Change is disruptive. Even when a particular change leads to a positive outcome, the transition from the old way to the new way can be a time of turbulence. Might there be circumstances in which it's appropriate, or even helpful, to prolong that period of turbulence? That's the question Naomi Karten wrestles with in this column.

In "Growing Your Career in Tough Times," Fiona Charles writes about some of the free and low-cost things testers can do for professional development when money isn't available for courses and conferences. In this column, she describes two examples of the amazing things some testers get up to on the weekend to practice their craft, develop their skills and knowledge, and have a great deal of fun.

As Matt Heusser sees it, the "war on work" that exchanged centuries of craftsmanship for being a small part of the big machine has itself been replaced in the past decade--at least in the software industry--with a revitalization of the craftsperson. What's more, he sees the realization of the "boutique developer" as a promising sign for the possibility of boutique testers.

Chris McMahon is a tester who likes to take a look at the code under the application's hood. Although he has heard that developers and testers alike argue that this makes for less effective testing, he is here to argue that reading and writing code is part of the testing craft and that the ability to read and write code in the service of testing is critically important for the professional tester.