Role Keywords: 

F

ATM

ATA

ATT

EITP

ETM

F : Keyword ISTQB Foundation syllabus

ATM : Keyword ISTQB Advanced – Test Management syllabus

ATA : Keyword ISTQB Advanced – Test Analyst syllabus

ATT : Keyword ISTQB Advanced – Technical Test Analyst syllabus

EITP : Keyword ISTQB Expert – Improving the Testing Process syllabus

ETM : Keyword ISTQB Expert – Test Management syllabus.

The exit criteria that a component or system must satisfy in order to be

accepted by a user, customer, or other authorized entity. [IEEE 610]

Formal testing with respect to user needs, requirements, and business

processes conducted to determine whether or not a system satisfies the acceptance criteria

and to enable the user, customers or other authorized entity to determine whether or not to

accept the system. [After IEEE 610]

Testing to determine the ease by which users with disabilities can use a

component or system. [Gerrard]

accuracy

The capability of the software product to provide the right or agreed results or effects

with the needed degree of precision. [ISO 9126] See also functionality.

accuracy testing

The process of testing to determine the accuracy of a software product

 acting (IDEAL):

The phase within the IDEAL model where the improvements are

developed, put into practice, and deployed across the organization. The acting phase

consists of the activities: create solution, pilot/test solution, refine solution and implement

solution. See also IDEAL...

IDEAL: An organizational improvement model that serves as a roadmap for initiating,

planning, and implementing improvement actions. The IDEAL model is named for the five

phases it describes: initiating, diagnosing, establishing, acting, and learning.

A scripting technique that uses data files to contain not only test

 data and expected results, but also keywords related to the application being tested. The

 keywords are interpreted by special supporting scripts that are called by the control script

for the test. See also data-driven testing...

data-driven testing: A scripting technique that stores test input and expected results in a

 table or spreadsheet, so that a single control script can execute all of the tests in the table.

Data-driven testing is often used to support the application of test execution tools such as

capture/playback tools. [Fewster and Graham] See also keyword-driven testing.

actor

User or any other person or system that interacts with the system under test in a

specific way.

actual outcome

The behavior produced/observed when a component or system is tested.

actual result

The behavior produced/observed when a component or system is tested.

A review not based on a formal (documented) procedure.

Testing carried out informally; no formal test preparation takes place, no

recognized test design technique is used, there are no expectations for results and

arbitrariness guides the test execution activity.

adaptability

The capability of the software product to be adapted for different specified

environments without applying actions or means other than those provided for this purpose

for the software considered. [ISO 9126] See also portability.

...

portability: The ease with which the software product can be transferred from one hardware

or software environment to another. [ISO 9126]

A statement on the values that underpin agile software development. The

values are:

- individuals and interactions over processes and tools

- working software over comprehensive documentation

- customer collaboration over contract negotiation

- responding to change over following a plan.

agile software development:

A group of software development methodologies based on

iterative incremental development, where requirements and solutions evolve through

collaboration between self-organizing cross-functional teams.

agile testing

Testing practice for a project using agile software development methodologies,

incorporating techniques and methods, such as extreme programming (XP), treating

development as the customer of testing and emphasizing the test-first design paradigm. See

also test driven development.

...

test driven development: A way of developing software where the test cases are developed,

 and often automated, before the software is developed to run those test cases.

algorithm test

A.K.A: - branch testing: A white box test design technique in which test cases are designed to execute

branches.

alpha testing

Simulated or actual operational testing by potential users/customers or an

independent test team at the developers’ site, but outside the development organization.

Alpha testing is often employed for off-the-shelf software as a form of internal acceptance

testing.

analytical testing

Testing based on a systematic analysis of e.g., product risks or

requirements.

analyzability

The capability of the software product to be diagnosed for deficiencies or causes

of failures in the software, or for the parts to be modified to be identified. [ISO 9126] See

also maintainability...

maintainability: The ease with which a software product can be modified to correct defects,

modified to meet new requirements, modified to make future maintenance easier, or

adapted to a changed environment. [ISO 9126]

analyzer

static analyzer: A tool that carries out static analysis.

anomaly

Any condition that deviates from expectation based on requirements specifications,

design documents, user documents, standards, etc. or from someone’s perception or

experience. Anomalies may be found during, but not limited to, reviewing, testing,

analysis, compilation, or use of software products or applicable documentation.

