Chapter 3. The Realities of Software Testing

IN THIS CHAPTER

• Testing Axioms

• Software Testing Terms and Definitions

In Chapter 1, "Software Testing Background," and Chapter 2, "The Software Development Process," you learned about the basics of software testing and the software development process. The information presented in these chapters offered a very high-level and arguably idealistic view of how software projects might be run. Unfortunately, in the real world you will never see a project perfectly follow any of the development models. You will never be given a thoroughly detailed specification that perfectly meets the customer's needs and you will never have enough time to do all the testing you need to do. It just doesn't happen. But, to be an effective software tester, you need to understand what the ideal process is so that you have something to aim for.

The goal of this chapter is to temper that idealism with a reality check from a software tester's perspective. It will help you see that, in practice, trade-offs and concessions must be made throughout the development cycle. Many of those trade-offs are directly related to the software test effort. The bugs you find and the problems you prevent all significantly affect the project. After reading this chapter, you'll have a much clearer picture of the roles, the impact, and the responsibilities that software testing has and you'll hopefully appreciate the behind-the-scenes decisions that must be made to create a software product.

The highlights of this chapter include

• Why software can never be perfect

• Why software testing isn't just a technical problem

• The terms commonly used by software testers