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Case Study

Presenter First: Software Development Training

Defense contractor sends itself to testing boot camp

Challenge

Lockheed Martin Canada was committed to Test-Driven Development (TDD). But the prospect of adopting TDD was complicated by inherited source code that wouldn’t permit its evolution. The company’s software engineering group set out to find a solution to their testing problem and to adopt a more Agile software development approach in the process.

Background

Lockheed Martin Canada is primarily involved in the R&D, manufacture, and integration of graphics-intensive applications. The company’s software group investigated a number of avenues to resolving their testing roadblocks, searching primarily for a training program. Eventually a group member came across a paper on Presenter First (PF), an AO-refined technique for organizing source code by feature and maximizing testability. A call was made. What could AO teach them in three days?

Project Overview

A software group adopted TDD but source code issues got in the way. AO helped them find their way.

Industry

Desktop Simulation Software Product Development

Project Type

Software Development Training

Project Size

  • 3 Days
  • 1 Atom

Services

  • Code Analysis
  • Customized Training

Technical Nitty Gritty

  • Presenter First / Agile
  • Eclipse IDE
  • EasyMock
  • JUnit

Chairman of the White Board

Lockheed Martin sent a 4-member team to train with an AO developer in a private, custom session. Armed with a laptop, a projector, and a white board, the Atom conducted a session in interactive-based testing and Presenter First. A high level outline and existing AO materials served were expounded upon as time allowed. The clients’ own code was used in examples whenever possible.

More Questions… Anyone? Anyone?

Client questions drove the exercises and coaching and led to software development on the spot. AO enhanced the presentation with concepts on how to best connect software development with effective project management per Agile software development methods.

Results

  • The three-day session was recorded, giving the client a program to use for their on-site training and development
  • The client team saved the expense of a group-wide training session
  • The effectiveness of the sessions led to advantages beyond basic training, such as discovering ways to better organize and test real source code
  • Working knowledge of the Presenter First technique allowed adoption of TDD to move forward

Customer Experience

“We went through several iterations of different ideas and software cycles to learn how best to develop our projects… it was invaluable getting exposure to Presenter First.”
 - Sandro Aloisio, Software Engineer

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