Many years ago, at a local user's group meeting, I was talking to the owner of a local consulting firm. My business card said "programmer", but I thought of myself as a tester. An older gentleman came over; he introduced himself as a tester, too.
I said "Great! What programming language do you write your tests in?"
He uncomfortably explained that he was a
tester, not a programmer, and walked away. My friend, the owner of the consulting company, gave me the knowing look that said everything -
this is the kind of incompetence we have to put up with.
Like I said, it was a lot of years ago.
Since that time, I've had the pleasure of learning a whole lot about where bugs come from and how they are found. I find a lot of my old ideas about test automation to be naive at best -- though they are remarkably common.
And, while I still find a place for automated checks of various kinds, I also find a role for the human, thinking, sapient tester. Over time, I came to take on that role myself, to write and speak and blog about it it, including right here.
Last Week, At The Client Site
It's a quiet week; most people are gone for the Christmas Holiday. I meet a programmer in the hallway, and make a bit of chit-chat. I tell him I am tester, and he asks me "So, do you automate tests with selenium or do mobile testing?"
I have to explain, awkwardly, that I am a tester - that I put my hands on the keyboard and type.
He gives me a certain, strange look.
Suddenly I realize that I have completed the circle.
This Blog
I've been talking about sapient testing for years, but for the past three, my best writing and biggest investment has been on the the STP Community blog. It's been a wonderful time, and we've made some real progress.
Except for an occasional post by Rich Hand, the blog has almost entirely been me -- and sometimes I feel a little bit like a lone voice, calling out in the wilderness. For those who don't know the story, the lone voice in the wilderness does not end well.
We have a entire new generation of testers coming up who want to take the conversation to the next level. It's been great to have me write, but I think it's time we gave someone else a chance.
So here is what is going to happen in 2013.
This blog is going to be become more of a
true community blog. My involvement will decrease, but not go away entirely. (Don't worry, I can't stop myself from writing. You can find my writing on my blog
Creative Chaos, on quality and performance testing at
NRGGlobal, on technology and careers at
ITKE, on Security at
Point2Security.com, and on web tech at
InternetEvolution - or follow me on
Google+ to see them all.)
But this isn't about me, not really. It is about you, or, perhaps, about your change to write for STP, because making this a community site means we, well, need a community. If you'd like to write for STP, you can leave comments on this post, or
contact the leadership at STP directly and make your pitch for the magazine or community blog.
Let's take this to the next level.
Together.