Software Testing

by Ron Patton

Publisher: Sams Publishing
ISBN: 0672327988

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Book Description

It seems as though each day there's yet another news story about a computer software problem or security breach: a bank reporting incorrect account balances, a Mars lander lost in space, a grocery store scanner charging too much for bananas, or a hacker gaining access to millions of credit card numbers.

Why does this happen? Can't computer programmers figure out ways to make software just plain work? Unfortunately, no. As software gets more complex, gains more features, and is more interconnected, it becomes more and more difficult, actually, mathematically impossible to create a glitch-free program. Despite how competent the programmers are and how much care is taken, there will always be software problems.

This is where software testing comes in. We've all found those little Inspector 12 tags in the pockets of our new clothes. Well, software has Inspector 12s, too. Most large software companies are so committed to quality they have one or more testers for each programmer. These jobs span the software spectrum from computer games to factory automation to business applications.

This book, Software Testing, will introduce you to the basics of software testing, teaching you not just the fundamental technical skills but also the supporting skills necessary to become a successful software tester. You will learn how to immediately find problems in any computer program, how to plan an effective test approach, how to clearly report your findings, and how to tell when your software is ready for release.

In this book you will learn something about nearly every aspect of software testing:

• How software testing fits into the software development process
• Basic and advanced software testing techniques
• Applying testing skills to common testing tasks
• Improving test efficiency with automation
• Planning and documenting your test effort
• Effectively reporting the problems you find
• Measuring your test effort and your product's progress
• Knowing the difference between testing and quality assurance
• Finding a job as a software tester

About the Author

Ron Patton is a software consultant living in Washington State. His software test experience is wide and varied from mission critical systems to painting programs for kids. In 1992 he joined Microsoft as a Software Test Lead in the Systems Group for Multimedia Viewer, the authoring tool and multimedia display engine used by Encarta, Cinemania, and Bookshelf. He moved on to become the Software Test Manager of the Kids Product Unit. Most recently, he was the Software Test Manager of the Microsoft Hardware Group responsible for the software shipped with the mouse, keyboard, gaming, telephony, and ActiMates product lines.

Customer Reviews

This book is excellent for beginners who are looking to learn more about software testing. It details the concepts of manual testing and what to look for and what not to do while testing software.

It is also good for programmers who want to transition into testing or Q/A or just want to gain an insight into the world of testers!

I got this book a few years ago as part of a Software Test Certificate and it has been useful in my day to day job duties. I knew much of it as a software developer, but it provided the whole picture as a new software tester. It is easy to read but not insulting. A cursory and well explained overview of the many areas of software test to include fundamentals, skills, and documentation and their many sub areas is included. The concepts hold well over time and the author provides insightful anecdotes (e.g. Intel floating point division bug) to supplement the text. This is the book I recommend to new software testers and management for an introduction to the fundamentals of software test. It would be recommended for developers to understand the importance of software test.

I can't say enough good things about this book! I was interviewing for some quality assurance positions and so I wanted a "refresher" on some of the formalized aspects of QA and testing. This book delivered for me and then some! Very concise, and just filled with excellent information. Lots of theory, definitions, anecdotes, suggestions, and basically just all kinds of quality assurance and testing lore. This is the kind of book you'll want to read from cover-to-cover, then keep on your bookshelf as a reference later on.