T e s t W o r k s
S o f t w a r e I n s t a l l a t i o n L i s t ( S I L )
M o n t h l y U s e r s ' M e m o
30 October 1998
This Software Installation List (SIL) Monthly Users' Memo is sent to all
current and prospective TestWorks(tm) users worldwide near the end of the
month. It contains information about current releases of our product line,
about new versions that you can download or request, technical improvements to
the product line, and other matters of immediate concern to TestWorks users.
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Contents:
1. Technical Point Of Contact
2. Quality Week Europe (QWE'98) Discounts
3. TestWorks Product Changes, Updates
4. New Training Schedule
5. QW99 Call for Papers and Participation
6. Recapturing Maintenance Coverage, Obtaining Updates
7. Suggestions Wanted
8. Continuing Items
9. TestWorks Contact Information
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1. Technical Point Of Contact (TPOC)
Our records show you as the person acting as the Technical Point Of Contact
(TPOC) for TestWorks information for your organization.
The TPOC is the main person in charge of receiving information about all
TestWorks products at your installation. This person might be your
system-admin or the TPOC might best be the test lead. There can be several
TPOC's for a TestWorks installation.
Please e-mail all changes, corrections, and additions to users@soft.com.
Please include your CID number in your e-mail.
2. Quality Week Europe (QWE'98) Discounts (Final Notice)
It has been our practice for several years to offer a special discount for
TestWorks users who want to attend Quality Week Europe. Quality Week
Europe, featuring two days of technical tutorials and a 2-1/2-day multi-
track technical conference, is being held on 9-13 November 1998 in
Brussels, Belgium. You can use your CID# to get a 20% discount off the
regular conference fees.
Complete QWE'98 conference information -- including online registration
information -- can be found at:
<http://www.soft.com/QualWeek/QWE98>
For a copy of the printed QWE'98 brochure send e-mail to qw@soft.com.
3. Product Changes/Updates
Major product releases and upgrades are noted in the "What's New" section
of our Website. Here is a summary of recent changes:
o TCAT/C-C++ for Windows has been upgraded to provide support for
MicroSoft Visual C++ Ver. 6. TCAT/C-C++ now supports both Ver. 5 and
Ver. 6 (there are separate downloads depending on which compiler you
use because the installations are slightly different).
o The license software for all of the Windows Products (CAPBAK,
SMARTS, TCAT/C-C++ and TCAT for Java) has been reorganized to make
management of the keys simpler. All of the keys for any combination
of TestWorks products can now reside in a single directory.
o The programmable differences functions that are included with CAPBAK
for Windows have been included in SMARTS. This gives SMARTS users
additional flexibility and power in organizing test suites and ATS
scripts.
4. Training Classes at SR/HQ
We have begun to offer TestWorks training on an as-available basis (seating
at $250/person/day is limited) at our Headquarters facility here in San
Francisco.
Complete details are on the WebSite at
<http://www.soft.com/Training/index.html>. Each training day in the week
is a free-standing self-contained training unit. The material is arranged
so that 2-day and 3-day combinations also work to provide in-depth coverage
as shown below.
********* ********* ********* ********* *********
Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday
********* ********* ********* ********* *********
Windows Windows WebSite UNIX UNIX
Coverage Regression Testing Regression Coverage
2-Day Combinations:
<------------------------>
TestWorks for Windows
<------------------------>
Windows WebSite Regression
<------------------------>
UNIX WebSite Regression
<------------------------>
TestWorks for UNIX
<---------------------------------------->
TestWorks for GUI & WebSites on Windows
<---------------------------------------->
TestWorks for WebSites on Windows and UNIX
<---------------------------------------->
TestWorks for GUI & WebSites on UNIX
Complete information from training@soft.com.
5. QW'99 Call for Papers and Participation
TWELFTH INTERNATIONAL SOFTWARE QUALITY WEEK 1999 (QW'99)
CALL FOR PAPERS AND PRESENTATIONS
Conference Theme: Facing the Future
San Francisco Bay Area, California -- 24-28 May 1999
QW'99 is the twelfth in the continuing series of International Software
Quality Week Conferences that focus on advances in software test
technology, reliability assessment, software quality processes, quality
control, risk management, software safety and reliability, and test
automation. Software analysis and verification methodologies and
processes, supported by automated software analysis and test tools, promise
major advances in system quality and reliability.
The mission of the QW'99 Conference is to increase awareness of the entire
spectrum of methods used to achieve software quality. QW'99 provides
technical education, with opportunities for practical experience exchange,
for the software development and testing community.
