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 Greetings!
I hope you are having a great summer! It's often a
challenge to produce this newsletter every month, so this summer, I am
combining June and July newsletters into one issue. I have lots of cool
and interesting items to share, so I hope you take a few minutes and
read this issue.
We also have a new book to review this month, Agile Product Management With Scrum by Roman Pichler.
We have a lot of exciting things going on here at Rice Consulting
that will help grow your software testing success, such as new public courses for test automation and a new pricing model with substantial discounts for small team training. If there is anything I can
do for you, please let me know at
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
.
Is Software QA Dead?
By Randall Rice, CTAL
Is traditional Software Quality Assurance (SQA) dead? Or...does it just suffer from poor perception and bad practice? I hope it is the latter.
I
started thinking about this question after hearing a presentation
recently that highlighted the problems with traditional SQA. The more I
think about it, the more I believe we still need true SQA (not just
testing). If you don't know the difference, please read on.
QA and QC
First,
we must understand that true QA is not testing and it is not a verb.
So, to say "then we QA it" is like saying "then we configuration
management it."
SQA focuses on how
a process is performed and is the management of quality. SQA can
encompass metrics, process definition and improvement, testing,
lifecycle definition, and so forth. The SQA function may perform some
tests and reviews (quality control or "QC") but unless there is quality
management, the effort can easily become haphazard and uncontrolled.
Software
testing is QC. So are reviews and inspections. The key difference is
that the focus is the product to find any defects. SQA and QC must work
hand-in-hand to be effective.
SQA
is process assurance, that is, assurance that the process is being
performed as designed. QC is product assurance, or assurance that the
product meets specifications. So, both activities are needed.
Read the rest at: http://randallrice.blogspot.com/2010/06/is-software-qa-dead.html.
What's New From Rice Consulting
New Pricing Model for Small Team Training
I know it's a challenge to get a small team trained and certified.
In-house courses can be expensive and small teams drive down the
cost-effectiveness of in-house training. Public courses can be even
more expensive per person.
I'm excited to announce a new pricing model for in-house ISTQB Foundation and Advanced Level Certification that is almost at 50% discount off our normal in-house training rates! This offer is for teams of 10 people or less, and is cost-effective for teams of 5 to 10 people.
I,
Randy Rice, will be your trainer and you get the same high-quality
instruction and materials as in any other of our certification courses.
There are no catches, just great value. This is live, in-person
training at your location at an affordable price!
This new
pricing model includes the exam fees and qualification fees for ISTQB
Foundation and Advanced certification. This pricing is such a good
deal, that I can only provide the pricing directly to those who are
interested. To get a price proposal, just contact me with the number of people to be trained and certified, and your location.
I only have so many days available per month. So, if you want to get on my calendar, act fast!
If you are interested in other training courses, I will extend this offer to any course of 2 days or longer.
Coming to Kansas City and Dallas
I'm excited to announce I'm coming back to the Kansas City area, July 13 and 14, 2010 to present my Agile and Exploratory Testing workshop! Here's the details and how to register:
There's a special discount for KCQAA members. I hope to see you there!
I'm also excited to announce I'm coming to the
Dallas/Ft. Worth area, August 12th and 13th to present my newest course
- Practical Software Test Automation
workshop!
Here's the details and how to register:
Want a class like one of these in your city or at your company? Let me know!
Three e-Learning Courses on Sale for Two Weeks Only
I have reduced the price of three of my most popular e-learning courses by $100 until July 15. Until then, you can get:
- Gathering, Documenting and Testing User Requirements for $249 (Normally $349)
- Testing Service-Oriented Architecture for $299 (Normally $399)
- Software Test Management Quick-Start Course for $149 (Normally $249)
New Test Automation Class Debuts in Rome!
On June 16 and 17, I held the second presentation of my newest course, Practical Software Test Automation,
in Rome, Italy. The course went very well and thanks to all that
attended. This course is not based on any particular tool, but we use Macro Scheduler
and other free or affordable tools for the exercises. Thanks to
everyone who attended and made the workshop a success. The next
presentation is scheduled for August 12th and 13th in the Dallas/Ft.
Worth area.
If you are interesting in bringing this course to your company or city, just contact me at 405-691-8075.
Discounts for Federal, State and Local Government Customers!
We are on the GSA schedule so that Federal, State and Local
governmental agencies in the United States can now easily obtain our
services. These offerings include ISTQB Foundation and Advanced Level
Training. To find us, just go to http://www.gsaadvantage.gov and search for Rice Consulting.
Go Deeper in Your Software Testing Career by Pursuing ISTQB Advanced Level Certification.
Rice Consulting Services has teamed
with Grove Consultants (http://www.grove.co.uk) to provide an outstanding training experience
for advanced level certification.
