With so much information readily available for consumption, it can be draining and overwhelming. If you are a budding or aspiring software tester that is looking for great material to read online, then you are in the right place. Since you are about to start your journey as an epic tester, as I did at a software development company in Houston or simply planning on learning how to become one, remember that you will have tasks to work around and constantly learn new tools.
Every product will pose new challenges for you as a tester and you will have to be able to adapt to the changing environments. If I were to tell you a few tasks that you will be required to perform as a tester, that would give you a clear idea or an insight into what you are getting yourself into. Remember, they are in no order or necessary, as every project will bring in their own set of complexities for you to challenge and overcome.
So without further-a-do, let us dive into the various activities you should indulge in before starting your career as a software tester.
#1 Why are you interested in becoming a software tester?
Before we even begin our tech-talk, you need to ask yourself this important question. Are you really interested in becoming a tester? What is your understanding of software testing and how accurate it is? Just think about the career path that you are planning to tread on and make sure it is entirely your own decision and not influenced by someone else.
#2 What exactly is software testing?
Software testing has become a vast field and now it is not just about using the product, finding out the bugs, and running quality checks. Testing is a process that starts as early as the requirement gathering phase. From making sure the product is behaving the way it should, the risks involved, user experience, and much more is all part of testing.
Make sure your knowledge is fine-tuned and up-to-date with the latest practices and evolution that software testing has observed.
#3 Meet other testers
Networking has its benefits and what better way to socialize than meeting fellow testers and learning from them? Trust me, it will do you wonders to meet people that are in the same boat as you do or have professional work experience to become your mentors. Either way, you will be able to connect with them and get the much-needed help, guidance or a listening ear during the tough times.
So keep a lookout for all the testing conferences that include TestCon, EuroStar, Agile Testing Days, and many more. You can even join online tester communities and mingle.
#4 What is your understanding of the ‘bug’?
Is it the same as an error? Is it something that crashes the software product? What is it? There are so many definitions online like: Taking Wikipedia for example, “A software bug is an error, flaw or fault in a computer program or system that causes it to produce an incorrect or unexpected result, or to behave in unintended ways”
Pretty generic, right? However, a bug can be defined as anything that places the value of the product in jeopardy. Now whatever threatens the integrity of the software is a bug. According to this definition, a bug isn’t only present within the code, it could be in the specifications that we overlooked. Hopefully, this cleared much of your concept on what exactly is a bug.
#5 White and black box testing
The two famous approaches to software testing are White and Black Box Testing. White or Glass Box Testing is when a tester is aware of the internal workings like the code. The tester runs test cases that are based on the knowledge of the program’s internal code. This kind of testing tests the lines of code (LOC), branches of code, and focuses on overall coverage of the statements.
The biggest drawback of White Box Testing is that you will never know about any missing functionality. It is purely technical and tests out the code integrity. Another roadblock that tester faces is the constant following of a testing pattern that reduces their ability to detect anything unusual.
To curb all these problems, Black Box Tester plays a significant part. Why? Because they are unaware of the internal working of the product and they are responsible for testing out the requirements and functionalities.
#6 Regression testing
When you are dealing with an agile model for software development, you are bound to do regression testing. The process of making sure everything works together even after changes were made is part of regression testing. Consider the example of when your favorite app gets an update and suddenly a previous functionality stops working? This is why regression tests are performed to make sure that new updates, builds, or added features haven’t broken anything. In a nutshell, it is re-testing the previous features after a change has been made.
The regression test strategies may differ from company to company.
#7 Mobile Testing
Safe to say mobile testing has become a field of its own. You could develop a career out of just being a mobile tester. So this is definitely a strong area you can experiment with and check if it clicks with you. There is a lot of material online to get you started.
Considering that mobile app development has become a lucrative field with millions of apps existing on App Stores and countless under development – Mobile testing is another branch that is an integral part of this area.
Mobile application testing can be defined as a process where apps developed for smartphones are tested for their functionality, usability, consistency, compatibility, security, performance, load, installation, and user experience.
#8 Write about your journey
There is nothing better than sharing your experience and journey as a tester. Writing will center you from all the chaos your work brings and help you reconnect with many others that are a part of the software testing community.
There is much more to tell you but I am sure you have the passion and desire to explore more and become a great tester.
