The legacy challenge – navigating product modernization with testability

Not all devices and machines, that we use daily, are as new as they make us believe. Take your car. The newest model is basically the previous model, with some new and improved features and a shiny modern look. And this is a smart approach because the new car is based on proven technology and the car company does not have to replace its entire production line. And we, the consumers, are happy with a new and up-to-date model. This same approach is practiced in the production industry. The core of some machines has been designed decades ago! With concepts and technology of that time. Can you imagine what would happen in case these machines become vulnerable due to newly found security issues in that old OS that is used? What about newly recruited SW engineers that do not understand the technology choices based on good ol’ Delphi or COM? This talk is about technical debt and how to deal with it in your organization. How to migrate old technology to new alternatives. And specifically, how to ensure quality during this process, knowing that there are hardly any requirements or test cases for the old system, simply because that system is hardly testable if at all.