Odin Technology are pleased to announce the release of Axe 2.0, a significant and feature packed new release of Axe, our flagship automated testing product. With so many new features it is difficult to know where to begin!, here are some of the highlights:

• The SOA test automation product, AxeHarness is now included in the core product and a new API allows seamless integration with UI tools for SOA testing.
• Easier set-up - New project Wizard improved to configure projects.
• Project Explorer - Access to all assets from a single screen.
• New Axe Excel AddIn based on VSTO - More flexibility in creating test tables.
• Revamped User Interface.
• Dynamic selection of tests for Builds, even from previous runs.
• Integrated Documentation of Tests.
• More Build feedback and Cancel button.
• Introduction of Run Configurations - Flexibility of runtime settings without rebuilds.
• Dynamic Run selection - Select and Re-run tests (on lead platforms) without rebuilding.
• Improved Run Monitor and Stop Button (on lead platforms).
• Improved results - merging of results, summary level results and Suite view.
• Vista support, and updates to tool integrations.
• New MS HTML Help system.

This release also sees the introduction of the Axe C# scripting framework, a standalone framework for building test automation solutions using .NET and other third party libraries, including WatiN. Again the highlights:

• Tool independent - C# Based scripting framework from Odin.
• WatiN - Open source tool integration (supports IE & Firefox testing).
• AxeHarness functionality as .NET assembly (integrated into lead platforms).
• Fully Extensible and Customisable using C#/VS.

Odin Technology announce the start of the Beta programme for Axe 2.0, key Beta sites have been identified and Axe 2.0 delivered, installed and in use. As part of our commitment to customer feedback forming key requirements for new product releases the beta programme provides a key milestone in this process.

Odin Managing Director, David Tracey, said

"The Beta programme gives our key clients and partners the ability to participate in the Axe development process, it keeps the product grounded and ensures we are really delivering what our users want, not just gimmicks"

Odin are pleased to confirm that the forthcoming Axe 2.0 release will be including an integration with the open source test automation library WatiN. This provides our clients with a low cost alternative for automation of HTML web sites and web applications.

Odin Technology exhibited at this year's Software and Systems Quality Conference UK in London's QEII center on October the 2nd and 3rd. Odin Technology showcased their Axe product at their stand and brought some light entertainment with their Nintendo Wii based interactive bowling alley. Odin products also received mentions in track presentations from BT's Mo Shannon and Barry Baker on "Successful Test Automation as a corporate service" and David Harrison (former MD of Mercury Interactive) on "The Test Products and Services Industry".

Founding Director of Odin Technology, Sam Warwick gave the keynote address at the Australian Professional Network Event (APTN) in Sydney on the 2nd May.

The Australian Professional Tester Network (APTN) has been established to represent the interests of the growing number of Test professionals who work across many industry sectors such as ICT, Banking, Retail, Education and Government sectors.

Access Testing, Australia's leading independent software testing company has just signed an exclusive agreement to distribute Odin Technology's Axe product in Australia. Axe leads a new generation of automated software testing products and provides a means to rapidly deploy automated testing systems that can be used by all levels of staff with minimal training. This reduces the cost of introducing and maintaining test automation by a factor of four.

"Automation has been out of reach for many organisations because of the level of technical knowledge required to implement automated solutions"

"With previous generations of automation tools, the tester effectively needed to be able to develop code to get results. With 4th generation tools such as Axe tests can now be written by business testers and other business staff with minimal training. We are very excited to bring the Axe toolset to our client base"

Odin Technology's founding Director Sam Warwick said

"Odin look forward to developing a strong relationship with our first international business partner". Commenting on the introduction of Axe to Australia he said "Axe has already delivered significant benefits to many organisations in Europe and there are excellent opportunities for Australian businesses to embrace the next-generation in testing tools."

The hottest news for May 2006 is the release of Axe v1.5. Existing customers and our partners have had a preview through our Beta program and may have already downloaded the latest version. To coincide with this release we have added an online tutorial to the website, where you can learn more about Axe and its features. Click here to start the tutorial. You can find further information on new features and enhancements below:

Support for Compuware tools now forms part of the standard Axe install, with QARun,TestPartner and QADirector being supported in this release. Integration with these tools is further enhanced by the following new features:

• QARun and TestPartner object maps are now read directly at Build time without the requirement for export to an external file.
• Support for multiple TestPartner projects allows management of object maps and creation of scripts across multiple projects in a single TestPartner database.
• The Axe Build/Run cycle can now be fully controlled from within QADirector allowing job scheduling and allocation.

