Testbed Proposal Advice

A testbed

  • Defines what an experiment is
  • Allocates resources
  • Provisions devices
  • Creates networks
  • Emulates systems
  • Provides access

so when you’re thinking about your next testbed proposal, ask yourself

  • How are experiments expressed?
  • How do experiments get mapped onto resoruces?
  • How do resources become part of an experiment?
  • How are resources interconnected according to an experiment model?
  • How will emulated/simulated systems be integrated? Cyber, physical, social …?
  • How will users access experiments and collaborate?

If you cannot answer these questions in concrete and specific ways, you will not be successfull in your testbed endeavor. High level answers, while asthetically pleasing often lack sufficient substance to form a plan that will lead to a useful and lasting outcome. Start with the 6 hows above, and for every answer you come up with, continue to ask yourself how that will be accomplished until you reach a point where you can concretely walk a potential user through the workflow of your propsed system, identifying what pieces exist, what pieces are in the scope of work for your proposal - and how the proposed pieces will integrate with what already exists.