Overview
In this screencast I walk you through doing basic browser setup and automation using a free technology stack: Visual Studio 2010 Express, the WebAii Testing Framework from Telerik, C#, and MbUnit/Gallio. Why this stack you ask? Well, what I'm showing you is a FREE, non-trial, stepping stone to help you do a proof a concept with some leading edge tools in .NET without forking out the money.

One thing that we struggle with in our department is helping those who are interested in doing automation explore the possibility while aligning with technologies the development team is using. The problem is the initial cost of Microsoft's Visual Studio and Telerik's WebUi Test Studio (which uses the WebAii API) is far to much for somebody that is just tinkering (greater than $5000). This technology stack enables you to tinker, but keep in mind you will be missing out on a LOT of features and productivity enablers that come with the product that you pay for. For example with WebUi Test Studio Developer Edition you can get Visual Studio integration which gives recording functionality (a huge productivity enabler) and with Visual Studio Pro the ability to use WebUI project templates, advanced debugging, etc. Ideally, once you've proven out your POC for management you would be able to solicit for the funds for the full product, which in turn would open up another world of collaboration and productivity.

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The Software Testing Club has done it again! Their quarterly "print", has been redone and now we have "The Testing Planet" as a newspaper! I just got mine in the mail the other day, and I have to say it's pretty dang unique, informative and fun. You too can buy your own Printed Copy, but if you can't find it within yourself to go old school and read the printed paper, you can download it for free here. You should probably buy a copy for safe keeping though, because it contains two of the worlds best QA comics: Cartoon Tester and Do Loop Until 0. Which makes the paper INVALUABLE!

Go Daddy's Hosting R&D department is looking to hire a Software Automation Engineer/SDET. Check out the job posting here. This is an awesome opportunity my QA friend. Let me tell you why:

1. You'll be working with me! Uhmm, why so quiet?. not impressed? Never mind I said that then. How about you'll be working at the same company as Danica Patrick then?
2. You'll be working with cutting edge technology.
3. Our process is agile (we practice Kanban).
4. We work on "cloud computing" products.
5. The opportunity to expand your test and development skills is huge.
6. The team is tight knit, super smart, we work hard, and yet have fun.
7. The team is passionate about our products.
8. As an Automation Engineer you aren't trapped into using one set of test tools or a language. We use what works best and makes sense for the situation.
9. You'll be in the position to mentor other engineers in the art of automation.
10. You'll be surrounded by other Automation Engineers which gives you the opportunity to collaborate with equally minded people.
11. Oh yeah, and Go Daddy in general is awesome place to work, check out the Go Daddy careers page for more info.

You know you want to! Apply here.

Fellow tester and cartoonist Andy Glover showed up on the SQA testing cartoon scene earlier this year with his comic strip Cartoon Tester. Andy does a great job in recognizing, mocking, and illustrating the classic tester and developer relationship as well as the general testers' life. When I discovered and read his comic for the first time in the first Software Testing Club magazine I found myself laughing out loud.

The sad, sad truth about software development. It's hilarious! Make sure and subscribe to Andy's comic here.

Watir Podcast #32 is out and in this episode Zeljko and Gregg have me as a guest! In #32, we spend some time talking about how our Hosting Team at GoDaddy uses Watir for website automation, the supporting framework and patterns, and much more. When your ears have a few spare minutes you can get the podcast at WatirPodcast.com and TestingPodcast.com.