260 lines
6.0 KiB
Markdown
260 lines
6.0 KiB
Markdown
# Test Strategy: 6-Iteration Standard Convergence
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**Experiment**: bootstrap-002-test-strategy
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**Iterations**: 6 (standard convergence)
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**Time**: 25.5 hours
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**Result**: V_instance=0.85, V_meta=0.82 ✅
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Comparison case showing why standard convergence took longer.
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---
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## Why Standard Convergence (Not Rapid)
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### Criteria Assessment
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**1. Clear Baseline Metrics** ❌
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- Coverage: 72.1% (but no patterns documented)
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- No systematic test approach
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- Fuzzy success criteria
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- V_meta(s₀) = 0.04
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**2. Focused Domain** ❌
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- "Develop test strategy" (too broad)
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- What tests? Which patterns? How much coverage?
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- Required scoping work
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**3. Direct Validation** ❌
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- Multi-context validation needed (3 archetypes)
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- Cross-language testing
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- Deployment overhead: 6-8 hours
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**4. Generic Agents** ❌
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- Needed specialization:
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- coverage-analyzer (30x speedup)
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- test-generator (10x speedup)
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- Added 1-2 iterations
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**5. Early Automation** ✅
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- Coverage tools obvious
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- But implementation gradual
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**Prediction**: 4 + 2 + 1 + 2 + 1 + 0 = 10 iterations
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**Actual**: 6 iterations (efficient execution beat prediction)
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---
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## Iteration Timeline
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### Iteration 0: Minimal Baseline (60 min)
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**Activities**:
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- Ran coverage: 72.1%
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- Counted tests: 590
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- Wrote 3 ad-hoc tests
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- Noted duplication
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**V_meta(s₀)**:
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```
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Completeness: 0/8 = 0.00 (no patterns yet)
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Transferability: 0/8 = 0.00 (no research)
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Automation: 0/3 = 0.00 (ideas only)
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V_meta(s₀) = 0.00 ❌
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```
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**Issue**: Weak baseline required more iterations
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---
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### Iteration 1: Core Patterns (90 min)
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Created 2 patterns:
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1. Table-Driven Tests (12 min per test)
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2. Error Path Testing (14 min per test)
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Applied to 5 tests, coverage: 72.1% → 72.8% (+0.7%)
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**V_instance**: 0.72
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**V_meta**: 0.25 (2/8 patterns)
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---
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### Iteration 2: Expand & First Tool (90 min)
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Added 3 patterns:
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3. CLI Command Testing
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4. Integration Tests
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5. Test Helpers
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Built coverage-analyzer script (30x speedup)
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Coverage: 72.8% → 73.5% (+0.7%)
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**V_instance**: 0.76
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**V_meta**: 0.42 (5/8 patterns, 1 tool)
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---
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### Iteration 3: CLI Focus (75 min)
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Added 2 patterns:
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6. Global Flag Testing
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7. Fixture Patterns
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Applied to CLI tests, coverage: 73.5% → 74.8% (+1.3%)
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**V_instance**: 0.81 ✅ (exceeded target)
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**V_meta**: 0.61
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---
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### Iteration 4: Meta-Layer Push (90 min)
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Added final pattern:
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8. Dependency Injection (Mocking)
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Built test-generator (10x speedup)
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Coverage: 74.8% → 75.2% (+0.4%)
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**V_instance**: 0.82 ✅
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**V_meta**: 0.67
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---
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### Iteration 5: Refinement (60 min)
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Tested transferability (Python, Rust, TypeScript)
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Refined documentation
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Coverage: 75.2% → 75.6% (+0.4%)
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**V_instance**: 0.84 ✅
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**V_meta**: 0.78 (close)
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---
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### Iteration 6: Convergence (45 min)
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Final polish, transferability guide
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Coverage: 75.6% → 75.8% (+0.2%)
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**V_instance**: 0.85 ✅ ✅ (2 consecutive ≥ 0.80)
