Load Testing Experts – Where R U ?

An expert is a person who has made all the mistakes that can be made in a very narrow field.
– Niels Bohr

Where have all the load testing experts gone? How do I find them? Who claims to be a load testing expert anyway?

I’ve met many people that are software testing professionals. Some of those consider themselves experts. And indeed, many of them are.

What is a load testing expert? Wikipedia says an expert is “someone widely recognized as a reliable source of technique or skill whose faculty for judging or deciding rightly, justly, or wisely is accorded authority and status by their peers or the public in a specific well distinguished domain.” So, a load testing expert would be someone recognized as a reliable source of skill in load testing.

Does that describe you? Are you accorded authority and status by your peers in load testing?

Isn’t it interesting that a Google search on “load testing expert” turns up mostly software vendors? There are a few consulting firms in the top 10, but most are promoting a product.

What about LoadStorm? We are not consultants. We have been consultants for development projects in the past, but that ship has sailed. We do not promote our company as load testing consultants. Rather, we seek to partner with consulting firms.

We do not claim to be load testing gurus either. While we do know quite a bit about web application development, and the related web performance testing activities that go along with it, our company offers a software product. LoadStorm is a tool to help load testing experts. We want to support those experts by providing a massively scalable and high-value tool.

Too often as a younger, less-experienced computer science weenie, I’ve suggested in some way that I was an expert is something or other. Usually, it ended in embarrassment or regret. Therefore, I state unequivocally right here and now that I am no expert. I am not a guru of load testing.

Answers.com defines guru as, “A recognized leader in a field: such as the guru of high finance.”

Answers.com also defines expert as, “A person with a high degree of skill in or knowledge of a certain subject.”

While at Fujitsu, I worked with a great software development leader named “Guru”. No kidding. That’s his real name. Well, Gurumurthy is his proper name. Around Fujitsu and with clients, he was simply Guru. I bet it is very cool to only need one name…like Madonna or Mozart or Reba or Prince. The common denominator is awesome talent. And Guru definitely is an awesome talent. Such a perfect name for him.

Why am I asking all these questions about load testing experts? Because they are elusive. They are a rare breed. Highly intelligent, deep thinkers, and smart enough to avoid the simply “load-testing-informed” like myself.

That’s why I am declaring a hunt for load testing experts. I intend to seek out and contact as many of these gurus as possible in 2009. My wish is to interview each one regarding their perspectives on load testing. I am skeptical that all qualified experts will participate, but I must try. For the greater good of web application development on planet Earth.

I pledge to work diligently and faithfully to employ any method (moral and ethical) to engage these experts and request that they share some of their load testing wisdom with us mere mortals.

Additionally, I pledge to document these interviews and publish them here on the LoadStorm blog. By sharing the knowledge and expertise of these gurus and experts, we can all grow in our abilities with load testing. And that growth will translate to better web applications. Improved web apps contribute to more efficient global trade. Efficiency leads to greater productivity and a higher standard of living for all mankind.

Thus, the quest for interviews of load testing experts upon which I now embark, will be an essential ingredient in the economic recovery so desperately needed in 2009. I promise I will do my part.

What I need from you, the most excellent reader of this humble post, is help identifying said experts. My plea to you is for a simple email suggesting a load testing guru that may be willing to contribute to our knowledge sharing community about web performance testing. If you are a load testing expert, and you wish to participate in an email interview, please let me know.

Feel free to comment here on the blog or send the suggestion to [email protected].

The world economy needs your help. Please spare a few minutes and do your part.