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Adam Kalsey

This is the blog of Adam Kalsey. Unusual depth and complexity. Rich, full body with a hint of nutty earthiness.

Software Engineering

Test data mishap

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This blog post is over 19 years old. It's possible that the information you read below isn't current and the links no longer work.

25 Nov 2004

Make sure your developers use test data that’s clean and wouldn’t embarass your company if it accidentally slips out to the public. Otherwise you might end up with something like this.

Target.com Product detail page for 'Marijuana'

Update: Apparently this isn’t a test data problem. It’s a problem with not enough product details and the way the ecommerce system’s back end works. The item in question is a book that Amazon carries, but Amazon has no details on the book. Since Target.com is managed by Amazon, many of the products sold by Amazon can be forced to show in the Target.com design; just tack the ASIN from Amazon onto the Target URL. For instance, you buy Isaac Mizrahi cashmere gloves from Target.com even though your local Target isn’t going to carry this item.

When the book is shown on Amazon, it’s obvious that Amazon is selling a book entitled “Marijuana,” but when shown through Target’s interface it just looks like they’re selling pot.

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