[IEEE

1044] See also bug, defect, deviation, error, fault, failure, incident, problem.

anti-pattern

Repeated action, process, structure or reusable solution that initially appears to

be beneficial and is commonly used but is ineffective and/or counterproductive in practice.

API (Application Programming Interface) testing

Testing the code which enables

communication between different processes, programs and/or systems. API testing often

involves negative testing, e.g., to validate the robustness of error handling. See also

interface testing...

interface testing: An integration test type that is concerned with testing the interfaces

between components or systems.

arc testing

branch testing: A white box test design technique in which test cases are designed to execute

branches.

assessment report

A document summarizing the assessment results, e.g. conclusions,

recommendations and findings. See also process assessment...

process assessment: A disciplined evaluation of an organization’s software processes against

a reference model. [after ISO 15504]

assessor

A person who conducts an assessment; any member of an assessment team.

atomic condition

A condition that cannot be decomposed, i.e., a condition that does not

contain two or more single conditions joined by a logical operator (AND, OR, XOR).

attack

Directed and focused attempt to evaluate the quality, especially reliability, of a test

object by attempting to force specific failures to occur. See also negative testing...

negative testing: Tests aimed at showing that a component or system does not work.

Negative testing is related to the testers’ attitude rather than a specific test approach or test

design technique, e.g. testing with invalid input values or exceptions. [After Beizer].

attack-based testing

An experience-based testing technique that uses software attacks to

induce failures, particularly security related failures. See also attack.

attractiveness

The capability of the software product to be attractive to the user. [ISO 9126]

See also usability...

usability: The capability of the software to be understood, learned, used and attractive to the

user when used under specified conditions. [ISO 9126]

audit

An independent evaluation of software products or processes to ascertain compliance

to standards, guidelines, specifications, and/or procedures based on objective criteria,

including documents that specify:

(1) the form or content of the products to be produced

(2) the process by which the products shall be produced

(3) how compliance to standards or guidelines shall be measured. [IEEE 1028

audit trail:

A path by which the original input to a process (e.g. data) can be traced back

through the process, taking the process output as a starting point. This facilitates defect

analysis and allows a process audit to be carried out. [After TMap]

automated testware

Testware used in automated testing, such as tool scripts.

availability

The degree to which a component or system is operational and accessible when

required for use. Often expressed as a percentage. [IEEE 610]

back-to-back testing

Testing in which two or more variants of a component or system are

executed with the same inputs, the outputs compared, and analyzed in cases of

discrepancies. [IEEE 610]

A strategic tool for measuring whether the operational activities of a

company are aligned with its objectives in terms of business vision and strategy. See also

corporate dashboard, scorecard.

corporate dashboard: A dashboard-style representation of the status of corporate

performance data. See also balanced scorecard, dashboard.

baseline

A specification or software product that has been formally reviewed or agreed upon,

that thereafter serves as the basis for further development, and that can be changed only

through a formal change control process. [After IEEE 610]

basic block

A sequence of one or more consecutive executable statements containing no

branches. EG: A node in a control flow graph represents a basic block.

basis test set

A set of test cases derived from the internal structure of a component or

specification to ensure that 100% of a specified coverage criterion will be achieved.

bebugging

fault seeding: The process of intentionally adding defects to those already in the component

or system for the purpose of monitoring the rate of detection and removal, and estimating

the number of remaining defects. Fault seeding is typically part of development (prerelease)

testing and can be performed at any test level (component, integration, or system).

[After IEEE 610]

behavior

The response of a component or system to a set of input values and preconditions.

benchmark test

(1) A standard against which measurements for comparisons can be made.

(2) A test that is be used to compare components or systems to each other or to a standard

as in (1). [After IEEE 610]

bespoke software

Software developed specifically for a set of users or customers. The

opposite is off-the-shelf software.

best practice

A superior method or innovative practice that contributes to the improved

performance of an organization under given context, usually recognized as ‘best’ by other

peer organizations.

beta testing

Operational testing by potential and/or existing users/customers at an external

site not otherwise involved with the developers, to determine whether or not a component

or system satisfies the user/customer needs and fits within the business processes. Beta

testing is often employed as a form of external acceptance testing for off-the-shelf software

in order to acquire feedback from the market.

big-bang testing

An integration testing approach in which software elements, hardware

elements, or both are combined all at once into a component or an overall system, rather

than in stages. [After IEEE 610] See also integration testing.

