TestGuild Automation Podcast

Today we'll be test talking about Pester with Adam Bertram, author of multiple Pluralsight courses on PowerShell, and founder of AdamTheAutomator.com. I'm a big believer in the fact that infrastructure code -- just like test automation code -- should follow the same rigor as your application code. Pester is a unit testing framework that was built for people who want to take their PowerShell scripts and modules to whole different level, and really apply professional unit testing abilities to it. If your or your team is performing any type of PowerShell development, you won't want to miss this episode.

On today's show we'll be Test Talking about keyword-based automation (also known as action-based testing) with Hans Buwalda, CTO of LogiGear and a pioneer in action-based methodologies of testing and automation. Hans will share how using action-based testing practices like modularization and keywords can make your tests easier to create, automate and maintain, as well as simpler to understand.

I don't think there's a more popular topic in test automation nowadays than DevOps. While many folks I speak with have a process in place for most of their applications, one area some are struggling with is how to apply DevOps best practices to their mobile app initiatives. That's why I was happy to speak with Guy Arieli, CTO of Experitest -- a company that provides a bunch of cool quality assurance tools for mobile DevOps. If you're involved with mobile development of any sort, you won't want to miss this episode.

When you work for a large company, you sometimes need to expand your automation efforts beyond Selenium browser-based testing. What happens when you also need to create automation for applications like Embedded Systems, SaaS or ERP? In today's episode you'll discover how to automate embedded, SaaS and ERP systems, so prepare to learn some useful tips and best practices as we Test Talk with Ali Khalid, a test automation expert and enthusiast who has a ton of consulting experience working with all kinds of automation projects.

I'm excited to announce that registration for the Automation Guild Conference 2017 is now open! If you're involved in test automation on any level, you won't want to miss this one-of-a-kind, online event. Anyone who is familiar with test automation knows how difficult it is to create automated tests that are reliable and maintainable. Most automation project don't succeed – but you can do better. Automation Guild will save you valuable time and headaches, because you'll discover from some of the top automation engineers in the industry what works for their successful projects. In fact, the goal of the Automation Guild conference is to help YOU perfect the craft of creating automation awesomeness and accelerate your automation career. With over 25 speakers, many in-demand automation skills and topics will be covered, including Selenium, GitHub, Continuous Integration, DevOps, REST testing, visual validation testing and more. Whether you're currently involved in automation or just beginning, we've got you covered with either a new tool, technique or best practice that will improve or jumpstart your current testing situation and help you avoid common mistakes that can ruin any automation effort. So are you ready to accelerate your automation efforts and career? Register NOW and join us to make this an epic conference of automation awesomeness!

On this show we'll address an extremely common problem most automation engineers have to deal with – running cross-browser tests. Meaghan Lewis a test automation engineer at Lever and a former employee at Thoughtworks (the folks that gave us Selenium). She'll be giving us a sneak peek at her Selenium Conference presentation: Making Cross-Browser Tests Beautiful.

Communication skills are critical for succeeding in anything you do. This is especially true for folks that work in teams that are involved in the creating and testing of software. On today's show we'll test talk with Damian Synadinos about his presentation Workshop: Commutication – An Exploration of Idea Transfer with Words. Damian will share ways in which you can improve your communication skills and avoid the misunderstandings that may be preventing your team from creating automation awesomeness.

I'd like to make a big announcement! It was announced late last week that Selenium 3.0 has been officially released. This is huge. In this week's episode, I'll break down everything you need to know about Selenium 3, as well as give you a glimpse into Selenium's future. After listening, you will know how Selenium 3 will impact your automation efforts, as well as some things to watch out for -- so don't miss it!

Sure -- you might be working really hard, doing everything that is needed for testing your software, but is what you're doing really the most efficient way to test? In this episode Melissa Tondi, head of SQE at ShopatHome.com (and one of the best-known thought leaders in the quality engineering space) breaks down the testing process and helps us identify areas that traditionally cause the highest number of inefficiencies within test teams. So listen in and hear what it takes to build a world-class testing organization.

In this episode, we'll be test talking with Dave Cadwallader, a senior engineering manager in automation infrastructure, about a fleet of proven, open-source test automation tools developed by WalmartLabs that can help you succeed with automation. Get ready to discover lessons learned about building and maintaining code and infrastructure that support massive- scale testing at Walmart, as well as tips for working with front end web development teams on making them successful.