Introduction to Software Testing

                 Overview on Testing

There are many published definitions of software testing. However, all of these definitions essentially convey the same statement:

Software Testing is the process of executing software in a controlled manner, in order to answer the question “Does the software comply to specifications”.

Software Testing is often used in association with the terms Verification and Validation. Verification is the checking or testing of items, including software for conformance and consistency with an associated specification. Software testing is one kind of verification, which also uses techniques such as reviews, analysis, inspections and walkthroughs. Validation is the process of checking if what has been specified is what the user actually wanted.

• Verification: Are we building the product right? – Typically involves reviews and meetings to evaluate the Documents, Plans, Code, Requirements, and Specifications. This can be done with Checklists, Issues lists, Walk-throughs, and Inspection meetings. It is a "continuous improvement process" and has no definite termination. 

• Validation: Are we building the right product? – Actual Testing and takes place after the verification process is completed.

Software Testing should not be confused with debugging. Debugging is the process of analyzing and locating the bugs when software does not behave as expected. Although the identification of some bugs will be obvious from playing with the software, methodical approach to software testing is a much more thorough means of identifying bugs. Debugging is therefore an activity that supports testing, but cannot replace testing. However, no amount of testing can be guaranteed to discover all bugs.