CTAL - TA Cheat Sheet (Part 2)

Specification-Based Techniques 

• Equivalence Partitioning  - any test level - finds functional defects in the handling of various data values 
• Boundary Value Analysis  - any test level - finds displacement or omission of boundaries, and may find cases of extra boundaries. This technique finds defects regarding the handling of the boundary values, particularly errors with less-than and greater-than logic (i.e., displacement). It can also be used to find non-functional defects, for example tolerance of load limits (e.g., system supports 10,000 concurrent users). 
• Decision Tables - used to test the interaction between combinations of conditions - integration, system and acceptance test levels (potentially component) - finds incorrect processing based on particular combinations of conditions resulting in unexpected results. During the creation of the decision tables, defects may be found in the specification document. The most common types of defects are omissions (there is no information regarding what should actually happen in a certain situation) and contradictions. Testing may also find issues with condition combinations that are not handled or are not handled well 
• Cause-Effect Graphing - typically used as the basis for creating decision tables - integration, system and acceptance test levels (potentially component) - find the same types of combinatorial defects as are found with decision tables. In addition, the creation of the graphs helps define the required level of detail in the test basis, and so helps improve the detail and quality of the test basis and helps the tester identify missing requirements. 
• State Transition Testing - used to test the ability of the software to enter into and exit from defined states via valid and invalid transitions - any test level - defects include incorrect processing in the current state that is a result of the processing that occurred in a previous state, incorrect or unsupported transitions, states with no exits and the need for states or transitions that do not exist. During the creation of the state machine model, defects may be found in the specification document. The most common types of defects are omissions (there is no information regarding what should actually happen in a certain situation) and contradictions 
• Combinatorial Testing - used when testing software with several parameters, each one with several values, which gives rise to more combinations than are feasible to test in the time allowed - usually applied to the integration, system and system integration levels - defects found with this type of testing is defects related to the combined values of several parameters 
• Use Case Testing - provides transactional, scenario-based tests that should emulate usage of the system - usually applied at the system and acceptance testing levels (can be used on integration level) - defects include mishandling of defined scenarios, missed alternate path handling, incorrect processing of the conditions presented and awkward or incorrect error reporting 
• User Story Testing - requirements are prepared in the form of user stories which describe small functional units that can be designed, developed, tested and demonstrated in a single iteration - used for both functional testing and non-functional testing  - defects are usually functional in that the software fails to provide the specified functionality. Defects are also seen with integration issues of the functionality in the new story with the functionality that already exists. Because stories may be developed independently, performance, interface and error handling issues may be seen 
• Domain Analysis - domain is a defined set of values - used for decision tables, equivalence partitioning and boundary value analysis to create a smaller set of tests - can be done at any level of testing but is most frequently applied at the integration and system testing levels - defects include functional problems within the domain, boundary value handling, variable interaction issues and error handling (particularly for the values that are not in a valid domain).