Comments on: testing baton http://skilledtests.com/blog/2007/04/27/testing-baton/ TO TELL STORIES Wed, 07 Jan 2009 02:58:17 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.1 By: Der tester http://skilledtests.com/blog/2007/04/27/testing-baton/#comment-45 Der tester http://skilledtests.com/blog/2007/04/27/testing-baton/#comment-45 <strong>Info: this comment was written originally in German and translated afterwards.</strong> [...]Without philosophizing about - if spring has already come or was jumped over - but today a baton flew to me. The baton which I am going to take soon, came from Erkan YILMAZ, a software tester, a person asking questions and perhaps one time contact point of all testers. Furthermore the baton did not go only to me, it went also to some other bloggers, who do not only call themselves "tester", they also have an idea about it, QA people and others. My blog on the other hand is called "Only a test - and still more" (blogging without concept or: this blog is not serious about itself) and has even a testing category [...] Info: this comment was written originally in German and translated afterwards.

[…]Without philosophizing about - if spring has already come or was jumped over - but today a baton flew to me. The baton which I am going to take soon, came from Erkan YILMAZ, a software tester, a person asking questions and perhaps one time contact point of all testers. Furthermore the baton did not go only to me, it went also to some other bloggers, who do not only call themselves “tester”, they also have an idea about it, QA people and others.

My blog on the other hand is called “Only a test - and still more” (blogging without concept or: this blog is not serious about itself) and has even a testing category […]

]]> By: Ben Simo http://skilledtests.com/blog/2007/04/27/testing-baton/#comment-46 Ben Simo http://skilledtests.com/blog/2007/04/27/testing-baton/#comment-46 > 1. Could you tell something about your first tests ? My first memory of tests are memories of pain. Pain is the body's way of telling us "don't do that". I remember testing a hot stove and discovering pain. I remember testing my parent's instruction and discovering pain. :) I remember testing gravity. Testing dirt. Testing balls. Children test things all the time. My first software testing experience that I remember occured when my father bought our first computer -- when I was 14. I did lots of testing with that computer. I tried writing code and tested that. I learned -- after losing a program I spent an entire day entering -- that floppy disks needed to be formatted before data could be saved on them. > 2. What would you like to highlight as an important thing of testing - from your personal experiences ? I too believe that play (that's how children test) and exploration are necessary for good testing. > 3. Why is testing not trivial ? In reference to software: even the most simple software can be complex. If it weren't, we wouldn't ask a computer to do it for us. Even simple programs often have to handle unlimited data possibilities. > 4. What do you do after testing at work ? I test my family. :) I study testing. I read. I blog. I seek out ways to improve testing. And, I'm a NASCAR fan. I find many parallels in software performance testing and the race teams' search for the right setup. > 5. How do you think testing will evolve in the next 13 years ? I hope that skilled testing improves. However, I have doubts. (That's the critical thinking pessimist in me.) I am alarmed at the largeness of the factory school view that test execution should be outsourced to the lowest bidder. I also have hope that if enough of us speak out, the tides will change. > 6. Did you hear my voice ? Yes. Ben Simo http://QualityFrog.com <em>[Erkan tells: Ben, thank you very much for your answer. Let me comment on some: >"to the lowest bidder." Well, quality has always a price. Sooner or later someone has to pay (for) this. I hope it is not the customer. >"I also have hope that if enough of us speak out, the tides will change." I am sure, that speaking helps (at least for us, so that we can let it out from our souls and share this with others) >"I find many parallels in software performance testing and the race teams’ search for the right setup." Perhaps you could blog about this? Would love to read this one. >"pain": True, pain is often involved when we test in these times - we are good at testing, but then do not think much of the consequences of the tests. Unfortunately we do not only might harm ourselves. We might harm the ones who are close to us (e.g. our parents who perhaps get a heart attack, when we test gravity). Two examples, which involve my brothers: - my two brothers were fighting and one was then running through the appartment and the other one thought of an interesting test: he threw a knitting needle after the running. And this needle sticked in the neck of the running. I still wonder until today, how he survived this. - I also remember that I once hold my brother on the air with my feet (me lying on the floor). Well, I wanted to test, if I can throw him with the feet in the air and catch him with the feet. Well, I could - but I did not think that it could hurt him. And I never forget the cry and what everything I did to calm him again (also with the fear, that my parents could hear this). Well, when you grow up with brothers, there is always some rough exploring.] </em> > 1. Could you tell something about your first tests ?

