I’ve always avoided familiarizing myself with the practice of testing, as the models and math required to really understand it seems to be quite daunting. On an episode of Coding and Cocktails by the name of Changing your Approach to Testing, Alan Richardson outlines a shift in how we should think about testing. The thing that immediately struck me was his outline of how testing in the industry is a tad lackluster – for the reasons that I avoided it in the first place. Apparently, people haven’t read up on past research and existing models to optimize their techniques of testing. Richardson references the difficulty of testing for beginners, and a disconnect between those that specialize in it versus those who are not as versed in the practice. I could sense a tinge of frustration from Richardson as he outlined a general lack of familiarity with the field, noting a soft disregard of math techniques like set theory, graph theory, probability theory, etc. He stressed the technical knowledge and deep analysis needed to effectively do the job, as well as the interpersonal communication techniques needed to address problems with colleagues. 

I found it particularly intriguing when Richardson referenced the need to effectively communicate with team members with the right language for that individual, especially in the case they don’t want your feedback. He noted that this could be seen as “people skills,” but further explained he actually studied psychology to better understand his interactions and optimize the team’s communicative efficiency. Quickly after however, Richardson pumps the brakes a bit to say one need not possess every good quality for being a tester – after all, what are teams for? As long as aspects like technical know-how, tenacity to finish and the ability to challenge people are represented in the team, members can work off others’ strengths while being valuable for their own. I must say this relieved a bit of my anxiety because of the huge pool of knowledge that must be drawn from, be it interpersonal or technical. 

Furthermore, he stressed the application of the tests, and how to go about asking the right questions when designing them. The example Richardson brings up is a basic question that should always be asked before any work is done – what is the goal of testing this specific product, and how should tests be implemented based on that goal? I believe he stressed this point because he asserted that a majority of the industry is relatively inflexible when adapting to different testing environments. As mentioned prior, this is most likely due to an unfamiliarity with the literature and research. 

As much as I enjoyed the perspective, and will definitely remember this episode for future reference and tips, it has only made me more terrified of testing. At least I know what I should be doing though, right?

Link – https://soundcloud.com/codingovercocktails/changing-your-approach-to-testing-with-alan-richardson

From the blog CS@worcester – Dummies that Code by howbrash and used with permission of the author. All other rights reserved by the author.

For this post, I tuned in to the Code and Cocktails episode by the name Exploring Fintech Innovations. Amancio Bouza, API thought leader and chief product officer at Contovista AG, represents an area in tech known as fintech, or financial technology. This field describes how technology can improve and optimize delivery and use of financial services. The episode delves into the intricacies of modern banking, and describes how woefully behind banking is in the modern era. Some institutions are so large they disregard the need for things like API implementation entirely, thinking that they have a few years before it becomes essential. To combat this, consultants like Bouza educate banks on the future necessity of the technology. 

For example, upgrading certain models of data analysis could provide statistics on customer preferences and expectations. Thus, this information coupled with machine learning has the potential to tailor specific financial advice to a user at an individual level. This could theoretically be massively beneficial to a bank’s constituents, by educating them on specific pitfalls and nuances of their financial situation, hopefully pushing them to accrue more wealth once they understand the data. Once the understanding of some patterns and validity of different models are smoothed out with machine learning, it also greatly helps with risk management for both the individual and the bank itself. 

In addition, Bouza notes that in the next decade or so society will shift to a more decentralized payment model, with debit and credit cards being phased out for account-based financial transfers. This is an infrastructure many larger banks need to adapt to, as Bouza notes the autonomy granted by such a shift will be an inevitable draw for modern day consumers. He references a “lack of urgency” in these large institutions, whereas startups who are on the razor’s edge of success or failure will scramble to be ahead of the curve of general tech implementation to keep up with the market. In the classic capitalistic train of thought, they consider themselves too big to fail.       

I think it’s also important to mention that people like Bouza are far from wanting to totally restructure the system. He’s working to educate existing entities and give them the tools to prosper in the coming future – tools that will benefit both the institution and the consumers. By incorporating even a small portion of Bouza’s suggestions, people can take advantage of the autonomy given to them to invest in hyper personalized interests. Autonomous finances have the ability to make each consumer the most wealthy and frugal that they have the potential to be, which is a net win for everyone involved.

Link – https://soundcloud.com/codingovercocktails/exploring-fintech-innovations-and-trends-with-amancio-bouza

From the blog CS@worcester – Dummies that Code by howbrash and used with permission of the author. All other rights reserved by the author.

I recently discovered a podcast by the name of Coding over Cocktails, and they’ve done some excellent interviews with professionals in the field that specialize in API design. Evidently, the infrastructure of APIs are poorly maintenanced in many cases, as the importance of the practice has not yet hit the general understanding of how important they will come to be in future design strata. Matthew Reinbold, the interviewee on the episode titled The State of the API in 2021, asserted that there are a few key ways to see the “articulated vision” for how APIs interact and benefit future implementations of software. 

Reinbold outlined the need to be able to articulate how technological modularity is a strategic boon to the industry. While at the moment API design is proverbially left on the cutting room floor, he stressed the growing importance of integrating the practice as a cornerstone of future project endeavors. Referencing the pandemic, he cites a slew of examples pertaining to the cultural shift in society and the changing needs of consumers. For example, if an API was properly implemented for a given company, they ended up being months ahead of other organizations who failed to recognize the importance of the practice. These cultural shifts like curbside pickup are now a staple in modern business practices, and are here to stay for good.

API implementation promotes independence for consumers and resiliency to change for businesses, but at the moment are a “it would be cool if we had that” type of implementation in most projects.

Reinbold goes on to say that work culture norms are the primary thing that has to change before executives see the potential gain from incorporating such software. Changes to management would undoubtedly be the primary driver, but Reinbold also stresses the agency that lower tier employees don’t think they have in the industry. He uses the comical and stereotypical image of a computer geek living in a basement, where all one has to do is “throw pizza and sugary drinks down the stairs and code comes out.” In reality however, Reinbold argues that younger workers or “new power” feel helpless in the face of their superiors, or “old power.” But the mantle of leading change, Reinbold states, is simply finding the correct skills and techniques to do things better, and to try and get one’s colleagues intrigued with the implementation. The dynamic between new and old power is irrelevant if genuinely good ideas and leadership are explored at all levels. 

Either way, it was fascinating to hear about something we studied in class as the next step in tangibly improving our technology and quality of life. 

Link – https://soundcloud.com/codingovercocktails/the-state-of-the-api-in-2021-with-matthew-reinbold

From the blog CS@worcester – Dummies that Code by howbrash and used with permission of the author. All other rights reserved by the author.