GTAC!

By James A. Whittaker

Yes I know, I've been quiet. Seriously heads down shipping products and developing what I think are some pretty cool new testing ideas and tools. Perhaps GTAC will be the chance for you to judge that for yourselves. Perhaps it will be worth the wait.

I hope I am invited to speak at GTAC. (Is this an appropriate forum for such lobbying? Should I open it up to a vote on whether I should or should not be there? I am happy not going as India is a long trip, but this is GTAC we are talking about!) There are a number of things that will be ready to either debut or, if I am lucky, open source by then.

Would you like to see a Chrome extension to display bug, test case, coverage and other information as an overlay on top of your web app UI? Imagine being able to see bugs at their exact location on the UI, report bugs by simply right-clicking the errant part of the web page, see footprints where test cases (automated and manual and across multiple testers) have been and lots more useful information. Are you tired of querying databases to see these things and just want your test data as a cellophane wrapper around your web app UI? If you were at STAR this week, you got a preview. But that presentation is already out of date.

Would you like to be able to write automated test cases that can control your web app, your browser and the operating system they are running on? Well if that stack contains Chrome and Chrome OS, you can do it with a new web test framework we are developing. Would you like to do all of this with Java Script? Sound like magic? Well I think the Web Test Framework is appropriately named: WTF.

Would you like to see a record and playback facility that records directly to Java Script and is actually built-in to your browser? A R/P tool that handles AJAX and won't get confused by self-updating web pages? That stores recordings directly into a test case management system that is accessible to the world?

Would you like to hear about the extensive library of testing tours we have developed and how our manual testing strategy across the web-app/Chrome/Chrome-OS stack is shaping up?

These are some of the things that have kept me from this blog. Forgive me. I will report on them here and, with a little pressure directed toward Sujay The Decider perhaps demo them at GTAC.

Permalink | Links to this post | 3 comments  

Google Test Automation Conference 2010 - Hyderabad, India

Thanks for all the enquiries about this year's GTAC event. We have been busy planning and are now ready to share the details. GTAC 2010 will be hosted by Google office in Hyderabad, India on October 28th & 29th, 2010.

As in previous years, the focus of the conference will be on solving software engineering challenges using tools and automation. This year the conference theme is "Test to Testability". With this theme our goal is to look beyond the challenges faced during testing and the complex products that are being developed today. We also want to highlight methodologies and tools that can be used to build testability into our products and to look at how developer tools can be a means towards effective and efficient testing. GTAC 2010 hopes to bring together a group that shares lessons learned and practical experiences regarding testing web apps, services, and systems.

One of the strengths of the conference is that it's driven by a peer group and vocal participation. As in previous years, GTAC is an invitation only conference to share great ideas and to have your thoughts challenged and refined. When you apply, we will be asking you to share with us what ideas and insights you'll be bringing to the conference and how these can further the discussion. The application process for attending will be opening in mid-May 2010.

Today we are also launching the official site for this event and will be updating it and this blog with relevant information in the coming weeks. The next announcement will be a call for attendance and proposals, so do watch these spaces.

Please send suggestions, questions and recommendations to: gtac-2010@google.com or post your comments here to this blog.

Looking forward to having a great set of participants and presenters to make this a fun and valuable learning event!

Sujay Sahni on behalf of the GTAC 2010 Committees

Permalink | Links to this post | 7 comments  

Google's Innovation Factory (and how testing adapts)

Now that ICST 2010 has concluded, I'm going ahead and posting the keynote paper and the slides. Enjoy!

Patrick Copeland

Let me know if you have comments or questions.

Here's a link to the paper. They are semi-complementary.

Permalink | Links to this post | 9 comments