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Bug hunting for bucks
Lab puts Internet gear through its paces
November 4, 1996
Web posted at: 3:15 p.m. ESTPROVO, Utah (CNN) -- With new computer technologies hitting the market almost every day, it's hard to keep up with what works -- and what doesn't. That's where KeyLabs Inc. comes in. The Provo, Utah-based company calls itself the first independent testing laboratory targeting the Internet.
"Our ultimate goal is to find problems and defects," said KeyLabs President Jan Newman, who once headed a similar testing lab at software giant Novell. Most major computer companies have their own testing facilities, but many are interested in a second opinion, Newman said. (239K/11 sec. AIFF or WAV sound)
250 computers, 24 hours a day
KeyLabs' 24-hour testing lab houses 250 computers of varying speed and power, controlled by a central computer programmed to simulate real-time Internet use. The tests duplicate "actual mouse clicks and key strokes that a normal person would do," Newman said.
With no Internet standards to require testing before computer programs are distributed or Web sites go online, Newman believes fast-growing competition on the Internet will speed demand for his company's services.
What would happen, he asks, "if all of a sudden 250 clients were to access a server to get the same information. Could it handle it? And will it be up and running for the next 250 that come in?"
Making sure computer equipment -- both hardware and software -- is bug-free before launch can be a make-or-break step for companies rushing to the Internet. "Once you're there, you've made your statement," Newman said. "Those first impressions are powerful."
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