The QW'99 theme "Facing the Future" draws attention to the impact of the
Y2K and EURO conversion/verification problems on the entire software
quality area. The aim is to focus attention on finding out what are the
the right things to do for software quality in the coming decade.
The QW'99 program consists of two days of pre-conference tutorials,
followed by a three-day conference including Mini-Tutorials, Quick-Start
talks, Panel Sessions, and regular Technical Presentations. QW'99 provides
the Software Testing and QA/QC community with:
o Carefully chosen 1/2-day and full-day tutorials from well-known
technical experts.
o Three-Day Four-Track (Technology, Applications, Process, Tools &
Solutions) Technical Conference
o Special Quick-Start and Mini-Tutorial Sessions
o Two-Day Vendor Show/Exhibition
o Vendor Technical Presentations and Demonstrations
o Analysis of method and process effectiveness through case studies.
o Meeting of Special Interest groups.
o Exchange of critical information among technologists.
o State-of-the-art information on software test methods.
QW'99 is soliciting 45 and 90 minute presentations, half-day and full-day
standard seminar/tutorial proposals, 90-minute mini-tutorial proposals, or
proposals participation in a panel and "hot topic" discussions on any area
of testing and automation.
IMPORTANT DATES:
Abstracts and Proposals Due: 18 December 1998
Notification of Participation: 20 February 1999
Camera Ready Materials Due: 31 March 1999
SUBMISSION INFORMATION:
Send abstracts and proposals including complete contact information to:
Ms. Rita Bral
Quality Week '99 Director
Software Research Institute
1663 Mission Street, Suite 400
San Francisco, CA 94103 USA
WEBSITE:
Complete information about QW'99 is available at the QW'99 Conference
WebSite:
<http://www.soft.com/QualWeek/QW99>
6. Recapturing Maintenance Coverage, Obtaining Updates
Times change and projects finish, and sometimes TestWorks products fall out of
use until the next project. Many times it's inevitable that continuous
maintenance support lapses.
But TestWorks is always changing and when your next project starts you'll want
to make sure you begin with the latest versions of the products.
Our offer to existing TestWorks sites or users who have been out of
maintenance for a year or more is to "recapture" maintenance for only 15%
(compared with our standard 20% annual maintenance fee). We'll re-start your
maintenance and support and ship your keys to the latest TestWorks products
right after we take care of the administrative details.
Contact sales@soft.com for details and be sure to include your CID number so
we can confirm your product licenses and compute your specific maintenance
recapture fee.
8. Suggestions Wanted
We would appreciate your input in all areas of our business::
o How can we improve our products? What new features should we add? What
features should be expanded? What new products should be added?
o How can we improve our support? Is there information that you need that
we don't provide?
o How can we improve our WebSite? Are there questions you don't get
answers to on our WebSite? Can you suggest ways to re-organize the
WebSite to serve you better?
o What directions do you want TestWorks to take in the future? What new
problems areas should TestWorks be addressing?
Please address all comments to the special account suggest@soft.com.
9. Continuing Items
Here are some continuing items from prior SIL memos that we think you should
be kept aware of:
o Software Incident Report If you are having TestWorks Product trouble of
any kind, our WebSite includes a comprehensive Software Incident Report
that can be used to report any problem or suggestion about any TestWorks
product. We record incidents in our internal defect tracker and then
issue you a ``ticket number'' (our internal tracking number) so that you
can keep tabs on the progress of the resolution of your problem. See:
<http://www.soft.com/Support/incident.html>
o Maintenance/Support Fees Increased Due to increased costs and generally
in keeping with industry practice, TestWorks support/maintenance fees
are being increased to +20% of the license fee per year, effective 1
July 1997.
o TTN-Online Subscriptions If you are not already subscribing, all you
have to do is send e-mail with the word "subscribe" in the body of the
message to ttn@soft.com to join the ~5,500+ readers of our TTN-Online
monthly newsletter. To subscribe from the WebSite go to:
<http://www.soft.com/News/TTN-Online/subscribe.html>
10. TestWorks Contact Information
Software Research, Inc.
1663 Mission Street, Suite 400
San Francisco, CA 94103 USA
Phone: +1 (415) 861-2800
Toll Free: +1 (800) 942-SOFT (USA Only)
FAX: +1 (415) 861-9801
Email: users@soft.com
WWW: <http://www.soft.com>