Classic Testing Mistakes:
Revisited
Contributing peer reviewers:
James Bach
Paul Carvalho
Matthew Heusser
[email protected]
Presented at the Better Software Conference
San Francisco, CA - Sept. 21st, 2005
Michael Kelly
Harry Robinson
Organization
• Classic Mistakes: A different approach
• The mistakes enumerated
– Test Management Mistakes
– Test Automation Mistakes
– Development Mistakes
– Test Strategy Mistakes
• Root Causes
• What to do tomorrow
On the shoulders of pioneers
Classic Mistake #1:
De-humanize the test process
AKA Management by Spreadsheet,
Management by Email,
Management by MS Project …
Test Management Mistakes
Classic Mistake #2:
Testers Responsible for Quality
“It’s strange that QA let that bug slip through”
Quality Assurance
Test Management Mistakes
Classic Mistake #3:
IV&V Determines ship date
Do they really?
Test Management Mistakes
Classic Mistake #4:
Task-based status reporting
• Examples:
– Testing is “on schedule”
– Testing “should be done by Tuesday”
• Consequences
– Loss of credibility
– Bad information for decision makers
Test Management Mistakes
Classic Mistake #5:
Evaluating testers by bugs found
… and developers by number of bugs
injected
• Consequences:
– Friction
– Focus on easy-to-find yet trivial bugs
(usability)
– Information hiding
Test Management Mistakes
Classic Mistakes #6
Inappropriate Models for Test Improvement
•NO
Classic Mistake #7:
Lack of test training for developers
• Testing is a skill.
• It won’t appear like magic.
Development Testing Mistakes
Classic Mistake #8:
Separate devs and testers
• To create friction, emphasize division
• Anything that increases the length of the
feedback loop is bad.
• To improve get rid of waste and tighten the
feedback loop.
Development Testing Mistakes
Mistake #9:
When late, add Test Automation
• Someone has to learn the tool
• Someone has to record the scripts
Test Automation Mistakes
Mistake #10:
Mine Field Test Automation
Test Automation Mistakes
Mistake #11:
Hiring for test tool skills
• Technology skills can be taught
• Talent can’t
• The “Hit the Ground Running” Argument
Test Automation Mistakes
Classic Mistake #12:
Insufficient diversity in test strategy
• Examples:
– Only requirements based testing
– Only coverage testing
• Consequence:
– Missing entire classifications of defects
Test Strategy Mistakes
Classic Mistake #13:
Over-reliance on scripted testing
All the testing we did, meticulously pulling down
every menu and seeing if it worked right, didn't
uncover the showstoppers that made it
impossible to do what the product was intended
to allow. Trying to use the product, as a
customer would, found these showstoppers in a
minute.
- Joel Spolsky, JoelOnSoftware.com
Test Strategy Mistakes
Mistake #14:
Untrained exploratory Testing
• “Just think creatively”
• “Try to break it”
• Exploratory Testing is a discipline
Test Strategy Mistakes
Classic Mistake #15:
Test ‘Engineers’ and ‘Executors’
Test Strategy Mistakes
Classic Mistake #16:
Vacuous Documentation
• Examples:
– The issue resolution document
– Physical signoff/check marks
– Elaborate test case templates
• Consequence:
– Time spent documenting is time not spent
testing
Test Strategy Mistakes
Mistake #17:
Trying to fix things beyond your reach
The Meta-Mistake
Don’t treat the symptoms
Find & Fix the root cause!
Root Cause #1
Lack of Systems Thinking in Testing
• The law of unintended
consequences
Root Causes
Root Cause #2:
Translation Problems
Example:
- “You need to completely test this module”
Root Causes
Root Cause #3:
Process Myopia
• Example:
– The [in]famous Issue Resolution Document
– “We don’t do things that way here”
– Elevating process over skills
• Solutions:
– The ear of the king / History Lessons
– If your boss doesn’t care – ignore it
Root Causes
Root Cause #4:
Technology Myopia
• Example
– “Use XML on the next project”
– “I just bought 5 copies of WinRunner …”
• Solution:
– If you’re technical, they need you to do it
– If you’re a manager, focus on business impact
and risk
Root Causes
Root Cause #5:
Fred Taylor in the organization
• Examples:
– Factory Mentality
– High Specialization
– Mixing of skill sets is verboten
• Solutions:
– Peopleware, or anything by Weinberg
– First Break all the rules – Jim Collins
– Lead. Insulate your team.
Root Causes
A ‘new’ methodology
• Root Cause Analysis
• Pareto Analysis
• Drive out waste/tighten the feedback loop
• Then worry about better practices
(Image from Rapid Development, (c) 1996 by Steve McConnell. Used
with permission from the author)
What to do tomorrow
Why
• New practices take permission
• It is hard (but possible) to get more done by
adding work
• It is easy to get more done by subtracting work
• So start by looking to remove worst practices
What to do tomorrow
• Discuss
• Q&A
Where to go for more
• “Classic Mistakes in Software Testing”, Brian
Marick, STQE, 1997
• Rapid Development, Steve McConnell
• An Introduction to general systems thinking,
Gerold Weinberg, 1975
• Lessons Learned in Software Testing, Kaner,
Bach, Pettichord
Bonus Section
Root Cause #6:
Pressure for short-term results
• Example:
– “Ship to make 4th quarter numbers”
• Putting off problems instead of addressing them
• Solution:
– Save your team
– Professionalism means something
– The Quake Example
Root Causes