Building uncle Bob's Button

Track: Tools
Skill Level: Intermediate
Room: Room A313
Time Slot: Thu 2/23, 10:30 AM
Tags: tdd , automated testing , agile
Presentation Link
Abstract

In June of 2015, Uncle Bob (AKA Robert C. Martin) replied to a software development question with an intriguing answer. It went something like this: “Imagine having a push button that could tell you, in a few seconds, whether your whole system was working as expected or not. Push it and it lights up green if everything is working, or red if it isn’t… What could you do, if you had that button?” My answer agreed with his: “Anything.”

You could add new features, fix any bug, refactor to your heart’s content, and deploy your changes to production, with no fear of failure because the button still glows green when pressed.

What if, instead of just turning red, the button told you what failed and why, so you could find the problem and fix it quickly? Would that be worth some of your time?

If so, then come to this session and learn how to build Uncle Bob’s Button. It’s not hard to do, and building it will actually help you deliver your code to production faster than if you don’t.

Burk Hufnagel

Burk Hufnagel has been creating positive user experiences since 1978 as a Software Architect and Developer. He currently works for Daugherty Business Solutions, helping clients transition to agile development with a focus on automated testing.

Burk has presented at several conferences, including DevNexus and Connect*Tech, and was voted a JavaOne Rock Star. He also contributed to two books; “97 Things Every Software Architect Should Know” and “97 Things Every Programmer Should Know”.