Exploratory Testing a Long-Running Project? Switch it Up

I’m working on a couple of long-running projects at the moment. One advantage of this situation is that I’m really familiar with the projects and all of the interactions and states they can be in. One small disadvantage is that it’s easy to fall into routines when testing. What do I mean by routines? I […]

More Ways to Test – 9 Situations to Test the Strength of Your Mobile App

I was recently asked: “What else is there to test on a phone app when you’ve tested the functionality?” After giving it some thought, I came up with a brief list and thought I’d share that list with a wider audience. 1. Airplane Mode Test to see how your app behaves when there’s no network. […]

A Very, Very Lightweight Test Plan

When I first started to learn about testing, I found out about test plans. They looked impressive and professional. Many templates were available, with specific figures on how many P1, P2, and P3 defects were allowed before testing could move to a different phase, how many cycles of testing there would be, etc. They even […]

3 Ways to Give Directions to Exploratory Testers Who Are Working from Home

All developers at Atomic do testing, but I have the specialized role of “exploratory tester.” I use my knowledge and experience to find any gaps that the makers missed during their testing. I’m often working on several projects at once, so I need to focus my testing on the most critical areas of an application. […]

More Ways to Test – Nightmare Headlines

The recent furor over the Iowa caucus results where an app caused chaos reminded me of The Nightmare Headline Game, which can be a great technique to assess risk and the level of testing needed. It can also be a fun game to let a team’s imagination run wild. Maybe you’re not writing an app […]

More Ways to Test – Learning from Fairy Tales

When coming up with data to test out your app, you might get stuck deciding what to enter. We’ve all used our own name and data or the classic “asdf asdf 123.” One way to get creative with your testing is to turn to fairy tales. And there’s a concept we can clearly learn from […]

More Ways to Test – Bugs Don’t Take Vacations

Last year, I blogged about bugs I’d found when planning a vacation. As it was that time of year for the Michigan Invasion from the grandkids, I realized it was planning and bug-finding time again.

Five Quick Phone Tests

When I started testing websites, I had a list of quick “attacks” that could surface common issues quickly. Now that I’ve been doing more and more testing on mobile devices, I’ve come up with a similar list for them.

More Ways to Test – Adding Software Tools to My Toolbelt

Along with learning new business domains as I work on new projects, I also try to pick up new tools and techniques to help my testing. Recently, I’ve started learning more about some tools that help me get a better understanding and view of the app I’m testing.

“Who Tested That?” Probably Someone Like You

I’m sure many of you have come across errors like the one above when you are surfing the internet or using an app. Your first reaction might be, “Who tested that?” You know your site and app would never have an error like this in production! Or would it? Here are a few reasons why […]

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Exploratory Testing