The Axe test model now fully supports manual testing as well as automated testing. This feature of Axe has been greatly enhanced in this release to provide clear, well structured manual test documentation from Axe test tables. An "Axe View", with Axe test steps alongside documentation entries is also provided. Amongst the many benefits of these features are:

• Using the Axe test model becomes a "one-stop" means of test definition.
• Creating well structured tests in the Axe test model can be done earlier in the project lifecycle.
• The step to automating manual tests then becomes a very simple process without major re-engineering.
• Providing documentary evidence of the test process for an automated test is possible. Useful for auditing or sign-off of automated test scripts from a third-party or offshore.
• The Axe View makes debugging test processes and diagnosing defects easier.

One of the most important new features of version 1.5 is the Excel Add-In, the "Axe Table Generator" (previously available as a Beta download). This enables Axe users to create test tables quicker and easier than before through the following features:

• Create tables directly from Object Map entries. The Table Generator reads directly from all supported Object Map formats and creates Excel table headings without the requirement to enter object names manually.
• Create template Excel worksheets for all Axe table formats from within Excel.

• Support for Mercury QuickTest Pro is included as part of the Core install in this release.
• A Build Run button has been introduced to the Axe toolbar and an option added to the Tools menu. This allows "one click" access to the full Build and Execute cycle in Axe.
• The OdinPortal sample test system has been overhauled to provide both novices and advanced testers with useful examples of building and customising test systems with Axe.
• The Axe New Project Wizard has been enhanced to provide tool specific project creation.
• All HTML views of Axe output (results, documentation, object statistics etc.) have been enhanced for printing from Internet Explorer.

As part of Odin Technology's ongoing relationship with BT, we're delighted to announce that our flagship products Axe and AxeHarness, Odin's SOA testing tool, have been selected as GOLD status on BT's Product Portfolio Matrix.

The portfolio identifies agreed products available to BTs projects and initiatives, with products only being added when they are proven and have been through a strict pilot and approval process. More significantly, GOLD status is the highest attainable, only applied to key strategic products.

With the release of Visual Studio Team System, Microsoft has expanded the scope of its Visual Studio .NET offering to the entire project team, including tools for testing and workflow management. By becoming a Visual Studio Industry Partner (VSIP) Odin Technology continue to maintain a close relationship with both Microsoft and their latest software development tools.

Odin products have closely supported testing of .NET applications since the first release of the .NET Framework. This was taken a stage further with the release of the AxeHarness component testing tool, which includes support for testing .NET Web Services, .NET Classes and SQL Server databases.

The proposed integration of the Axe Testing Framework with Visual Studio Team System will allow Axe tests assets to be managed from within the Visual Studio environment alongside other tests types such as Unit and Load Testing. Expect further information on the new integration features in our next newsletter!

Click here for more information on Microsoft Visual Studio Team System.

The Axe testing product from Odin Technology featured in a recent Ovum report titled "A new breed of test automation tools". The report describes "A new class of business process-oriented tools that allow non-technical users to automate testing". It provides an excellent independent overview of the current test automation tool market and the solution that the "new breed" tools provide.

A product profile of Axe is given in the report and Ovum analyst Paul Herzlich observed that:

"It is significant because it has an impressive list of very large UK-based organisations successfully using it while, in contrast to our other tools, it is remarkably simple."

"Axe does the keyword testing job completely. Without a great deal of technical complexity to install and implement, it may be an easy entree into keyword testing, particularly in a project team environment."

Ovum are independent industry analysts and provide expertisr on the commercial impact of technology and market changes in software and IT services. The report is available to purchase online from the Ovum store

Odin Technology recently exhibited at the UK's leading conference devoted to Software Quality Management and Testing.
Odin played an active role in the conference program. This included a presentation by Duncan Brigginshaw on a recent highly successful automation project for the Globus banking application at Lloyds TSB.Read the Case Study.

We also presented a one-day tutorial entitled Charting the Course to Automation Success. Read the Abstract.