Process Improvement Improving the Test Process In the

Process Improvement

Improving the Test Process In the Software V&V course, Prof. Uwe asked the question: How to improve the Testing Process?

Improving the Test Process (2) Some answers: 1. Develop a test strategy 2. Use Guidance such as: q checklists q guidelines q templates 3. Improve communication >> How to improve communication? 4. Learn from past experience >> How to consistently learn from the past?

How to Improve Communication? Review: q Request a review of the testing plan q Don't wait for a request Benefits of Review q Improves understanding between members q Team members learn from each other (knowledge transfer) q Improve motivation & sense of participation q Chance to involve senior developers who don't have time to involve directly in testing

What is a Review?

How to Conduct a Review

Inspection Systematic approach to examining a program (work product) in detail q Goal is to assess the quality of the software product n not the quality of the process n ensure program is correct n verify coding standard q

Handling complexity Use divide and conquer q Examine small parts q

Three techniques q checklist Problems with Checklists: n questions too general n instruction missing n detection biased towards previous defects

Three techniques q Use cases n check that each object is capable of responding correctly to all scenarios n forces the inspector to consider the context in which an object is used n interaction diagram is useful n create scenarios n. . .

Three Techniques q Abstraction driven n start with least dependent class n create a natural language abstraction for each part (method) n analyze interdependencies between classes n analyze dependencies between methods n reverse engineer an abstract spec for each method