Software Testing
Published on 20. November 2000
Book
Paperback/Softback
408 pages
978-0-672-31983-9 (ISBN)
Description
Software Testing is the book for new or aspiring software testers interested in learning about this crucial part of the software development process. The complexity and size of today's software makes writing bug-free code extremely difficult, even for highly experienced programmers. Couple that with our increasing reliance on software for performing everyday tasks and its pervasiveness in the medical, telecommunications, manufacturing, and financial industries, and a software bug can spell disaster. Quality software can't be created with an ad- hoc, part-time, bug hunt. It requires a methodical and disciplined approach to preventing, finding, and reporting bugs. Software Testing will show you what it takes to be a successful software tester, assuring that you discover those nasty bugs before your customers do.
More details
Language
English
Place of publication
Indianapolis
United States
Publishing group
Pearson Education (US)
Target group
College/higher education
Dimensions
Height: 231 mm
Width: 187 mm
Thickness: 23 mm
Weight
688 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-672-31983-9 (9780672319839)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
New editions
Person
Ron Patton lives and works in Washington state as a software consultant. His software testing experience is wide and varied from mission- critical systems to children's painting programs. He began his career at Texas Instruments as a quality assurance engineer testing embedded systems and user interface software for industrial automation equipment. In 1992 he joined Microsoft as a software test lead in the Systems Group. His test projects included Multimedia Viewer, the authoring tool used to develop Encarta (R), Cinemania (R), and Bookshelf (R),. and He eventually moved on to become responsible for the software that shipsped with the mouse, keyboard, gaming, telephony, and ActiMates (R) product lines.
Content
Introduction.
I. THE BIG PICTURE.
1. Software Testing Background.
Infamous Software Error Case Studies.
Disney's Lion King, 1994-1995. Intel Pentium Floating-Point Division Bug, 1994. NASA Mars Polar Lander, 1999. Patriot Missile Defense System, 1991. The Y2K (Year 2000) Bug, circa 1974.
What Is a Bug?
Terms for Software Failures. Software Bug: A Formal Definition.
Why Do Bugs Occur? The Cost of Bugs. What Exactly Does a Software Tester Do? What Makes a Good Software Tester? Summary. Quiz.
2. The Software Development Process.
Product Components.
What Effort Goes Into a Software Product? What Parts Make Up a Software Product?
Software Project Staff. Software Development Lifecycle Models.
Big-Bang Model. Code-and-Fix Model. Waterfall Model. Spiral Model.
Summary. Quiz.
3. The Realities of Software Testing.
Testing Axioms.
It's Impossible to Test a Program Completely. Software Testing Is a Risk-Based Exercise. Testing Can't Show That Bugs Don't Exist. The More Bugs You Find, the More Bugs There Are. The Pesticide Paradox. Not All the Bugs You Find Will Be Fixed. When a Bug's a Bug Is Difficult to Say. Product Specifications Are Never Final. Software Testers Aren't the Most Popular Members of a Project Team. Software Testing Is a Disciplined Technical Profession.
Software Testing Terms and Definitions.
Precision and Accuracy. Verification and Validation. Quality and Reliability. Testing and Quality Assurance (QA).
Summary. Quiz.
II. TESTING FUNDAMENTALS.
4. Examining the Specification.
Getting Started.
Black-Box and White-Box Testing. Static and Dynamic Testing. Static Black-Box Testing: Testing the Specification.
Performing a High-Level Review of the Specification.
Pretend to Be the Customer. Research Existing Standards and Guidelines. Review and Test Similar Software.
Low-Level Specification Test Techniques.
Specification Attributes Checklist. Specification Terminology Checklist.
Summary. Quiz.
5. Testing the Software with Blinders On.
Dynamic Black-Box Testing: Testing the Software While Blindfolded. Test-to-Pass and Test-to-Fail. Equivalence Partitioning. Data Testing.
Boundary Conditions. Sub-Boundary Conditions. Default, Empty, Blank, Null, Zero, and None. Invalid, Wrong, Incorrect, and Garbage Data.
State Testing.
Testing the Software's Logic Flow. Testing States to Fail.
Other Black-Box Test Techniques.
Behave Like a Dumb User. Look for Bugs Where You've Already Found Them. Follow Experience, Intuition, and Hunches.
Summary. Quiz.
6. Examining the Code.
Static White-Box Testing: Examining the Design and Code. Formal Reviews.
Peer Reviews. Walkthroughs. Inspections.
Coding Standards and Guidelines.
Examples of Programming Standards and Guidelines. Obtaining Standards.
Generic Code Review Checklist.
Data Reference Errors. Data Declaration Errors. Computation Errors. Comparison Errors. Control Flow Errors. Subroutine Parameter Errors. Input/Output Errors. Other Checks.