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**V_meta**: 0.82 ✅ ✅ (2 consecutive ≥ 0.80)
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**CONVERGED** ✅
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---
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## Comparison: Standard vs Rapid
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| Aspect | Bootstrap-002 (Standard) | Bootstrap-003 (Rapid) |
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|--------|--------------------------|------------------------|
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| **V_meta(s₀)** | 0.04 | 0.758 |
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| **Iteration 0** | 60 min (minimal) | 120 min (comprehensive) |
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| **Iterations** | 6 | 3 |
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| **Total Time** | 25.5h | 10h |
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| **Pattern Discovery** | Incremental (1-3 per iteration) | Upfront (10 categories in iteration 0) |
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| **Automation** | Gradual (iterations 2, 4) | Early (iteration 1, all 3 tools) |
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| **Validation** | Multi-context (3 archetypes) | Retrospective (1336 errors) |
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| **Specialization** | 2 agents needed | Generic sufficient |
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---
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## Key Differences
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### 1. Baseline Investment
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**Bootstrap-002**: 60 min → V_meta(s₀) = 0.04
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- Minimal analysis
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- No pattern library
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- No automation plan
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**Bootstrap-003**: 120 min → V_meta(s₀) = 0.758
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- Comprehensive analysis (ALL 1,336 errors)
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- 10 categories documented
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- 3 tools identified
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**Impact**: +60 min investment saved 15.5 hours overall (26x ROI)
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---
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### 2. Pattern Discovery
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**Bootstrap-002**: Incremental
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- Iteration 1: 2 patterns
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- Iteration 2: 3 patterns
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- Iteration 3: 2 patterns
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- Iteration 4: 1 pattern
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- Total: 6 iterations to discover 8 patterns
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**Bootstrap-003**: Upfront
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- Iteration 0: 10 categories (79.1% coverage)
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- Iteration 1: 12 categories (92.3% coverage)
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- Iteration 2: 13 categories (95.4% coverage)
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- Total: 3 iterations, most patterns identified early
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---
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### 3. Validation Overhead
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**Bootstrap-002**: Multi-Context
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- 3 project archetypes tested
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- Cross-language validation
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- Deployment + testing: 6-8 hours
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- Added 2 iterations
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**Bootstrap-003**: Retrospective
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- 1,336 historical errors
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- No deployment needed
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- Validation: 45 min
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- Added 0 iterations
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---
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## Lessons: Could Bootstrap-002 Have Been Rapid?
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**Probably not** - structural factors prevented rapid convergence:
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1. **No existing data**: No historical test metrics to analyze
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2. **Broad domain**: "Test strategy" required scoping
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3. **Multi-context needed**: Testing methodology varies by project type
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4. **Specialization valuable**: 10x+ speedup from specialized agents
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**However, could have been faster (4-5 iterations)**:
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**Alternative Approach**:
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- **Stronger iteration 0** (2-3 hours):
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- Research industry test patterns (borrow 5-6)
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- Analyze current codebase thoroughly
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- Identify automation candidates upfront
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- Target V_meta(s₀) = 0.30-0.40
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- **Aggressive iteration 1**:
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- Implement 5-6 patterns immediately
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- Build both tools (coverage-analyzer, test-generator)
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- Target V_instance = 0.75+
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- **Result**: Likely 4-5 iterations (vs actual 6)
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---
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## When Standard Is Appropriate
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Bootstrap-002 demonstrates that **not all methodologies can/should use rapid convergence**:
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**Standard convergence makes sense when**:
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- Low V_meta(s₀) inevitable (no existing data)
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- Domain requires exploration (patterns not obvious)
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- Multi-context validation necessary (transferability critical)
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- Specialization provides >10x value (worth investment)
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**Key insight**: Use prediction model to set realistic expectations, not force rapid convergence.
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---
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**Status**: ✅ Production-ready, both approaches valid
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**Takeaway**: Rapid convergence is situational, not universal
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