This series of blog posts is an attempt to introduce you to some of the TestBash Philadelphia 2016 speakers and ask them few questions related to the talk/work. Our previous speakers interviews can be read here: Alan Page and Maaret Pyhäjärvi.
Today, we introduce you to Dan Ashby and Stephen Janaway.
For those who have not heard of Dan and Stephen, here is a brief introduction about them from the speakers page at TestBash Philadelphia 2016.
Dan Ashby has been a Software Tester for almost a decade now, testing a wide range of products from PC drivers, to printer software/hardware/firmware, to web apps and websites of all different sizes. He has a passion for Exploratory Testing with a focus on testing web-based applications and web sites. Find him on Twitter at @danashby04.
Stephen is a mobile and e-commerce Coach, Strategist and Manager. Over the last 15 years he’s worked for companies such as Nokia. Ericsson, Motorola and the YOOX NET-A-PORTER GROUP, as well as advising a number of mobile application companies on testing and delivery strategies. He has written and presented many times about testing, frequently with a focus on mobile devices and mobile applications. Stephen loves talking to others about software testing, test techniques and the mobile device and application world in general. You can contact him via his website (www.stephenjanaway.co.uk) or on Twitter (@stephenjanaway).
Their session is titled: Giving Something Back - Testing In The Pub Live!
Sahi Pro: Congratulations on 25+ podcasts. What has been your biggest learning?
Dan & Stephen: Thanks :) We're at number 37 now - it's been a great learning exercise. The biggest thing that we've learnt from doing the podcast is that you can start something small and let it grow organically. Testing In The Pub started because we used to work in the same company and would sit and talk about testing over a cup of tea. One day we thought "why not record this?"; I'd been listen to A/B Testing a fair bit which Alan Page and Brent Jensen do a great job on and so it seemed logical. By starting small then we had the opportunity to do something that was simple and less time consuming to experiment with. It's also been great to discover that lots of people want to be a part of the podcast and indicative of the open and welcoming nature of the software testing community.
Sahi Pro: How do you decide on whom to have in the next podcast?
Dan & Stephen: It depends on a number of factors. We have some people that we plan to record with, and therefore need to organize sessions with, particularly if they are well known and busy. In other cases it's dependent on where we are - we record at a lot at conferences and find that we can get some great discussions going simply by seeing who's around in the bar or at the breaks. It's fair to say that there's no grand plan and that's how it should be since it allows us to record episodes that react to the current thinking in the community.
Sahi Pro: What motivates you to contribute to the community considering that releasing a podcast regularly is not an easy task.
Dan & Stephen: Communities die if people don't contribute to them and we both feel really strongly that if one takes from the community then there's an obligation to give something back. We've both learnt a lot from the testing community and continue to do so, and we've had a lot of fun as we do, so it would not be right to just take. Testing In The Pub is one example, together with the speaking we both do at conferences and also the Software Testing Clinic that Dan helps runs in London. Also doing Testing In The Pub is a whole lot of fun; it does take time to do but if one is enjoying something then it's usually worth doing in my experience. TESTING IN THE PUB – YOUR REGULAR PODCAST ALL ABOUT SOFTWARE TESTING
Listen to Steve and Dan talk about topics of interest, and sometimes interview leading members of the software testing community too.
You can subscribe via RSS or iTunes, or stream or download directly from this site.
Thank you for your time, Dan and Stephen. We appreciate your contribution to the software community and best wishes to you and the conference.
Hope everyone has a good time, listening to them engage you with "LIVE Testing In the Pub" session. Do tweet and blog about the conference and share the learning with the software community.
About Sahi Pro:
We are one of the micro sponsors of TestBash Philadelphia 2016.
Sahi Pro, the flagship product of Tyto Software, is a simple yet powerful test automation tool that enables Quality Assurance and Testing teams achieve high efficiency and productivity in their test automation process. Features like multi browser support, good recorder, automatic waits, inbuilt frameworks, and automatic reporting reduce the team’s effort and technical expertise required, ensuring faster delivery cycles, especially in Agile environments. Over 400 enterprise customers across diverse industry verticals like Banking and Financial Services, Healthcare, IT Services, IT Products, Retail, Media & Entertainment, Telecom and Government are achieving high ROI with Sahi Pro.
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