Summary. Quiz.
7. Testing the Software with X-Ray Glasses.
Dynamic White-Box Testing. Dynamic White-Box Testing versus Debugging. Testing the Pieces.
Unit and Integration Testing. An Example of Module Testing.
Data Coverage.
Data Flow. Sub-Boundaries. Formulas and Equations. Error Forcing.
Code Coverage.
Program Statement and Line Coverage. Branch Coverage. Condition Coverage.
Summary. Quiz.
III. APPLYING YOUR TESTING SKILLS.
8. Configuration Testing.
An Overview of Configuration Testing.
Isolating Configuration Bugs. Sizing Up the Job.
Approaching the Task.
Decide the Types of Hardware You'll Need. Decide What Hardware Brands, Models, and Device Drivers Are. Available. Decide Which Hardware Features, Modes, and Options Are Possible. Pare Down the Identified Hardware Configurations to a Manageable Set. . Identify Your Software's Unique Features That Work with the Hardware. Configurations. Design the Test Cases to Run on Each Configuration. Execute the Tests on Each Configuration. Rerun the Tests Until the Results Satisfy Your Team.
Obtaining the Hardware. Identifying Hardware Standards. Configuration Testing Other Hardware. Summary. Quiz.
9. Compatibility Testing.
Compatibility Testing Overview. Platform and Application Versions.
Backward and Forward Compatibility. The Impact of Testing Multiple Versions.
Standards and Guidelines.
High-Level Standards and Guidelines. Low-Level Standards and Guidelines.
Data Sharing Compatibility. Summary. Quiz.
10. Foreign-Language Testing.
Making the Words and Pictures Make Sense. Translation Issues.
Text Expansion. ASCII, DBCS, and Unicode. Hot Keys and Shortcuts. Extended Characters. Computations on Characters. Reading Left to Right and Right to Left. Text in Graphics. Keep the Text out of the Code.
Localization Issues.
Content. Data Formats.
Configuration and Compatibility Issues.
Foreign Platform Configurations. Data Compatibility.
How Much Should You Test? Summary. Quiz.
11. Usability Testing.
User Interface Testing. What Makes a Good UI?
Follows Standards or Guidelines. Intuitive. Consistent. Flexible. Comfortable. Correct. Useful.
Testing for the Disabled: Accessibility Testing.
It's the Law. Accessibility Features in Software.
Summary. Quiz.
12. Testing the Documentation.
Types of Software Documentation. The Importance of Documentation Testing. What to Look for When Reviewing Documentation. The Realities of Documentation Testing. Summary. Quiz.
13. Web Site Testing.
Web Page Fundamentals. Black-Box Testing.
Text. Hyperlinks. Graphics. Forms. Objects and Other Simple Miscellaneous Functionality.
Gray-Box Testing. White-Box Testing. Configuration and Compatibility Testing. Usability Testing. Introducing Automation. Summary. Quiz.
IV. SUPPLEMENTING YOUR TESTING.
14. Automated Testing and Test Tools.
The Benefits of Automation and Tools. Test Tools.
Viewers and Monitors. Drivers. Stubs. Stress and Load Tools. Interference Injectors and Noise Generators. Analysis Tools.
Software Test Automation.
Macro Recording and Playback. Programmed Macros. Fully Programmable Automated Testing Tools.
Random Testing: Monkeys and Gorillas.
Dumb Monkeys. Semi-Smart Monkeys. Smart Monkeys.
Realities of Using Test Tools and Automation. Summary. Quiz.
15. Bug Bashes and Beta Testing.
Only As Far As the Eye Can See. Test Sharing. Beta Testing. Outsourcing Your Testing. Summary. Quiz.
V. WORKING WITH TEST DOCUMENTATION.
16. Planning Your Test Effort.
The Goal of Test Planning. Test Planning Topics.
High-Level Expectations. People, Places, and Things. Definitions. Inter-Group Responsibilities. What Will and Won't Be Tested. Test Phases. Test Strategy. Resource Requirements. Tester Assignments. Test Schedule. Test Cases. Bug Reporting. Metrics and Statistics. Risks and Issues.
Summary. Quiz.
17. Writing and Tracking Test Cases.
The Goals of Test Case Planning. Test Case Planning Overview.
Test Design. Test Cases. Test Procedures.
Test Case Organization and Tracking. Summary. Quiz.
18. Reporting What You Find.
Getting Your Bugs Fixed. Isolating and Reproducing Bugs. Not All Bugs Are Created Equal. A Bug's Life Cycle. Bug-Tracking Systems.
The Standard: The Test Incident Report. Manual Bug Reporting and Tracking. Automated Bug Reporting and Tracking.
