notes and rants
My new blog is at https://www.angryweasel.com/blog
An inverse to Parkinson’s Law?
I asked in a previous post if Parkinson’s law (Work expands to fill the time available) also worked...
Author: Alan Page Date: 11/24/2008
Some Trip Statistics
I'm on my way home, and thought I'd share some statistics from my trip to Denmark Nights away from...
Author: Alan Page Date: 11/21/2008
A Special Company
I spent a few hours on the last day of my trip visiting Specialisterne, and meeting with the founder...
Author: Alan Page Date: 11/21/2008
Travel Notes - part 2
I travel frequently for work, but I rarely have much time to check out much more than restaurants....
Author: Alan Page Date: 11/16/2008
A letter to installation programs
Dear Installation App, I'm sure you are happy that I invited you for a visit. I know that the...
Author: Alan Page Date: 11/16/2008
Travel Notes
Travel notes below, but first, I have a question for you. Parkinson's law states that "work...
Author: Alan Page Date: 11/14/2008
Travel time again
If you’ve been paying attention, you would have noticed that I haven’t been travelling as much...
Author: Alan Page Date: 11/07/2008
Computer Music and Testing?
After my last post on music, a reader emailed me and asked me about computers and music. They drew...
Author: Alan Page Date: 11/05/2008
Jamming on Testing
Over the last 15 years, on far too many occasions to count, I've explained to various people how...
Author: Alan Page Date: 11/01/2008
Nostalgia
Yesterday, I visited my old college campus for a day long meeting (I recently joined the alumni...
Author: Alan Page Date: 10/30/2008
More on Finding the Answer
One of my readers (I'm so happy people actually read this thing) asked: Could you share some tips on...
Author: Alan Page Date: 10/22/2008
Finding the Answer
For some reason, I’m expected to know things. The truth is that I don’t know that much – but I am...
Author: Alan Page Date: 10/13/2008
Why computer science knowledge helps testers: Example #1
There are many people who think Microsoft (and other companies, for that matter) hire programmers to...
Author: Alan Page Date: 09/30/2008
A layer below the GUI
I wanted to expand on the main point of my last post – specifically on what a “layer below the GUI”...
Author: Alan Page Date: 09/20/2008
GUI schmooey
I answered a few questions this week about automating GUI tests. One question was about...
Author: Alan Page Date: 09/18/2008
Random Notes
I went through my drafts folder to pick a post to publish tonight, but none seemed appropriate, so...
Author: Alan Page Date: 09/15/2008
Creating a Culture of Quality
The 11th (and final) question in the Test Test asks if the organization has a culture of quality....
Author: Alan Page Date: 09/09/2008
The value of Manual testing (or…The value of Automated testing)
I’m skipping #8 for a minute so I can get to #9. I hope we all agree that it’s silly to take a...
Author: Alan Page Date: 09/04/2008
Staying organized
Test #7 of the Test Test asks if testers use test case management and source control tools. The only...
Author: Alan Page Date: 09/02/2008
Oh, Give me a Home...
I remember visiting a company once where the testers were lined up at desks along the wall...in a...
Author: Alan Page Date: 08/28/2008
Value and Trust
Test #5 of the Test Test asks if the development team values the test team. Catherine pointed out...
Author: Alan Page Date: 08/25/2008
Reasonable Career Paths for Testers
I once saw a presentation at a conference with the same title as this post (or close – I didn’t...
Author: Alan Page Date: 08/22/2008
A place for testers
Not a physical place - but an organizational place. Test #3 of the Test Test says that the test...
Author: Alan Page Date: 08/18/2008
Schedules
More tips on how to go from 1-11 on the Test Test. Test #2 on the Test is "The test team owns...
Author: Alan Page Date: 08/14/2008
Microsoft - Our Testers go to 11!
(thanks to my colleague, John, for the Spinal Tap match - it's perfect even if not every test team...
Author: Alan Page Date: 08/07/2008
Insights from the Test Test
Every once in a while, I write a post that gets a comment - my last post (the Test Test) had half a...
Author: Alan Page Date: 08/05/2008
The Test Test
I am always frustrated and somewhat sad when I hear testers whine or complain that they are not...
Author: Alan Page Date: 07/31/2008
Is it that hard?
I hate "meetings" where everyone has their head buried in a laptop. I prefer to...
Author: Alan Page Date: 07/30/2008
Testing Problems (with pairs)
I'm teaching in Vancouver, BC this week (incidentally, I think this is the first time I've taught a...
Author: Alan Page Date: 07/24/2008
JW on Testing
James Whittaker (author of the "How to break software" series) is now blogging. And to top...
Author: Alan Page Date: 07/22/2008
Am I a robot?
This post comes from the “I had to share, but didn’t know who to share with” category. I’m neck deep...
Author: Alan Page Date: 07/16/2008
Fear of Measurement followup
A few weeks ago, in this post, I asked the following question: Consider the following metric, then...
Author: Alan Page Date: 07/15/2008
Another perspective on the experience
What's more important, security, or quality? Of course, the answer depends entirely on context. Or,...
Author: Alan Page Date: 07/09/2008
Waterfall, waterfall
I feel a little sorry for the waterfall model. Poor waterfall gets a lot of grief from the agilists...
Author: Alan Page Date: 07/05/2008
Fear of Measurement
Every time Shrini posts something, I want to write a whole post just to comment. His latest post is...
Author: Alan Page Date: 06/26/2008
"Experience" and the non-expert
I was thinking about my last few posts this week and I recalled a story that may help in my point....
Author: Alan Page Date: 06/20/2008
“Experience Quality” and the senior tester
I’ve spent some time over the last few weeks investigating the role of test and the “experience” of...
Author: Alan Page Date: 06/15/2008
Quality and the Experience
I'm beating a dead horse here (or at least beating an old post), but I have a story to share about...
Author: Alan Page Date: 06/09/2008
Help Microsoft User Research
I thought this might be interesting for some of you. My editorial comments are in maroon. Software...
Author: Alan Page Date: 06/06/2008
Testing: Functionality vs. Experience
I spent some time last night getting caught up on my test blog reading; and this morning, I'm...
Author: Alan Page Date: 06/02/2008
Test to Developer ratios - you're probably doing it wrong
I haven't actually posted about testing for a while, so I thought I'd pull up something from the...
Author: Alan Page Date: 05/24/2008
Apparently, I have a double
I finally received my feedback from the futuretest conference. When I get feedback from a talk or...
Author: Alan Page Date: 05/15/2008