Chapter 1 Fundamentals of Software Testing Flashcards by Maretzel Altar

Often requirements are not clearly thought and contain gaps in the thought process. Even if requirements are clearly understood, the way they are defined can lead to defects. Mistakes or errors are made by software developers during production and cause defects in the software.

You can narrow the Cone of Uncertainty by making time re-estimates after implementing any changes to the project. In addition, you can use recommendations from your team members who have experience performing similar tasks or external experts with domain-specific knowledge. However, keep in mind that the estimate of an external expert may be incorrect, as those performing the task may lack the necessary qualifications and require time for learning. The time needed for this type of activity doesn’t always need to be estimated.

Software Quality

By incorporating LambdaTest into the test process, testers can streamline their automation testing efforts, ensure comprehensive test coverage, and deliver high-quality software. In the manual testing approach, the test process is executed manually without using any tools. In executing the test process, the QA team follows pre-defined steps to verify the software application and its functionality, identify any errors and ensure its fixes. This approach involves a thorough exploration of the software applications and is often used during the early stage of software testing. Software testing steps play an important role in software development cycle.

For this, consider the context within which the different software systems operate. A study conducted by National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) in 2002 reported that software bugs cost the U.S. economy 59.5 billion dollars annually. Let us begin with defining software testing in the following section. After understanding the different aspects of software defects, let us move on to the next topic, ‘Overview of Software Testing,’ in the following section. Let us find out the consequences of software defects in the following section. Also clearly defined documents, when handed to different teams, can often lead to different interpretations if teams are not trained to understand requirement documents.

SOFTWARE TESTING STEPS

Defect removal costs increase considerably as you move up the software life cycle. If the errors made in the early phases are undetected, the impact is more complex in the later phases of the lifecycle. Reviews are commonly referred to as a static testing technique as they are done without executing the code.

Taking an improvisational, make it up as you go along approach to testing invites risk – the very thing testing is intended to reduce. A comprehensive approach to testing can reduce risk while finding problems earlier, which reduces time to fix, time to market, and overall cost. While the plan can change during the project, the activity of test planning pays additional dividends, reducing rework, testing gaps, and communication friction. The testing process holds great significance as it helps identify and resolve bugs, errors, and issues before the software is released to users.

Test Process Phases

The test completion rate allows the team to manage the remaining portion of the test effort, including the risk of potentially undiscovered quality issues. The test success rate helps the team determine whether the software or system is functioning correctly. Once the test script is ready, it is shared with the development and business analyst team for review.

However, end-user expectations for complex and advanced features of software applications are also increasing with the advancement of software technologies and methodologies. Our guide to software testing methodologies like requirements based testing used to increase the effectiveness and speed of their software tests. Test execution is the software testing process of running a test on the component or system under test, producing actual test execution meaning result. Test Implementation Is the process of developing and prioritizing test procedures, creating test data and, optionally, preparing test harnesses and writing automated test scripts. This is when tests are organized and prioritized and when test designs are implemented as test cases, test procedures and test data. The software testing level is ended by evaluating the exit criteria and documenting the testing experiences.

Software Systems Overview and Examples

Such issues can impact the reputation of a company and lead to substantial costs for software replacement. Now, let us look at examples of software defects and how they impact life. Test automation is a great way to save time for quality assurance (QA) engineers while ensuring the delivery of a high-quality product. We know that product testing will be performed by one QA specialist. So we need to estimate the time for product testing and submit our estimates to the client.

In the following section, we will discuss the fundamental test process. Value can also drop as some identified defects may not be significant enough to cause software failure. In the next section, we will discuss the risks involved in testing and mitigation. Higher the probability and impact of damage caused by a failed software, greater the investment in performing software tests. The graph below shows the cost of fixing this defect when caught at different stages.

Online Browser Testing

The above statistics show the critical need for delivering bug- and error-free software applications to capture and retain users. It involves a systematic approach to identify potential issues and ensure that the final deliverables meet or exceed the desired quality criteria. Once the execution process is completed, after assessing the risk of the project exit criteria level will be set to measure the enough testing. In the planning phase, we also identify the design of the test environment and identify the required infrastructure and tools.

• These two terms, Debugging and Testing, are often confused and used interchangeably.
• The steps or phases involved in software testing are regarded as a test process.
• Here, the QA teams create scripts that mimic the user actions and interaction with the software applications.
• All testing activities are planned, which include resource requirements regarding human resource, training, software, tools, timelines, and risk and mitigations.
• Developers may misinterpret the business requirement, hence assume that the code is functioning the way it is supposed to.

It allows testers to write test scripts in programming languages like Java, Python, or C# to simulate user actions on web applications. By interacting with web elements and validating expected behaviors, Selenium enhances the efficiency of the testing process. The real device cloud provided by LambdaTest enables testers to perform comprehensive testing on different browsers, operating systems, and device combinations. It ensures the software or application functions seamlessly across various environments.

DIFFERENT ROLES IN A SOFTWARE TESTING TEAM

Humans who understand the complexity of a business process are usually better at testing the process using manual techniques than a test engineer trying to create code to do the testing. Playwright is a newer tool that supports automation testing across multiple browsers, including Chrome, Firefox, and Safari. It simplifies test script creation with its concise API, available in JavaScript, Python, and .NET languages. Playwright offers useful features such as automatic waiting for page loads and network requests and the ability to intercept and modify network traffic.

Both the managers knew this and hence were constantly trying to put each other down to win the promotion. The Test manager tried to deliberately delay the project by citing critical defects and blaming the development team for the poor quality of code. Alternatively, during exit criteria evaluation, it can be decided to execute some more tests before the application is considered fit for release. Hence, all phases interact and might transition from one to the other based on the needs of the project. In software testing, it is important to know when to stop the process.

Software Test Analysis

For example in the railways, a bug in the automated system could lead to train collisions and a loss of life and property. Similarly, defects in airline software, nuclear reactors, or stock exchange software can have a huge impact on the public. Some examples of defects that impact individuals include defects in the monthly bills. Any minor defect in the software generating these bills can lead to over or underpayment of bills, causing losses to the billing company. Another common defect in this category is defects in salary computations. If a bug is too complicated, it may even take several hours to find its exact location.