineers, thinking needs to be combined with practice. At times, many of us have stopped actively thinking about our work or ways we can improve that work, and our practice may have drifted into mediocrity. This workshop will help reboot and reinvigorate your thinking to help you improve the quality of the software you’re delivering.

We will experiment with various thinking concepts and techniques (e.g. the notion of “Six Thinking Hats”) throughout the workshop. We can even iterate and refine our thinking so we can start making progress quickly (rather than waiting for ‘perfection’) and improve our results (rather than being satisfied with the first, apparently acceptable, ‘solution’).

This work is based on a combination of my work and ongoing research in thinking techniques. Some of the work has been established over the years at companies large (such as Google and eBay) and small. Friends and colleagues have contributed ideas and feedback and helped me to improve so I can help you too.

When the workshop is completed, the attendees will be able to:

1. Practical thinking techniques that help you deliver better quality software
2. Fresh perspectives to get your thinking out of a rut
3. Ways to make effective, useful progress, to get unstuck

Target Audience: Advanced.

Julian Harty has been working in hi-tech for organizations since 1980 and in computing since the late 1980’s in a range of technical, leadership and business roles. He’s currently ‘Tester At Large’ for eBay where he’s helping the organization improve how software is created, developed and tested.

He’s passionate about finding ways to adapt technology to help users achieve what they want to do, and has particular interests in mobile devices and accessibility. Over the years he’s published, presented and shared material, ideas, and open source internationally at hundreds of conferences and events.

W6. Getting the Most From Your Automated Tests

Douglas Hoffman, Software Quality Methods, LLC.

When most managers think of automated tests they picture automating what the manual testers do in running the tests. Sometimes this is what we desire, but it isn’t the most powerful way to use test automation. This tutorial is about extending your reach to do testing that cannot be done manually. Few organizations are working beyond the automated execution of manual tests: monitoring program activities not observable by humans, evaluating massive volumes of data, or exploring ever-changing areas of the program. This tutorial covers all of these areas with a focus on Exploratory Test Automation (ETA).

ETA is a testing approach that uses the power of the computer to look for bugs that functional testing misses. Unlike regression tests that do the same thing each time they are run, exploratory tests do something different each time. Through the power of the computer, many of these tests can run and check millions or billions of functions – numbers unthinkable with manual tests, automated scripts, or even table-driven automation. These techniques go after bugs that are virtually impossible to expose or isolate in manual testing.

One of the challenges of ETA is the extent to which sophisticated testing relies on a deeper knowledge of the application under test. Designing test programs that explore for new kinds of bugs is difficult and can be time consuming, so it is important to understand the program’s behavior and ask questions that matter. Designing oracles to identify suspicious or erroneous program behavior is also critical for ETA.

When the workshop is completed, the attendees will be able to:

1. Gain insight into applications of ETA
2. Analyze testing context to identify opportunities for ETA
3. Apply different automation strategies and oracles for ETA

Target Audience: Intermediate

Douglas Hoffman has been building test automation frameworks, teaching software testing, software engineering, and quality assurance for over 20 years. He does management consulting in strategic and tactical planning for quality software across varied applications and industries. The President of the Association for Software Testing (AST) and a Fellow of the ASQ (American Society for Quality), he holds degrees including MBA, MSEE, and BACS. He holds certificates from ASQ in Software Quality Engineering and as a Manager of Quality/Organizational Excellence. Douglas is a founding member, past Chair, and current Treasurer of SSQA (Silicon Valley Software Quality Association), past Chair of the Silicon Valley Section of ASQ, a founding member for AST, and a Senior Member of ACM and IEEE. He has spoken at dozens of conferences and has been a leader for several national and international conferences on software quality.