Summary. Quiz.
19. Measuring Your Success.
Using the Information in the Bug Tracking Database. Metrics That You'll Use in Your Daily Testing. Common Project-Level Metrics. Summary. Quiz.
VI. THE FUTURE.
20. Software Quality Assurance.
Quality Is Free. Testing and Quality Assurance in the Workplace.
Software Testing. Quality Assurance. Other Names for Software Testing Groups.
Test Management and Organizational Structures. Capability Maturity Model (CMM). ISO 9000. Summary. Quiz.
21. Your Career as a Software Tester.
Your Job as a Software Tester. Finding a Software Testing Position. Gaining Hands-On Experience. Formal Training Opportunities. Internet Links. Professional Organizations. Further Reading. Summary. Quiz.
Apendix A. Answers to Quiz Questions.
Index.
I. THE BIG PICTURE.
1. Software Testing Background.
Infamous Software Error Case Studies.
Disney's Lion King, 1994-1995. Intel Pentium Floating-Point Division Bug, 1994. NASA Mars Polar Lander, 1999. Patriot Missile Defense System, 1991. The Y2K (Year 2000) Bug, circa 1974.
What Is a Bug?
Terms for Software Failures. Software Bug: A Formal Definition.
Why Do Bugs Occur? The Cost of Bugs. What Exactly Does a Software Tester Do? What Makes a Good Software Tester? Summary. Quiz.
2. The Software Development Process.
Product Components.
What Effort Goes Into a Software Product? What Parts Make Up a Software Product?
Software Project Staff. Software Development Lifecycle Models.
Big-Bang Model. Code-and-Fix Model. Waterfall Model. Spiral Model.
Summary. Quiz.
3. The Realities of Software Testing.
Testing Axioms.
It's Impossible to Test a Program Completely. Software Testing Is a Risk-Based Exercise. Testing Can't Show That Bugs Don't Exist. The More Bugs You Find, the More Bugs There Are. The Pesticide Paradox. Not All the Bugs You Find Will Be Fixed. When a Bug's a Bug Is Difficult to Say. Product Specifications Are Never Final. Software Testers Aren't the Most Popular Members of a Project Team. Software Testing Is a Disciplined Technical Profession.
Software Testing Terms and Definitions.
Precision and Accuracy. Verification and Validation. Quality and Reliability. Testing and Quality Assurance (QA).
Summary. Quiz.
II. TESTING FUNDAMENTALS.
4. Examining the Specification.
Getting Started.
Black-Box and White-Box Testing. Static and Dynamic Testing. Static Black-Box Testing: Testing the Specification.
Performing a High-Level Review of the Specification.
Pretend to Be the Customer. Research Existing Standards and Guidelines. Review and Test Similar Software.
Low-Level Specification Test Techniques.
Specification Attributes Checklist. Specification Terminology Checklist.
Summary. Quiz.
5. Testing the Software with Blinders On.
Dynamic Black-Box Testing: Testing the Software While Blindfolded. Test-to-Pass and Test-to-Fail. Equivalence Partitioning. Data Testing.
Boundary Conditions. Sub-Boundary Conditions. Default, Empty, Blank, Null, Zero, and None. Invalid, Wrong, Incorrect, and Garbage Data.
State Testing.
Testing the Software's Logic Flow. Testing States to Fail.
Other Black-Box Test Techniques.
Behave Like a Dumb User. Look for Bugs Where You've Already Found Them. Follow Experience, Intuition, and Hunches.
Summary. Quiz.
6. Examining the Code.
Static White-Box Testing: Examining the Design and Code. Formal Reviews.
Peer Reviews. Walkthroughs. Inspections.
Coding Standards and Guidelines.
Examples of Programming Standards and Guidelines. Obtaining Standards.
Generic Code Review Checklist.
Data Reference Errors. Data Declaration Errors. Computation Errors. Comparison Errors. Control Flow Errors. Subroutine Parameter Errors. Input/Output Errors. Other Checks.
Summary. Quiz.
7. Testing the Software with X-Ray Glasses.
Dynamic White-Box Testing. Dynamic White-Box Testing versus Debugging. Testing the Pieces.
Unit and Integration Testing. An Example of Module Testing.
Data Coverage.
Data Flow. Sub-Boundaries. Formulas and Equations. Error Forcing.
Code Coverage.
Program Statement and Line Coverage. Branch Coverage. Condition Coverage.
Summary. Quiz.
III. APPLYING YOUR TESTING SKILLS.
8. Configuration Testing.
An Overview of Configuration Testing.
Isolating Configuration Bugs. Sizing Up the Job.
Approaching the Task.
