![]() If a project hasn't been managed well before testing, most good responses will no longer be available. If we pay attention to emotions, listen and address important matters before unimportant matters, we'll be doing the best we can with the data we have. Our emotions carry information about how important things are. It's best to keep in mind that there are many possible interpretations of the data. It is up to human beings to attach meaning to data they take in, and each person does so differently. ![]() You are not a victim, having data put into you, but are at least potentially in control of what you take in. To qualify as a test, an action has to seek information that will influence action, whether or not it involves banging on keys. Learning to recognize a handful of major fallacies about testing could eliminate half the gross mistakes project managers make. You'll never know for sure whether your testing was done well, but there are many ways to know or estimate if it was done badly. Take people's emotions into account, try to understand them and resolve the problems caused by them. (.) 7 How to deal with defensive reactions To assess testing information, you must take into account people's emotional defenses. Information is neutral, but people's reactions to information are rarely neutral. You can greatly improve the efficacy of your testing, and lower your costs, if you learn to use meta-information - information about the quality of information. Many different tasks requiring many different skills are often lumped under the rubric of testing. (.) 4 What's the difference between testing and debugging? Testing can be exhausting, but it can never be exhaustive. Make the best use of your resources and time by running the best sample you can. (.) 2 What testing cannot do?ĭon't test if you don't plan to use the information gathered. We can predict anything except the future. Testers should not decide if the project is ready, that's the manager's job. If we were perfect, we would not need to test. ![]() Often the quote is the perfect summary of the chapter. For some chapters, I've included a quote that I particularly liked. I've written more about it in the chapter summary. I also really liked the last two chapters (17 and 18). (I haven't read it yet, it's on my to-read list.) I've heard that The Phoenix Project is written that way. In the book, three fictional characters (a manager, a developer and a tester) are discussing a problem. Even the entire novel that would teach you a topic (in this case software testing) by following different characters as the story develops. I really liked the chapters where the material is presented in the format of a story (9, 10, 12 and 13). First the main part, followed by a very short summary, then a lot of examples in the "common mistakes" section. I really like the format of each chapter. Surprisingly, those parts are maybe the most important ones. Some parts of the book are more psychology than testing. Some parts of the book are common sense, but it's still good to have it written down as a reminder and reference. When reading those parts, I was almost writing down everything stated in the book. I could recognize myself in characters from the examples, for more examples that I would like to admit. You can tell the author has many decades of experience. Please keep in mind that he published the book when he was 75 years old. It took a decade of experience for the lessons to sink in. When I first read Perfect Software I didn't understand it. Most people you work with will know little about testing.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
Details
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |