Fiddler, a free Web debugging tool that logs all HTTP/HTTPS traffic between a developer’s computer and the Internet, has been acquired today by Telerik, a provider of software application life-cycle and content-management solutions. As part of the acquisition, developer Eric Lawrence, Fiddler’s creator, will leave Microsoft to join Telerik’s testing tools division.
“The added excitement for us here is Eric Lawrence basically taking his nights-and-weekend project of eight-plus years and actually getting to work on it full time with us,” said Christopher Eyhorn, executive VP of Telerik’s testing tools division.
Fiddler is a Web debugging tool that lets developers inspect traffic, set breakpoints, and tweak incoming or outgoing data. The tool includes an event-based scripting subsystem and can be extended using any .NET language. Fiddler can debug traffic from any application that supports a proxy, including Chrome, Firefox, Internet Explorer, Opera and Safari. Developers can also debug traffic from Android, iPad and Windows Phone devices.
Telerik has been using Fiddler in its Test Studio product for its loading and performance testing features. “For us, acquiring the technology means we can extend it using our full resources and efforts,” Eyhorn said. “And we’re definitely making a big commitment to keeping Fiddler free. There have been other companies out there that have bought tools, said they would keep them free, and then didn’t do it. We’re definitely making sure we do.”
Telerik is inviting the developer community to vote for the first updates they want to see in Fiddler. The company has launched a poll that went up this morning on Fiddler’s website. Choices include upgrades to the website, extended platform support, or an update to the product’s UI.
