Erk, Avalanche is not as nice as I originally thought. It seems that it tries too hard to keep an average load rate. When responses take too long to return, it sends out more requests. The end result is that it overloads the application server. Damn it, why can't someone write a testing tool that sends out requests at a specified rate. Oh, hang on, that's what Thumper is supposed to do....
Over the years I've been involved with writing a number of web applications. Some I am proud of, some I never want to see again. During each project, testing of the application's performance, stability under load, and regression testing of user journeys always comes up. There are a number of great bits of hardware (eg. Avalanche), and software (eg. Grinder) that help you test applications. I've even had a fun time using a room full of Grinder clients to test web services for a client - a great way to run a denial of service attack :-)...
Just use this magical incantation: RAWTOHEX(SYS_GUID())...
Ever been asked to estimate something without any information? Rather than just stare back with a blank look on your face, simply go and ask the estimate goat and you’ll have your answer. UPDATE (August 2016): I wanted to experiment with javascript and canvas so I made a slighly different looking estimate goat....