We use a variety of applications each day. Our lives are heavily reliant on the internet.
Every application, whether used for shopping, learning, ticket booking, etc., is the result of the joint efforts of many technical individuals. It is their contributions that make our lives easier through these applications.
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Among these various technical individuals are “Testers” and “Developers”.
This article delves into the differing viewpoints of Testers and Developers and the significance of their collaboration in creating a successful application.
Both testers and developers strive towards the same end goal of delivering a high-quality product to stakeholders. However, they adopt different thought processes.
It’s often mentioned, “Testers and Developers are not separate entities but follow varying paths towards the same objective.”
Developers think: ‘How can I build the application?’
Testers think: ‘How can I detect the flaws in the application?’
Testers and Developers operate in a manner similar to Tom and Jerry. However, a positive result is only achieved when they work in unison.
When testers question ‘How can I break the application,’ it doesn’t mean they aim to destroy the developers’ work. Rather, through their novel thinking and by understanding the end-user, testers probe all potential scenarios in the application. This ensures that the application operates as expected in live environments.
The Software Development Life Cycle (SDLC) is a critical component in the creation of any software application. In the past, software testing was conducted in the ultimate stage of development. However, fixing errors or bugs at the end stage proved to be demanding and expensive.
To circumvent such challenges, software testing is now integrated into all stages of SDLC. Meaning, testing tasks commence from the very initial stage of development.
“Testers” examine an application from a unique and innovative viewpoint, and comprehending the needs of end-users can make a significant impact.
What You Will Learn:
Let’s briefly delve into the tester’s perspective during different phases of SDLC:
#1) Gathering requirements and Analysis:
This phase entails creating a requirement document based on the stakeholder’s needs and appropriate application demands.
The testing team reviews the requirement document to offer their perspective on the suggested requirements and voice queries via “Review comments”. These queries may relate to understanding of specific aspects or forecasting potential errors.
Consider a common example: The end-user’s requirement states “No special characters are permitted in the input field.”
The developer’s role: To code a program that incorporates an input field and ensures that if a user enters any special character, an error or a relevant error message is displayed.
The tester’s perspective: The tester will first inspect the given requirement but will also consider various scenarios. They will raise questions such as:
- If the input box only contains special characters, will it display a similar or a different message to the user?
- What will happen if the user copies and pastes a mix of special characters and alphanumeric characters into the input box?
Testers consider many such scenarios while reviewing the requirement document.
For the evaluation of any product or application, testing involves questioning every aspect to cover nearly all potential scenarios, considering that the end-user could be anyone using the application in any unexpected way.
#2) Designing the System/Application:
Following the data collection and finalization of requirements, Developers start the application design phase. This includes looking over design documents before development by the developers.
Testers, thanks to their analytical skills and creativity, evaluate all potential scenarios for new features, improvements, integrations, UI updates, or anything mentioned in the requirements. They prepare test cases, sanity checklists, and data so they’re set with testing parameters once the application is ready for testing.
#3) Implementation phase:
During this phase, developers proceed with the approved system design’s implementation.
From the developer’s perspective, the priority is on creating the required functionality. They anticipate that the functionality will operate smoothly and effectively.
Conversely, from the tester’s perspective, they apply their creativity to assess the functionality. There may be instances where developers misinterpret the requirements, and if testers apply their scenarios, the application might fail.
#4) System Testing:
At this phase, developers deliver the application to a staging/QA environment (an environment devised for testing) with a defined set of features developed by the developer in the current sprint/release.
Developers present the application, presuming that the implemented functionality is crafted perfectly as per the laid out requirements. They hand over the application to testers for re-verification.
For testers, in addition to the specific function, they also consider different ways an end-user might utilize the application. Testers use their innovative thinking to probe every possible scenario.
#5) Maintenance phase:
This phase deals with a review of the collective efforts of testers and developers.
The finalized application, after all the implementation is completed, is made available to users for actual usage. Provided the application operates as expected, there’s no issue. Nonetheless, should any deviations occur, it once again demands the collective efforts of both testers and developers during the maintenance phase.
Testers and Developers collaborate to form an efficient team as it falls on them both to guarantee the best possible product. This is achieved when both work harmoniously, understanding each other, and accepting feedback positively.
Let’s review some vital points that outline the roles of Testers and Developers:
- Developers ought to aim to minimize bugs in their development, whereas Testers should report any bugs and ensure their swift rectification.
- Developers should accept testers’ feedback in a positive and constructive fashion.
- It is essential to understand that developers are “specialists” in a specific technical area, using all their skills to develop a project by the set requirements. Testers act as a third-party (an imagined user for the application) who efficiently detect errors or bugs, providing critical insight into the application’s quality and pinpointing improvement areas.
Working as a Tester:
While there are numerous developers who can also adeptly test, as individuals, we can’t always rely on self-testing our creations or applications. We need a second opinion and feedback from another person.
A “Tester” is an individual who provides an unbiased judgement, based on their hands-on experience with the application in various settings.
A Good Tester recognises that users are prone to making mistakes when getting accustomed to and using a new product. Real-time users typically prefer learning through hands-on experience rather than poring over a manual.
Therefore, the main concern of a Tester is “What could possibly go wrong.” The main concern of a Developer is to deliver the project as per the requirements.
Suggested read: => Why Do You Enjoy Testing?
A Good Tester and A Good Developer:
A Good Tester is comfortable with conflicts. Frequently, it becomes difficult to identify the origin of a bug as it could be a coding bug, documentation bug, design bug, or not even a bug at all. Nonetheless, it’s the tester’s obligation to report each bug.
A Good Developer welcomes feedback positively and constructively, analyzes the problem and solves it. Developers typically attempt to avoid conflicts, which can slow progress.
Additional good read => Who Earns More, Software Tester Or Developer?
Conclusion:
In closing, I’d like to underpin that recognizing differences is key to effective teams. Various approaches contribute to problem-solving and delivering a product that operates at its best.
Each individual has their designated role. Developers are accountable for application creation, while Testers oversee application testing.
In this article, I’d also like to convey that “To create the finest project or application, we require a critic by our side to provide trustworthy feedback.”
About the author: This is a guest post by Sushma S. She is employed as a Senior Software Test Engineer in a multinational corporation.
Do you concur with my views? Share your opinions in the comments section below.