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Tester at the Table and the Tester in my Head (...

Tester at the Table and the Tester in my Head (Abstractions 2019)

Talk as given at Abstractions in Pittsburgh August 2019

Do you want to make an impact? Do you want your work to reach people far and wide? Do you know which of your responsibilities will have this far-reaching impact?

Through 15 years of software development, Adrian P. Dunston has had opportunities to work with dedicated and talented QA professionals. And now he has a little tester in his head.

As the tester at the table, you have an opportunity to set high standards of quality not only in products and processes but in the developers you work with. And by building quality developers, your impact can reach every project and every other developer they work with thereafter. At the very least, you can make life easier on the next poor sap that gets to QA their code.

So how does one go beyond improving products and start improving teams? How do you build up the little testers in their heads? Based on extensive reading and years of working with and without the support of QA professionals, Adrian will show you:

* How to mold quality-minded developers
* How to use repetition and story to get your ideas stuck in their heads
* How to instill habits they can use and take with them
* And why exposure to good QA person can be invaluable to a young developer

Adrian Dunston

August 21, 2019
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Transcript

  1. @bitcapulet @bitcapulet 13 Computer Science is no more about computers

    than astronomy is about telescopes. - Edsger Dijkstra
  2. @bitcapulet @bitcapulet 22 Software quality is not about lack of

    bugs. Quality software is about making users into badasses. -Kathy Sierra
  3. @bitcapulet @bitcapulet 56 Quality is the hidden ingredient in all

    of our products. But it’s consumed just like everything else. QA professional Mike Baldwin says...
  4. @bitcapulet @bitcapulet 62 QA Professionals • Help create software •

    Keep the mental model of the product • Advocate for users
  5. @bitcapulet @bitcapulet 63 QA Professionals • Help create software •

    Keep the mental model of the product • Advocate for users • Act as morale centers
  6. @bitcapulet @bitcapulet 64 QA professional Jenny Bramble says... Team morale

    seems to directly correlate with software quality.
  7. @bitcapulet @bitcapulet 87 Listen on purpose • Give them space

    to talk. • Ask them to weigh in. • Accept their influence.
  8. @bitcapulet @bitcapulet 116 Nobody will buy half the store. But

    if they do, you'll want your register working.
  9. @bitcapulet @bitcapulet • Prove it. • How do we know

    it's working? • Might be a load-bearing bug. • That's why we have checklists • If it were broken in production, how would we know? • You support me, and I keep you safe. • You explain, I decide. • Don't feed the test-matrix • It's OUR job to make quality software 118
  10. @bitcapulet @bitcapulet 136 First: QA lost an argument about risk…

    Then: We all had to stay late when the app exploded.
  11. @bitcapulet @bitcapulet First: I told QA, "works on my machine"...

    Then: She asked me where my environment was different, and I found the bug. 139
  12. @bitcapulet @bitcapulet 210 walk the walk • Respect property •

    Remove obstacles • Deal/help with emotions
  13. @bitcapulet @bitcapulet 211 1. Listen to QA Spread a quality

    mindset 2. Amplify QA's voice 3. walk the walk
  14. @bitcapulet @bitcapulet 217 Dev supports QA, and QA keeps Dev

    safe. Dev: 1. Stick up for QA 2. Do fit and finish
  15. @bitcapulet @bitcapulet 219 Dev supports QA, and QA keeps Dev

    safe. QA: 1. Catch the nasty bugs 2. Contextualize bugs
  16. @bitcapulet @bitcapulet 221 1. Listen to QA Spread a quality

    mindset 2. Amplify QA's voice 3. walk the walk 4. Make a deal