Trends in Software Testing That Influence Your Business

by adm_etss | Oct 30, 2018 | Blog, Software Testing

Software testing is an integral part of developing products and, as such, managers are always trying to find new ways to manage testing. But software testing is part of a bigger picture, which has to do with the development of new technologies, with trends in IT and business and with the global workforce, among others. In this article, we discuss some of these trends that influence your business and that, if you understand, you can use to your advantage.

Testing Automation

As new and improved tools are released, testing automation is becoming the rule rather than the exception. Manual testing won’t be completely replaced because you need it for certain types of applications or creative solutions. However, testing automation is great in optimizing testing processes and in reducing costs while improving product quality quickly and without too much hassle. You should consider it for all your projects.

Software Testing Outsourcing

Software testing cost companies a lot of resources, in terms of time and money. To do good testing, you need know-how, specialized staff, tools and project management. Can companies somehow avoid dealing with these issues? The answer is “yes” and more and more businesses are contracting suppliers for their testing needs. The main advantages of testing outsourcing are cost reduction, less complex operations, better testing and ability to focus on core activities.

Specialization and Experience

Testers become more specialized through education and certification. They also require years of experience that allow them to tackle complex projects quickly, professionally and with good results. This is great news for companies because they can have improved products and user experience. What you need to know though is that these specialists are usually part of third party testing services, and you can rarely find them in companies where they would have little room to evolve. So if you’re looking to reap the benefits of good testing, look at teams that have extensive experience with testing, in general, and knowledge of your industry, in particular.

User Experience

When it comes to software development, the user experience is taking a front row. Everything has to work seamlessly and intuitively for the user, or else they will look for an alternative. In a world in which people have little or no patience for errors, bugs or intricate paths, testing is more and more focused on improving the user experience. Companies need to understand this and invest in UX. The problem is that few testing professionals are truly experienced with this, so make sure your business is on of those who gets their hands on people who know how to improve user experience through testing.

Agile Environment

Working in an agile environment means more flexibility and openness, more efficiency and shorter release cycles – all essential ingredients if you want to remain competitive in the marketplace. It’s no wonder that agile testing is a trend to follow. Agile testing recognizes that testing is an integral part of the software development process. Testers on agile teams collaborate closely with developers to find solutions and create products that are as close to consumer needs as possible.

We hope that you found this information useful. For more in-depth analyses on how you can make this trends work for your business and on what type of testing is best suited for your project, contact Euro-Testing and we will give you an assessment of your needs and provide the best solutions for your particular situation.

What are Defect Taxonomies?

by adm_etss | Sep 15, 2018 | Blog, Software Testing

Let’s start with something we can all agree on – a defect is something not working as it should. Now, we like to think of defect-based testing as having radar for a certain kind of bug (or a specific flaw). Instead of using the standard requirements docs or the use cases, we use the defects to base test cases. This whole process is based on taxonomies.

What are taxonomies?

Nothing too complicated. They are hierarchical lists with root causes, failure signs, and other defect-related elements. Some find it easier to think of them as classifications.

They tend to vary in level of detail: from broad to specific (from incomplete or missing parameters to missing descriptions). Even though you might not know it, even your day-to-day software testing is influenced by some industry standard taxonomy. One of the most popular ones is Dr. Boris Bazier’s (if you’re curious consider this book.

Why use them? 

They make our (software testing) lives easier. Having a defect taxonomy allows us to both classify failures and determine the type of bugs we should test for. We can focus on a specific element and constantly test for it. Also, taxonomies can be linked with risk scenarios that need to be addressed while testing.

Taxonomies present an advantage when it comes to teamwork. Less experienced testers can be given test cases based on them – this will give them less room for error.

Simply put, a tester with taxonomy at his disposal has higher chances of success.

Other aspects

We might think that the better/ larger the taxonomy the more effective the testing will be.  Yet, as we mentioned in other articles (https://blog.euro-testing.ro/testing-errors/), we should always keep our eyes open for items that are not in the taxonomy. Watch out for invalid characters, “correct” error messages or check how the software handles error corrections (do I have to start the registration process from zero if I i entered something wrong at a certain point?). Experienced testers usually develop a “nose” for where things in software could break.

No taxonomy has a one-fits-all property – it’s  likely to require some modifications to fit the product your testing for. Consider the defects you want to target and their level of detail. If you had a similar software testing project you can get additional inspiration from it.  Usually, a decision has to be made between the level of detail and the redundancies in the list.

Defect taxonomies should be frequently updated. If they are used in similar circumstances, an additional benefit to having a taxonomy is that later on, test cases can be built on them.

Final considerations

Remember that for innovative software there may be few if any industry standard taxonomies available. Will you tweak an existing one or start from scratch?  How many items should the taxonomy contain? Should there be 5 test cases for one item or 50? Always keep your eyes (and your instinct) open when it comes to adequate coverage. If you want to hear more about our approach on these matters let’s get in touch.