As the web grows, we developers have to write applications that are not location centric but rather develop applications that can be viewed by anyone around the world. Any developer that had to write such software probably has used GeoIP and has encountered issues when the time came to test their application. The only real way to test your application, without setting up servers around the world, is to assume that your code works and that the GeoIP database is working correctly.
This is obviously a flaw in the quality & assurance of your product because you can absolutely never assume that your code works correctly. However, if you have tests to prove that your code works fine, then you are entitled to make such pretentious claim.
If you don’t understand what I mean, consider the following example:
On the PEAR website we now have mirrors that automatically detect where you are coming from and direct you towards the closest mirror for downloading packages.
The only way we had to test this feature was to ask someone say in Germany to test if he was being redirected to the German mirror and so on. This has obvious implications and it makes it impossible to automate tests.
That was until WonderProxy came along. WonderProxy provides you with HTTP proxies around the world or precisely:
WonderProxy provides HTTP proxies around the world to help you test GeoIP web applications. This paid service makes testing and re-testing applications from around the world fast and easy
Basically WonderProxy allows you to connect from anywhere in the world. This means that you could easily write automated tests and verify where your site is sending you or you could test the template that is being used, or whichever scenario you might have to test.
Paul from WonderProxy offered PEAR a free WonderProxy account to test whichever feature we wanted to test, and so I hereby would like to thank him and his really nifty service.
Go on! TRY IT! GO!
