Strategies for working with Off-shore testers?

[cojak]

I need something to keep my sanity and be more productive with them.

Just when I think that I've been comprehensive (how many ways can you enter a name FFS?) they come back with a slightly different question on a theme.

Now for the purposes of this thread I'm assuming I'm the one at fault here.

So, how do I work with testers that will help them be more productive and help save my sanity??

[SupremeSpod]

I need something to keep my sanity and be more productive with them.

Just when I think that I've been comprehensive (how many ways can you enter a name FFS?) they come back with a slightly different question on a theme.

Now for the purposes of this thread I'm assuming I'm the one at fault here.

So, how do I work with testers that will help them be more productive and help save my sanity??

They're being purposely difficult, sack the f*ckers!

[chef]

Is Mich really that annoying?

[MarillionFan]

I need something to keep my sanity and be more productive with them.

Just when I think that I've been comprehensive (how many ways can you enter a name FFS?) they come back with a slightly different question on a theme.

Now for the purposes of this thread I'm assuming I'm the one at fault here.

So, how do I work with testers that will help them be more productive and help save my sanity??

You need to ensure that they understand that they have the ability to test the functionality of anything new within your limits & outside of it. Praise them for anything they find & recommend fixes for. After that tell them to man up.

[darmstadt]

I need something to keep my sanity and be more productive with them.

Just when I think that I've been comprehensive (how many ways can you enter a name FFS?) they come back with a slightly different question on a theme.

Now for the purposes of this thread I'm assuming I'm the one at fault here.

So, how do I work with testers that will help them be more productive and help save my sanity??

I had this problem and in the end I just documented everything they had to do, exactly as it should be done even down to when to press ENTER. Still got questions and in the end I just failed their tests and passed the results and my documentation along to higher management who bollocked them....

[Mich the Tester]

I need something to keep my sanity and be more productive with them.

Just when I think that I've been comprehensive (how many ways can you enter a name FFS?) they come back with a slightly different question on a theme.

Now for the purposes of this thread I'm assuming I'm the one at fault here.

So, how do I work with testers that will help them be more productive and help save my sanity??

Need more information. What approach to testing are they using? Scripted or exploratory or both? Are they insisting on having everything documented before they test? If so, I'm sure AtW can recommend a machine gun.

[MarillionFan]

Need more information. What approach to testing are they using? Scripted or exploratory or both? Are they insisting on having everything documented before they test? If so, I'm sure AtW can recommend a machine gun.

Jesus man! Just test it for bugs.

[Mich the Tester]

Jesus man! Just test it for bugs.

I can do that; they probably can't.

[northernladuk]

Feel your pain. We have the same problem here and it isn't just testers. If you send a task over that needs even the mearest modicum of thought it will fail spectacularly. If the task is over designed and locked down so tight there are no questions to be asked it will run very well. Past that and you are on a wish and a prayer.. and you can forget any proactive responses. Utter bloody rubbish they are.

[Mich the Tester]

Feel your pain. We have the same problem here and it isn't just testers. If you send a task over that needs even the mearest modicum of thought it will fail spectacularly. If the task is over designed and locked down so tight there are no questions to be asked it will run very well. Past that and you are on a wish and a prayer.. and you can forget any proactive responses. Utter bloody rubbish they are.

Which means spending more time and money on design that it would have cost to just code and test on location. Why do people keep falling for this offshoring con?