My first memory of tests are memories of pain. Pain is the body’s way of telling us “don’t do that”. I remember testing a hot stove and discovering pain. I remember testing my parent’s instruction and discovering pain. :) I remember testing gravity. Testing dirt. Testing balls. Children test things all the time.

My first software testing experience that I remember occured when my father bought our first computer — when I was 14. I did lots of testing with that computer. I tried writing code and tested that. I learned — after losing a program I spent an entire day entering — that floppy disks needed to be formatted before data could be saved on them.

> 2. What would you like to highlight as an important thing of testing - from your personal experiences ?

I too believe that play (that’s how children test) and exploration are necessary for good testing.

> 3. Why is testing not trivial ?

In reference to software: even the most simple software can be complex. If it weren’t, we wouldn’t ask a computer to do it for us. Even simple programs often have to handle unlimited data possibilities.

> 4. What do you do after testing at work ?

I test my family. :) I study testing. I read. I blog. I seek out ways to improve testing. And, I’m a NASCAR fan. I find many parallels in software performance testing and the race teams’ search for the right setup.

> 5. How do you think testing will evolve in the next 13 years ?

I hope that skilled testing improves. However, I have doubts. (That’s the critical thinking pessimist in me.) I am alarmed at the largeness of the factory school view that test execution should be outsourced to the lowest bidder. I also have hope that if enough of us speak out, the tides will change.

> 6. Did you hear my voice ?

Yes.

Ben Simo
http://QualityFrog.com

[Erkan tells:
Ben, thank you very much for your answer. Let me comment on some:

>”to the lowest bidder.”
Well, quality has always a price. Sooner or later someone has to pay (for) this. I hope it is not the customer.

>”I also have hope that if enough of us speak out, the tides will change.”
I am sure, that speaking helps (at least for us, so that we can let it out from our souls and share this with others)

>”I find many parallels in software performance testing and the race teams’ search for the right setup.”
Perhaps you could blog about this? Would love to read this one.

>”pain”:
True, pain is often involved when we test in these times - we are good at testing, but then do not think much of the consequences of the tests. Unfortunately we do not only might harm ourselves. We might harm the ones who are close to us (e.g. our parents who perhaps get a heart attack, when we test gravity).
Two examples, which involve my brothers:
- my two brothers were fighting and one was then running through the appartment and the other one thought of an interesting test: he threw a knitting needle after the running. And this needle sticked in the neck of the running. I still wonder until today, how he survived this.
- I also remember that I once hold my brother on the air with my feet (me lying on the floor). Well, I wanted to test, if I can throw him with the feet in the air and catch him with the feet. Well, I could - but I did not think that it could hurt him. And I never forget the cry and what everything I did to calm him again (also with the fear, that my parents could hear this).

Well, when you grow up with brothers, there is always some rough exploring.]

]]> By: HMK's Spurious Thoughts http://skilledtests.com/blog/2007/04/27/testing-baton/#comment-49 HMK's Spurious Thoughts http://skilledtests.com/blog/2007/04/27/testing-baton/#comment-49 <strong>I'm not a tester...</strong> Erkan Yilmaz tagged me with a few questions regarding testing. However, I'm not a tester, I just happen to be interested in some areas of testing, e.g. unit testing & test-first-coding. Could you tell something about your first tests? I...... I’m not a tester…

Erkan Yilmaz tagged me with a few questions regarding testing. However, I’m not a tester, I just happen to be interested in some areas of testing, e.g. unit testing & test-first-coding. Could you tell something about your first tests? I……

]]> By: Christian Guenzl http://skilledtests.com/blog/2007/04/27/testing-baton/#comment-67 Christian Guenzl http://skilledtests.com/blog/2007/04/27/testing-baton/#comment-67 A pretty while ago, Erkan Yilmaz threw a baton at me and I would like to answer this finally now. [...] A pretty while ago, Erkan Yilmaz threw a baton at me and I would like to answer this finally now. […]

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