May 11

Why Cross Browser Testing is Important

As an everyday user, when you encounter a bug, you don’t usually stop and think, “Maybe this issue is only happening on Chrome version 89 on Windows 10!” And why should you? Most people expect websites and apps to work properly on their system – especially if they’re not using an esoteric old version of Internet Explorer. Testing across browsers showing different screen sizes

If you work in software development, it’s a good idea to remember that to a user encountering it, that “edge case” bug is everything. But how do you make sure you discover these environment-specific bugs?

And even after finding them, how do you prioritize them? After all, your app or website is never going to look completely perfect for 100% of possible device/browser/screen size combinations. As with most things, finding a balance is key.

Read on to find out more about why cross browser testing is important – and how to do it right. Continue reading →

Sep 22

Wes Silverstein

Manual Testing / QA Process

The Ultimate Guide to Regression Testing

The Ultimate Guide to Regression Testing

If you work in or with QA, you’ve likely heard the phrase “regression testing.” For most apps and websites, regression testing is done before every new release. In an Agile QA process, it’s a regular part of the QA testing vocabulary. But what is regression testing, and how do you do it?

The Definition of Regression Testing

To put it simply, regression testing means testing virtually everything in the software. Not just a new feature, and not just each general section – but every button, flow, and interaction in the app or website.

The official definition of the word “regression” is:

a return to a former or less developed state

In software, a “regression” is a bug in an area of the app or website that was previously working. Continue reading →

Aug 18

Wes Silverstein

Manual Testing / QA Engineering / QA Process

How to Write Test Cases Without Requirements

When you’re testing a new feature on an app or website, it’s considered a best practice to have test cases. Ideally, the tester will be given acceptance criteria for the feature being developed. When QA knows exactly what a feature should or shouldn’t do, writing test cases can be easy enough. (If you’re feeling lost, see our article explaining test cases.) But how do you write test cases without requirements?

After all, in the real world of a fast-paced Agile process, chances are you won’t always have them. It’s pretty common to encounter a Jira ticket with a simple description, and no real list of requirements. Sure, you could ask the person responsible to add them. But it’s not always clear who that should be. (The developer? Project manager? Product manager? Higher up?)

In many scenarios, the task can get passed back and forth so long, it delays the testing process by days – if you even end up getting requirements at all. Continue reading →

Apr 28

Wes Silverstein

Manual Testing / QA Process

The Different Phases of QA Testing

The Different Phases of QA Testing

QA testing can be confusing to anyone who doesn’t work in tech – and even many who do. For those who are unaware of what QA testing entails, the vague concept might be “looking for problems in a website or app.” But there are many different phases of QA testing. Some of them happen before a product is even ready to test!

Read on to find out more about the different phases of manual QA testing.

The Design Phase

One of the first steps that QA can help with is the design phase. This might seem surprising, as QA testers aren’t exactly known for being graphic designers. But testers can provide valuable insight into user experience issues with design.

If QA can anticipate design and user interface issues before development begins, the team will save money, time, and effort. Continue reading →

Aug 30

Wes Silverstein

Automated Testing / Manual Testing / QA Engineering

What Are the Different Types of Software Testing?

What Are the Different Types of Software Testing?

QA testing may sound like a catch-all term — and in some ways, it is. “QA” stands for Quality Assurance, and all of the different types of software testing have this goal. But each type of testing achieves it differently. As a result, they’re best used for different purposes. Find out how what the different types of software testing are, and when to use them.

What Are the Different Types of Software Testing?

The main types of software testing are:

Manual Testing
Automated Testing
API Testing
Performance/Load Testing

These types of testing can be done on websites, mobile apps, and other software.

Manual Testing

Manual Testing is done by hand. This doesn’t mean not using technology — far from it. But it does mean manually going through different sections of a mobile app, websites, or other software, looking for any problems. Unlike automated, API, or performance testing, all you need for manual testing is access to the website or app. The other main types of software testing typically involve using other software or tools to test and/or find bugs. Continue reading →

Jul 5

Wes Silverstein

Manual Testing / QA Engineering

What is Manual Testing?

What is Manual Testing?

In the world of QA, automated testing is becoming more and more popular. This can be confusing to employers, who aren’t sure how much automated testing they need, and whether it can replace manual testing completely. Some aren’t even sure what manual testing is, or how it differs from automation.

The reality is that manual testing is the cornerstone of a good Agile QA process and should have a strong presence in any Engineering team.

What is Manual Testing?

Manual testing involves manually performing actions on a mobile app or website, looking for bugs or other user experience issues.

For example, let’s say that you wanted to test whether a login feature in an iOS app was working. With manual testing, you would: Continue reading →

Nov 13

Wes Silverstein

Automated Testing / Manual Testing / QA Engineering / QA Process

Manual Testing vs. Automated Testing

Manual Testing vs. Automated Testing

For the field of software testing, manual testing vs. automated testing has become a hot debate. In recent years, automated testing has become more and more in demand. In fact, a quick search of QA jobs on sites like Indeed, LinkedIn, etc. will show that the majority of these jobs now require automation experience with a language like Java, Python, etc.

This can prove daunting for testers with a background in manual testing, who typically leave the coding to developers. It can also be confusing to employers. Many managers aren’t sure how much automated testing they need, and whether it can replace manual testing completely.

Some companies use 100% manual testing to great success. Others have attempted to do 100% automation, and had to re-think their strategy — so the reality isn’t always as black and white as it may appear.

The ideal combination is having both manual and automated testing. The amount of each depends on your exact product/service and what your company’s Agile QA process is like. For example, if you’re constantly adding new features, you’ll need very rigorous manual testers. Of course, ideally you’ll also have automated regression tests set up, to make sure that the new features being introduced aren’t breaking old features. Even choosing 5 test cases to automate can make a big difference. Continue reading →