integration testing: Testing performed to expose defects in the interfaces and in the

interactions between integrated components or systems. See also component integration

testing, system integration testing.

black box technique

black box test design technique: Procedure to derive and/or select test cases based on an

 analysis of the specification, either functional or non-functional, of a component or system

without reference to its internal structure.

black box testing

Testing, either functional or non-functional, without reference to the

internal structure of the component or system.

blocked test case

A test case that cannot be executed because the preconditions for its

execution are not fulfilled.

bottom-up testing

An incremental approach to integration testing where the lowest level

components are tested first, and then used to facilitate the testing of higher level

components. This process is repeated until the component at the top of the hierarchy is

tested. See also integration testing.

boundary value

An input value or output value which is on the edge of an equivalence

partition or at the smallest incremental distance on either side of an edge, for example the

minimum or maximum value of a range.

boundary value analysis

A black box test design technique in which test cases are designed

 based on boundary values. See also boundary value.

boundary value coverage

The percentage of boundary values that have been exercised by a

test suite.

boundary value testing

boundary value analysis: A black box test design technique in which test cases are designed

 based on boundary values.

branch

A basic block that can be selected for execution based on a program construct in

which one of two or more alternative program paths is available, e.g. case, jump, go to, ifthen-

else.

branch condition

condition: A logical expression that can be evaluated as True or False, e.g. A>B. See also

condition testing

condition testing: A white box test design technique in which test cases are designed to

execute condition outcomes.

branch condition combination coverage

multiple condition coverage: The percentage of combinations of all single condition

outcomes within one statement that have been exercised by a test suite. 100% multiple

condition coverage implies 100% modified condition decision coverage.

branch coverage

 The percentage of branches that have been exercised by a test suite. 100%

branch coverage implies both 100% decision coverage and 100% statement coverage.

branch testing

A white box test design technique in which test cases are designed to execute

branches.

buffer

A device or storage area used to store data temporarily for differences in rates of data

flow, time or occurrence of events, or amounts of data that can be handled by the devices

or processes involved in the transfer or use of the data. [IEEE 610]

buffer overflow

A memory access failure due to the attempt by a process to store data

beyond the boundaries of a fixed length buffer, resulting in overwriting of adjacent

memory areas or the raising of an overflow exception. See also buffer.

bug

defect:

A flaw in a component or system that can cause the component or system to fail to

 perform its required function, e.g. an incorrect statement or data definition. A defect, if

encountered during execution, may cause a failure of the component or system.

bug report

A document reporting on any flaw in a component or system that can cause the

component or system to fail to perform its required function. [After IEEE 829]

bug taxonomy

defect taxonomy:

A system of (hierarchical) categories designed to be a useful aid for

reproducibly classifying defects

bug tracking tool

defect management tool:

A tool that facilitates the recording and status tracking of defects

and changes. They often have workflow-oriented facilities to track and control the

allocation, correction and re-testing of defects and provide reporting facilities.

See also

incident management tool.

business process-based testing

An approach to testing in which test cases are designed

based on descriptions and/or knowledge of business processes.

call graph

An abstract representation of calling relationships between subroutines in a

program.

Capability Maturity Model Integration

A framework that describes the key elements of an effective product development and maintenance process. The Capability

Maturity Model Integration covers best-practices for planning, engineering and managing

product development and maintenance. [CMMI]

CASE

Acronym for Computer Aided Software Engineering.

CAST

Acronym for Computer Aided Software Testing. See also test automation.

test automation:

The use of software to perform or support test activities, e.g. test

management, test design, test execution and results checking.

test basis

All documents from which the requirements of a component or system can be

inferred. The documentation on which the test cases are based.

If a document can be

amended only by way of formal amendment procedure, then the test basis is called a frozen

test basis. [After TMap

test bed

See test environment.

test environment:

An environment containing hardware, instrumentation, simulators,

software tools, and other support elements needed to conduct a test. [After IEEE 610]

causal analysis

The analysis of defects to determine their root cause. [CMMI]

cause-effect analysis

See cause-effect graphing.

cause-effect graphing:

A black box test design technique in which test cases are designed

from cause-effect graphs. [BS 7925/2]

cause-effect decision table

See decision table.

decision table:

A table showing combinations of inputs and/or stimuli (causes) with their

associated outputs and/or actions (effects), which can be used to design test cases.

cause-effect diagram

A graphical representation used to organize and display the

interrelationships of various possible root causes of a problem. Possible causes of a real or

potential defect or failure are organized in categories and subcategories in a horizontal

tree-structure, with the (potential) defect or failure as the root node. [After Juran]

cause-effect graph

A graphical representation of inputs and/or stimuli (causes) with their

associated outputs (effects), which can be used to design test cases.

cause-effect graphing

A black box test design technique in which test cases are designed

from cause-effect graphs. [BS 7925/2]

The process of confirming that a component, system or person complies with

its specified requirements, e.g. by passing an exam.

