VCE IT Theory Slideshows
Problem Solving Methodology 3
Development
By Mark Kelly
McKinnon Secondary College
Vceit.com
Contents
•
•
•
•
•
Activities
Validation
Informal Testing
User documentation
Formal testing
Development
• Often involves a coordinated team using
project management to monitor their
progress and manage their actions and
resources.
Acquire equipment
• Hardware is bought off-the-shelf or custom
built.
• Software is bought off-the-shelf or custom
programmed.
• Custom equipment is very expensive and slow
to create, but suits the user’s needs perfectly.
• Off-the-shelf equipment is far cheaper, easier
to get and has more support, but needs to
offer all the functionality the user needs.
Validation
• Checks for the reasonableness of data being
input, mainly:
– Range checks
– Existence checks
– Type checks
• Can be done manually or electronically
INFORMAL
TESTING
Informal testing
• Software and hardware are assembled
• Informal testing carried out at each stage of
development:
– Component testing: ensures each component
works as it should in isolation (e.g. a software
module, a hardware device)
– Integration testing: ensures components work
properly together. e.g. a memory chip can
communicate properly with a CPU; a software
module receives the right data from another
module.
Testing Activities
• Deciding:
– What needs to be tested (e.g. Formulas, buttons,
media, links, communications)?
– How will each thing be tested?
– What test data, if any, will be used?
– What are the expected results?
• Conducting the tests
• Recording the actual results
• Correcting any identified errors.
Testing types
• Unit testing – tests system components in
isolation to see if they behave properly
• Integration testing – tests components once
they have been integrated with other
components.
• Often components are all fine by themselves,
but errors arise when they try to exchange
data.
User Documentation
• Once the system is finished and mature,
documentation is written.
• See here for the documentation slideshow
• See Onscreen user doc slideshow
After development: formal testing
• Informal “check as you go” testing occurred
during development
• Formal testing is an official procedure that
proves the system works as it should
• The objectives specified in the
analysis phase’s logical design
are confirmed one by one
Formal testing
• May also involve user acceptance testing (UAT)
• The customer, or typical people who will be
using the system for real, use it and report
their findings.
Formal testing
Client – “Show me that it can produce 10,000
invoices in 5 hours”
Developer – OK. Watch…
[Time passes]
Client – “OK. Now show me the improved
readability”
Developer – “Compare this new output with
sample output from the old system.”
Client - “Good. Now show me…”
etc
Related topics
User documentation slideshow
Onscreen user doc slideshow
VCE IT THEORY SLIDESHOWS
By Mark Kelly
McKinnon Secondary College
vceit.com
These slideshows may be freely used, modified or distributed by teachers and students
anywhere on the planet (but not elsewhere).
They may NOT be sold.
They must NOT be redistributed if you modify them.