Some Ideas for Effective Software Testing

Requirements Phase

• Idea 1: Involve Testers from the Beginning
• Idea 2: Verify the Requirements
• Idea 3: Design Test Procedures As Soon As Requirements Are Available
• Idea 4: Ensure That Requirement Changes Are Communicated
• Idea 5: Beware of Developing and Testing Based on an Existing System

Test Planning

• Idea 6: Understand the Task At Hand and the Related Testing Goal
• Idea 7: Consider the Risks
• Idea 8: Base Testing Efforts on a Prioritized Feature Schedule
• Idea 9: Keep Software Issues in Mind
• Idea 10: Acquire Effective Test Data
• Idea 11: Plan the Test Environment
• Idea 12: Estimate Test Preparation and Execution Time

The Testing Team

• Idea 13: Define Roles and Responsibilities
• Idea 14: Require a Mixture of Testing Skills, Subject-Matter Expertise, and Experience
• Idea 15: Evaluate the Tester's Effectiveness

The System Architecture

• Idea 16: Understand the Architecture and Underlying Components
• Idea 17: Verify That the System Supports Testability
• Idea 18: Use Logging to Increase System Testability
• Idea 19: Verify That the System Supports Debug and Release Execution Modes

Test Design and Documentation

• Idea 20: Divide and Conquer
• Idea 21: Mandate the Use of a Test-Procedure Template and Other Test-Design Standards
• Idea 22: Derive Effective Test Cases from Requirements
• Idea 23: Treat Test Procedures As "Living" Documents
• Idea 24: Utilize System Design and Prototypes
• Idea 25: Use Proven Testing Techniques when Designing Test-Case Scenarios
• Idea 26: Avoid Including Constraints and Detailed Data Elements within Test Procedures
• Idea 27: Apply Exploratory Testing

Unit Testing

• Idea 28: Structure the Development Approach to Support Effective Unit Testing
• Idea 29: Develop Unit Tests in Parallel or Before the Implementation
• Idea 30: Make Unit-Test Execution Part of the Build Process

Automated Testing Tools

• Idea 31: Know the Different Types of Testing-Support Tools
• Idea 32: Consider Building a Tool Instead of Buying One
• Idea 33: Know the Impact of Automated Tools on the Testing Effort
• Idea 34: Focus on the Needs of Your Organization
• Idea 35: Test the Tools on an Application Prototype

Automated Testing: Selected Best Practices

• Idea 36: Do Not Rely Solely on Capture/Playback
• Idea 37: Develop a Test Harness When Necessary
• Idea 38: Use Proven Test-Script Development Techniques
• Idea 39: Automate Regression Tests When Feasible
• Idea 40: Implement Automated Builds and Smoke Tests

Nonfunctional Testing

• Idea 41: Do Not Make Nonfunctional Testing an Afterthought
• Idea 42: Conduct Performance Testing with Production-Sized Databases
• Idea 43: Tailor Usability Tests to the Intended Audience
• Idea 44: Consider All Aspects of Security, for Specific Requirements and System-Wide
• Idea 45: Investigate the System's Implementation To Plan for Concurrency Tests
• Idea 46: Set Up an Efficient Environment for Compatibility Testing

Managing Test Execution

• Idea 47: Clearly Define the Beginning and End of the Test-Execution Cycle
• Idea 48: Isolate the Test Environment from the Development Environment
• Idea 49: Implement a Defect-Tracking Life Cycle
• Idea 50: Track the Execution of the Testing Program

Reference:

• Effective software testing : 50 specific ways to improve your testing / Elfriede Dustin.