Decide the Types of Hardware You'll Need. Decide What Hardware Brands, Models, and Device Drivers Are. Available. Decide Which Hardware Features, Modes, and Options Are Possible. Pare Down the Identified Hardware Configurations to a Manageable Set. . Identify Your Software's Unique Features That Work with the Hardware. Configurations. Design the Test Cases to Run on Each Configuration. Execute the Tests on Each Configuration. Rerun the Tests Until the Results Satisfy Your Team.
Obtaining the Hardware. Identifying Hardware Standards. Configuration Testing Other Hardware. Summary. Quiz.
9. Compatibility Testing.
Compatibility Testing Overview. Platform and Application Versions.
Backward and Forward Compatibility. The Impact of Testing Multiple Versions.
Standards and Guidelines.
High-Level Standards and Guidelines. Low-Level Standards and Guidelines.
Data Sharing Compatibility. Summary. Quiz.
10. Foreign-Language Testing.
Making the Words and Pictures Make Sense. Translation Issues.
Text Expansion. ASCII, DBCS, and Unicode. Hot Keys and Shortcuts. Extended Characters. Computations on Characters. Reading Left to Right and Right to Left. Text in Graphics. Keep the Text out of the Code.
Localization Issues.
Content. Data Formats.
Configuration and Compatibility Issues.
Foreign Platform Configurations. Data Compatibility.
How Much Should You Test? Summary. Quiz.
11. Usability Testing.
User Interface Testing. What Makes a Good UI?
Follows Standards or Guidelines. Intuitive. Consistent. Flexible. Comfortable. Correct. Useful.
Testing for the Disabled: Accessibility Testing.
It's the Law. Accessibility Features in Software.
Summary. Quiz.
12. Testing the Documentation.
Types of Software Documentation. The Importance of Documentation Testing. What to Look for When Reviewing Documentation. The Realities of Documentation Testing. Summary. Quiz.
13. Web Site Testing.
Web Page Fundamentals. Black-Box Testing.
Text. Hyperlinks. Graphics. Forms. Objects and Other Simple Miscellaneous Functionality.
Gray-Box Testing. White-Box Testing. Configuration and Compatibility Testing. Usability Testing. Introducing Automation. Summary. Quiz.
IV. SUPPLEMENTING YOUR TESTING.
14. Automated Testing and Test Tools.
The Benefits of Automation and Tools. Test Tools.
Viewers and Monitors. Drivers. Stubs. Stress and Load Tools. Interference Injectors and Noise Generators. Analysis Tools.
Software Test Automation.
Macro Recording and Playback. Programmed Macros. Fully Programmable Automated Testing Tools.
Random Testing: Monkeys and Gorillas.
Dumb Monkeys. Semi-Smart Monkeys. Smart Monkeys.
Realities of Using Test Tools and Automation. Summary. Quiz.
15. Bug Bashes and Beta Testing.
Only As Far As the Eye Can See. Test Sharing. Beta Testing. Outsourcing Your Testing. Summary. Quiz.
V. WORKING WITH TEST DOCUMENTATION.
16. Planning Your Test Effort.
The Goal of Test Planning. Test Planning Topics.
High-Level Expectations. People, Places, and Things. Definitions. Inter-Group Responsibilities. What Will and Won't Be Tested. Test Phases. Test Strategy. Resource Requirements. Tester Assignments. Test Schedule. Test Cases. Bug Reporting. Metrics and Statistics. Risks and Issues.
Summary. Quiz.
17. Writing and Tracking Test Cases.
The Goals of Test Case Planning. Test Case Planning Overview.
Test Design. Test Cases. Test Procedures.
Test Case Organization and Tracking. Summary. Quiz.
18. Reporting What You Find.
Getting Your Bugs Fixed. Isolating and Reproducing Bugs. Not All Bugs Are Created Equal. A Bug's Life Cycle. Bug-Tracking Systems.
The Standard: The Test Incident Report. Manual Bug Reporting and Tracking. Automated Bug Reporting and Tracking.
Summary. Quiz.
19. Measuring Your Success.
Using the Information in the Bug Tracking Database. Metrics That You'll Use in Your Daily Testing. Common Project-Level Metrics. Summary. Quiz.
VI. THE FUTURE.
20. Software Quality Assurance.
Quality Is Free. Testing and Quality Assurance in the Workplace.
Software Testing. Quality Assurance. Other Names for Software Testing Groups.
Test Management and Organizational Structures. Capability Maturity Model (CMM). ISO 9000. Summary. Quiz.
21. Your Career as a Software Tester.
Your Job as a Software Tester. Finding a Software Testing Position. Gaining Hands-On Experience. Formal Training Opportunities. Internet Links. Professional Organizations. Further Reading. Summary. Quiz.
Apendix A. Answers to Quiz Questions.
Index.