Exploratory Testing: A Practical Guide to Improving Software Quality.
Software testers previously viewed testing as a tedious and repetitive task based on the systematic execution of predefined test cases. However, today, testing has evolved into a dynamic activity that encompasses various techniques and approaches, where the tester’s experience is crucial in selecting and applying the right ones.
Exploratory testing is a fundamental activity in agile testing. Our software quality assurance team integrates exploratory testing into their daily work. By using these tests, we can achieve higher-quality products in less time.
What is exploratory testing?
Cem Kaner, a professor of software engineering at the Florida Institute of Technology and one of the leading figures in software testing with over five books published on the subject, defines exploratory testing as “A style of testing that emphasizes the tester’s personal freedom and responsibility to continuously optimize the quality of their work, treating learning through testing, test design, test execution, and test result interpretation as mutually supportive activities that run in parallel throughout the project.”
Exploratory testing involves gathering information about the software under test. Testers achieve this by designing and executing tests simultaneously.
What are the benefits of exploratory testing?
Exploratory testing offers several benefits, including:
- Understanding the key features.
- Leveraging existing knowledge to find bugs.
- Uncovering potential instability areas: Which features are more likely to fail, be unreliable, or have negative side effects?
Now, let’s see some of the key characteristics of exploratory testing:
- It does not use pre-designed test cases, breaking away from traditional software testing.
- It is an interactive testing process, allowing the tester to gain a deep understanding of the software.
- This information is used to design even more effective tests. Experts consider this approach to be the best way to find areas for improvement in software systems.
- Avoid mistaking this for error-guessing or ad-hoc testing.
For this approach to be effective, testers performing exploratory testing must have strong listening, reading, thinking, and reporting skills.
Exploratory testing offers significant benefits as it helps to avoid falling into the “Pesticide Paradox.” The paradox states that repetitive test cases lead to a decrease in defect discovery. According to a survey of our internal quality team, the majority said that exploratory testing is most effective at finding defects.
When should we use exploratory testing?
While these tests are highly beneficial, they are not always the best approach for testing software. They are applicable when:
- There is little or no specification available
- A specific defect needs to be investigated
- A particular risk needs to be investigated, and the need for testing with documentation is assessed
- Testing needs to be diversified
How to prepare for exploratory testing
Exploratory testing, despite misconceptions, requires a defined scope and an organized approach.
This differentiates it from error-guessing and ad-hoc testing. Before conducting exploratory testing, the following aspects should be defined:
- What will be tested? (scope)
- What will not be tested? (out of scope)
- Why will it be tested? (questions)
- How will it be tested? (brainstorming)
- Expected problems
Which techniques are used in exploratory testing?
There are various techniques for conducting exploratory testing, each with goals and a focus. The most common techniques are:
- Guided Tour: It tests the application’s featured function.
- Exploring the City’s History: It tests an application’s legacy features.
- The Money Trail: It tests critical features from the customer’s perspective.
- The Crime Spree: It enters invalid data and tests negative scenarios.
- The Alleyway Crawl: It focuses on testing the application’s least-used features.
- Boring Tour: It spends the minimum time on each screen of the application, completes the smallest fields, and takes the shortest path.
What are the available exploratory testing tools?
To improve the monitoring and management of exploratory tests, predefined reports such as the Test Charter are available. Additionally, a wide range of tools ease the planning and execution of these tests, including:
- Exploratory Testing Chrome Extension
- Testmo
- Rapise
- Bug Magnet
- Test & Feedback
- Defect Scribe
- qTest
- JIRA Capture
- Rapid reporter
- Session tester
With these tools and resources, you can create effective exploratory tests that drive product quality and meet customer needs.
At GBH, we are at the forefront of exploratory testing. We have a team of experienced testers and the latest tools to ensure the highest quality digital products.
Are you ready to take your software testing to the next level?
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