Meet BSD: Questions with Diane Kaplan

Diane Kaplan is a Quality Assurance Manager at Blue State Digital and has nine years of experience testing software. In her previous roles, Diane was responsible for building new QA teams both domestically and abroad. We sat down with Diane for an interview as part of an ongoing segment known as Meet BSD.

1. QA testing is a meticulous process. What sort of tools and methodologies do you use for your work?

It definitely is! We look at everything the functionality is supposed to do (and not do), the different ways it can be used, and the potential weak/buggy points. That way we're able to unearth/reproduce/prioritize the bugs early enough for the team to address them before the code is live for our clients. Testing tools come in handy to help us with the actual test execution (managing test cases, giving status, automating repetitive tasks, etc.) but the essential approach comes from thinking about the logic of the feature combined with creative instincts as we go, to find the places where the bugs are lurking.

2. What are some of the biggest obstacles to testing software?

It's all about the right balance. There is a lot to balance at any one moment: priority, time, risk, which pieces of the code are ready, which scenarios can or can't be simulated in the test environment. Testing is typically at the end of the cycle, so we need to balance these factors to get the most bang for our testing buck.

3. If you could have QA'd one product what would it be and why?

Great question. I actually would have loved to have seen the early days of the BSD Tools (I've been here for a year) to get my hands on those early incarnations and see the technology evolve. Though I have to say, the projects I've gotten to test in the past year have been as significant and fun as it gets.

4. You lived in India for one of your previous jobs. Where were you located and what was your experience like?

I spent three months in Chennai (a.k.a. Madras) and I absolutely loved it. Despite insane two-timezone workdays while I was there, it was life changing. I got to experience full immersion in a completely different culture, near sensory overload from the delicious flavors of the food, riding on the back of motorbikes through Indian traffic with no helmet, a bunch of ceremonies and rituals I had never seen, the rowdy experience of Indian cinema-going, and the realization of just how many of our day-to-day conventions are completely arbitrary.

5. Before entering into the QA career path, you studied philosophy. Has that helped you with QA?

Finding counter-examples in logical arguments is just like thinking of negative test cases: It's all about the methodical approach.

6. Who's your favorite philosopher, or what's your favorite philosophical movement?

Impossible to pick a favorite. I loved Kant's ideas but he was very tedious to read. Nietzsche, on the other hand--ridiculously vivid and a lot of fun to read.

7. You've had a lot of experience building QA teams from scratch. What's the key to building a successful group?

Patience and planning. Again, it's a balance: understanding the context of how the team has been operating, while steadily building the staples needed for testing. It's key to pick out the right short-term areas for improvement with each release cycle (to help toward the long-term picture), to hire strong teammates and let them run with what they're good at, and to continually identify areas that can go smoother/safer/faster next time around.

8. What are some creative ways to incorporate user feedback before launching new software?

Beta testing can be extremely valuable for getting user feedback, both in terms of seeing how well a specific tool meets its objectives and also for inspiring future enhancements to the product. This can be done in different ways (questionnaires, prototypes, internal review of tools being developed), and is something we can definitely benefit from in the future.

9. You enjoy sports. Any in particular? Are there any parallels between playing sports and QA?

I play floor hockey and used to QB in co-ed flag football, and I'm finally learning BSD Boston's official sport: ping pong. As for parallels: For sports and QA both, you need the hustle and drive to chase things down, and quick thinking when the play changes.

10. When you became interested in technology, what made you choose QA as the path for your career?

It was all fortunate timing actually. After changing my mind about academia, I tried testing and absolutely loved it. I took CS classes one by one at night to fill in the picture (C++, Java, db, web development, algorithms, and even a little assembly language), and I never looked back.

11. Is Schrodinger's cat dead or alive?

Poor kitty. At least maybe he can come back to life as a duck rabbit.

 

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