Getting test people into the 90's

I was speaking with someone about the future of test and where it is going. Many test sets being used have the older, larger, VXI technology. Some test sets, not many around Lockheed, are still manual, where points are manually checked for continuity/voltage whatever.

When the older technology test sets are rebuilt with the same old technology, they are more expensive to maintain, the instruments are harder to get a hold of. Technology continually moves forward. I've noticed some test people want to stick to the old ways, old technology, unchanging. Technology, people, test, need to move forward. As Units Under Test (UUT) get more sophisticated and smaller, better, faster, Test Equipment must also get more sophisticated, shrink, and faster.

Attitudes to test developers also need to change and get more sophisticated. People need to understand better ways of testing, more sophisticated ways, ways that haven't been tried before. They need to have better understanding of what's being tested and why. Basically people need to change, learn, grow. Those who don't, will be stuck in the 90's, testing things that are simple to test because that's all they know.

Test people need to move into the into the 2000's and beyond. A few are moving forward and growing. A lot, possible most where I work, don't seem to be moving forward, seem to be of the mind of "we've always done it this way".

We need to keep moving...or be left behind.