The trainer for Rice
Consulting is Randall W. Rice, CTAL, with over 20 years software
testing training experience in major organizations worldwide. The
materials are licensed from Grove Consultants in the U.K. If you have
seen any conference tutorials or presentations by Grove Consultants,
you know the high quality and engaging nature of their presentations and materials.
The next courses, Advanced Core and Advanced Test Analyst is scheduled for July 26 - 30 of 2010. To see the course schedule, click here.
Want a Class in Your City?
If you have six or more people interested in a
particular topic, call me at 405-691-8075 and let me know. I'm happy to
bring a course to cities in the USA where there is interest.
Become a Fan and Win a Book
Hey, become one of my fans on Facebook! Congratulations to Gary Parker, the winner of the June drawing. He won a copy of The Project Manager's Guide to Software Engineering's Best Practices.
You can also follow me on Twitter. There are quite a few Randy Rices out there. My Twitter name is "rricetester".
Now is a Great Time to be Building Skills!
Are you being told to do more with less? Has it been awhile since you've had any training? If so, I offer three main
vehicles for building skills:
Live, in-person training with me as the trainer.
Pre-recorded e-learning with 12 months
access, even after you finish the course. We have 13 courses now in
e-learning format, including our ISTQB Foundation Level course.
Live, online training with me or an associate as the trainer. Very economical.
Resources of the Month
Each month, I highlight one or more sites, tools, books, etc. that can help you be more effective and efficient.
The Automated Software Testing Magazine
In this issue, I have an article on Free and Cheap Test tools.
Speaking of free test tools, my friend John Kelley put me on to this toolset:
http://www.testersdesk.com
I haven't tried this tool, yet, but plan to have a review in the next issue of this newsletter.
Spagoworld.org
Also, another resource is
Spago World where you will find some very interesting open source
projects for Business Intelligence, Quality Models, Open Source SOA
Middleware, and a J2EE Framework. Just visit www.spagoworld.org. Thanks to Davide Dalle Carbonare who is working on this effort and brought it to my attention while in Rome.
Minimal Essential Testing Strategy (METS) iPhone App By Greg Paskal
Several years ago, Greg
presented this approach at the Star East conference and I thought at
the time, "this is a great test design method, especially for light
approaches." Well, now Greg has developed an iPhone app for the method:
It's on my iPhone!
Version 12 of Macro Scheduler has been released.
A New Test Maturity Model - the TMMe
Tom Staab of Wind Ridge International, LLC has published the Test Maturity Model Enhanced (TMMe). According to Tom, "At the urging of several friends, I have decided to
finally document what has evolved into my own "real world" testing
maturity model in a white paper. It is called the Testing Maturity
Model EnhancedTM (TMMe)." The paper is posted at:
Tom would like to invite people to download the
paper and give him comments, both positive and negative. He feels that everything can
be improved and his goal is to produce something that people can use to
improve their testing process.
Book Review - Agile Product Management With Scrum by Roman Pichler
 A key role, perhaps the
key role, in agile software development is that of the product manager.
However, little has been published on how to effectively perform the
product manager role in the agile project context.
This
book fills that gap with a concise tour through agile project tasks
including envisioning the product, working with the product backlog,
planning the release, and collaborating in the sprint meetings.
In addition, the role of product manager is fully described and a
chapter is devoted to transitioning to the product management role.
In agile projects,
the project management role is typically shared among the various team
members, so the product manager is the inward-facing person responsible
for feature description, prioritization and collaboration with
developers.
Something I found interesting was the mention and application of Deming's Plan-Do-Check-Act cycle in agile projects.
I enjoyed this book
and found it clear, practical and think it would be a great resource to
anyone in the product manager role on an agile team, or anyone aspiring
to that role.
Randy Rice
Disclosure of Material Connection: I
received one or more of the products or services mentioned above for
free in the hope that I would mention it on my blog. Regardless, I only
recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be
good for my readers. Some of the links in the
post above are "affiliate links." This means if you click on the link
and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission.
I am disclosing this in
accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."
Quote of the Month
"The product owner might be tempted to release more
functionality by sacrificing quality. After all, it could have been a
common way of achieving faster progress in the past. Cut a few corners
here and there, do a little less testing, and delay creating some
documentation. The problem is that compromising quality leaves teams
with a product that is more difficult and expensive to maintain and
extend. Yes, the team gets more done now. But it will get less done in
a few months' time."
Roman Pichler in Agile Product Management With Scrum
Rice Consulting Services, Inc.
P.O. Box 892003
Oklahoma City, OK 73189
405-691-8075 |
In
July, I will hold a drawing and give away a copy of The Project
Manager's Guide to Software Engineering's Best Practices (A $79 value)
to one person from my fan list on Facebook. You can find Rice
Consulting at 
