Requirements elicitation, writing, analysis, and modeling by IIBA Endorsed Education Provider.

Effective Software Testing: 50 Specific Ways to Improve Your Testing

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Elfriede Dustin

December 2002, Addison-Wesley Pub Co, Paperback, 304 pages, ISBN 0201794292


How to Plan and Monitor Business Analysis Activities
How to Estimate Early in a Project
How to Elicit (Gather), Write, and Analyze Business Requirements
How to Prepare and Facilitate Requirements Workshops
How to Prepare and Facilitate Productive JRP/JAD Sessions
How to Model, Analyze, and Improve Business Processes
How to Model, Analyze, and Improve Business Data
How to Test an Application using Business Requirements
How to Elicit Business System Requirements
How to Plan, Prepare, and Manage Acceptance Testing
How to Find and Build Test Cases from Business Requirements
	Try our new Virtual Workshops and e-Coaching for today's Business Analysts (BA's) and Subject Matter Experts (SME's)

Effective Software Testing explores fifty critically important best practices, pitfalls, and solutions. Gleaned from the author's extensive practical experience, these concrete items will enable quality assurance professionals and test managers to immediately enhance their understanding and skills, avoid costly mistakes, and implement a state-of-the-art testing program.

This book places special emphasis on the integration of testing into all phases of the software development life cycle--from requirements definition to design and final coding. The fifty lessons provided here focus on the key aspects of software testing: test planning, design, documentation, execution, managing the testing team, unit testing, automated testing, nonfunctional testing, and more.

You will learn to:

Base testing efforts on a prioritized feature schedule
Estimate test preparation and execution
Define the testing team roles and responsibilities
Design test procedures as soon as requirements are available
Derive effective test cases from requirements
Avoid constraints and detailed data elements in test procedures
Make unit-test execution part of the build process
Use logging to increase system testability
Test automated test tools on an application prototype
Automate regression tests whenever possible
Avoid sole reliance on capture/playback
Conduct performance testing with production-sized databases
Tailor usability tests to the intended audience
Isolate the test environment from the development environment
Implement a defect tracking life cycle

Throughout the book, numerous real-world case studies and concrete examples illustrate the successful application of these important principles and techniques.

Effective Software Testing provides ready access to the expertise and advice of one of the world's foremost software quality and testing authorities.

Preface.

Acknowledgments.

I. REQUIREMENTS PHASE.

1. Involve Testers from the Beginning.

2. Verify the Requirements.

3. Design Test Procedures as Soon as Requirements Are Available.

4. Ensure That Requirement Changes Are Communicated.

5. Beware of Developing and Testing Based on an Existing System.

II. TEST PLANNING.

6. Understand the Task at Hand and the Related Testing Goal.

7. Consider the Risks.

8. Base Testing Efforts on a Prioritized Feature Schedule.

9. Keep Software Issues in Mind.

10. Acquire Effective Test Data.

11. Plan for the Test Environment.

12. Estimate Test Preparation and Execution.

III. THE TESTING TEAM.

13. Define the Roles and Responsibilities.

14. Require a Mixture of Testing Skills, Subject Matter Expertise, and Experience.

15. Evaluate the Testers' Effectiveness.

IV. THE SYSTEM ARCHITECTURE.

16. Understand the Architecture and Underlying Components.

17. Verify That the System Supports Testability.

18. Use Logging to Increase System Testability.

19. Verify That the System Supports Debug vs. Release Execution Modes.

V. TEST DESIGN AND DOCUMENTATION.

20. Divide and Conquer.

21. Mandate the Use of a Test Procedure Template, and Other Test Design Standards.

22. Derive Effective Test Cases from Requirements.

23. Treat Test Procedures as "Living" Documents.

24. Use System Design and Prototypes.

25. Use Proven Testing Techniques When Designing Test Case Scenarios.

26. Avoid Constraints and Detailed Data Elements in Test Procedures.

27. Apply Exploratory Testing.

VI. UNIT TESTING.

28. Structure the Development Approach to Support Effective Unit Testing.

29. Develop Unit Tests in Parallel or before the Implementation.

30. Make Unit Test Execution Part of the Build Process.

VII. AUTOMATED TESTING TOOLS.

31. Be Aware of the Different Types of Testing Support Tools.

32. Consider Building a Tool Instead of Buying One.

33. Be Aware of the Impact of Automated Tools on the Testing Effort.

34. Focus on the Needs of Your Organization.

35. Test the Tools on an Application Prototype.

VIII. AUTOMATED TESTING—SELECTED BEST PRACTICES.

36. Do Not Rely Solely on Capture/Playback.

37. Develop a Test Harness When Necessary.

38. Use Proven Test Script Development Techniques.

39. Automate Regression Tests Whenever Possible.

40. Implement Automated Builds and Smoke-Tests.

IX. NONFUNCTIONAL TESTING.

41. Do Not Make Nonfunctional Testing an Afterthought.

42. Conduct Performance Testing with Production Sized Databases.

43. Tailor Usability Tests to the Intended Audience.

44. Consider All Aspects of Security, for Specific Requirements and System-Wide.

45. Investigate the System's Implementation to Plan for Concurrency Tests.

46. Setup an Efficient Environment for Compatibility Testing.

X. MANAGING THE TEST EXECUTION.

47. Clearly Define the Beginning and the End of the Test Execution Cycle.

48. Isolate the Test Environment from the Development Environment.

49. Implement a Defect Tracking Life-Cycle.

50. Track the Execution of the Test Program.

Index.

Elfriede Dustin is the lead author of Automated Software Testing (Addison-Wesley, 1999), and Quality Web Systems (Addison-Wesley, 2002). An acknowledged expert in software engineering and testing practices, she has assisted numerous companies in the definition and implementation of QA and testing processes.

From Book News, Inc.
Exploring 50 important best practices, pitfalls, and solutions, this guide for quality assurance professionals and test managers will help professionals avoid costly mistakes and implement a testing program. Special emphasis is placed on the integration of testing into all phases of the software development cycle, from requirements definition to design and final coding. The 50 lessons focus on key aspects such as test planning, documentation, unit testing, and nonfunctional testing. Dustin is an expert in software engineering and testing who has written other books on software testing. Copyright © 2004 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR