Michael Larsen, Sidereel.com
For many testers, the steps taken to learn and grow our craft are often ad-hoc and random. We learn from books, we ask questions and receive answers on online forums and web sites, we attend conferences and confer with peers, and we may talk to fellow testers at work. But what if those resources are not enough?
What if we had an organization that testers could turn to, where they could, practice the craft of testing, and learn from mentors from all over the world? What if such a group would tackle interesting problems and encourage both novices and experienced testers to participate? What if I said such a group was available completely free of cost to participants? Sound like fantasy? It’s not; it’s happening here and now. The group that does this is called “Weekend Testing”. While the concept of Weekend Testing has been around for a few years, the power is in the utilization of the methods and principles, not the name or even the people behind it.
The paper explains the methods that we use in Weekend Testing, and how you can participate in sessions that Weekend Testing chapters arrange. More important, even if you never participate in an official Weekend Testing session, you can apply the concepts and methods to your group or organization. I will explain how to facilitate a Weekend Testing Session, and share some lessons learned from dozens of Weekend Testing sessions over the past couple of years. Additionally, I will show you how to take these same ideas and use them with your own organizations.
Michael Larsen, 2011 Technical Paper, Abstract, Paper
