Title

Automated Web Application Testing

Abstract

Web applications provide multiple layers to which automated testing can be applied and there are lots of tools available to make the job easier (and sometimes more complicated).  At Carbon Five -- a consulting company focusing on web application development -- we have the exciting opportunity to tune and tweak our approach to testing with each new project.  As a result, we have evolved a standard architecture and tool set for our Java web applications, including a testing strategy that emphasizes simplicity and ease for the developer.

In this mostly code-driven session, we will first discuss a typical Carbon Five web application architecture and the role of automated testing.  We'll then implement several features end-to-end using our standard stack, including unit, integration and functional tests.  At each step of the process, I'll share some of the tips, techniques and best practices we've learned as an organization over the years.

Topics include:

• Benefits of automated testing
• Typical Carbon Five Java web architecture
• Types of tests: unit, integration and functional (in and out of browser)
• Pros and cons of each test type and techniques for making testing easy
  
• Testing frameworks including JUnit, HTMLUnit, Spring's extensible testing framework, Selenium, mocking/stubbing, and custom assertions
  
• What to test and where test coverage is most valuable
• Dealing with the database schema and fixture data
• Ensuring that tests run well from the command line and the IDE
•  

• Guidelines that help keep tests simple and easy as an application evolves

There isn't a single right way to approach automated testing, but there are pitfalls to dodge and practices that encourage easy and effective testing.  This is an opportunity to see how we think about and apply testing at Carbon Five.

Biography

Christian Nelson is a partner at Carbon Five, a boutique software consulting firm that builds web applications agilely in Java and Ruby and Rails.  He's interested in streamlining development to make it fast and fun, coaching agile teams, open source software and software architecture.  He's the author of the open source Carbon Five Database Migrations framework as well as several test extensions for Spring applications.  When he breaks away from writing software he loves backpacking and spending time with his twin daughters.

Location
Cubberley Community Center
4000 Middlefield Road, Room H-1
Palo Alto, CA 94105

Agenda
6:45-7:00 Doors open. Networking. Pizza.
7:00-9:00 Presentations

Price
$15 at the door for non-SDForum members
No charge for SDForum members
No registration required

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