See configuration control.

configuration control:

An element of configuration management, consisting of the

evaluation, co-ordination, approval or disapproval, and implementation of changes to

configuration items after formal establishment of their configuration identification. [IEEE

610]

configuration control board (CCB):

A group of people responsible for evaluating and

approving or disapproving proposed changes to configuration items, and for ensuring

implementation of approved changes. [IEEE 610]

configuration identification

An element of configuration management, consisting of

selecting the configuration items for a system and recording their functional and physical

characteristics in technical documentation. [IEEE 610]

configuration item

An aggregation of hardware, software or both, that is designated for

configuration management and treated as a single entity in the configuration management

process. [IEEE 610]

A discipline applying technical and administrative direction and

surveillance to: identify and document the functional and physical characteristics of a

configuration item, control changes to those characteristics, record and report change

processing and implementation status, and verify compliance with specified requirements.

[IEEE 610]

A tool that provides support for the identification and

control of configuration items, their status over changes and versions, and the release of

baselines consisting of configuration items

See portability testing.

portability testing:

The process of testing to determine the portability of a software product.

See re-testing

re-testing: Testing that runs test cases that failed the last time they were run, in order to

verify the success of corrective actions.

See compliance testing.

compliance testing: The process of testing to determine the compliance of the component or

system.

The degree of uniformity, standardization, and freedom from contradiction

among the documents or parts of a component or system. [IEEE 610]

consultative testing

Testing driven by the advice and guidance of appropriate experts from

outside the test team (e.g., technology experts and/or business domain experts).

A process model providing a detailed description of good engineering

practices, e.g. test practices.

continuous representation

A capability maturity model structure wherein capability levels

provide a recommended order for approaching process improvement within specified

process areas. [CMMI]

control chart

A statistical process control tool used to monitor a process and determine

whether it is statistically controlled. It graphically depicts the average value and the upper

and lower control limits (the highest and lowest values) of a process.

control flow

control flow analysis

A form of static analysis based on a representation of unique paths

(sequences of events) in the execution through a component or system. Control flow

analysis evaluates the integrity of control flow structures, looking for possible control flow

anomalies such as closed loops or logically unreachable process steps.

An abstract representation of all possible sequences of events (paths) in

the execution through a component or system.

control flow path

See path

path: A sequence of events, e.g. executable statements, of a component or system from an

entry point to an exit point.

control flow testing

An approach to structure-based testing in which test cases are designed

to execute specific sequences of events. Various techniques exist for control flow testing,

e.g., decision testing, condition testing, and path testing, that each have their specific

approach and level of control flow coverage.

See also decision testing, condition testing,

path testing.

convergence metric

A metric that shows progress toward a defined criterion, e.g.,

convergence of the total number of test executed to the total number of tests planned for

execution.

conversion testing

Testing of software used to convert data from existing systems for use in

replacement systems.

corporate dashboard

A dashboard-style representation of the status of corporate

performance data.

See also balanced scorecard, dashboard.

cost of quality

The total costs incurred on quality activities and issues are often split into

prevention costs, appraisal costs, internal failure costs and external failure costs.

COTS

Acronym for Commercial Off-The-Shelf software. See off-the-shelf software.

coverage

The degree, expressed as a percentage, to which a specified coverage item has been

exercised by a test suite.

Measurement of achieved coverage to a specified coverage item during

test execution referring to predetermined criteria to determine whether additional testing is

required and if so, which test cases are needed.

coverage item

An entity or property used as a basis for test coverage, e.g. equivalence

partitions or code statements.

See coverage tool.

coverage tool:

tool that provides objective measures of what structural elements, e.g.

statements, branches have been exercised by a test suite.

critical success factor

An element necessary for an organization or project to achieve its

mission. Critical success factors are the critical factors or activities required for ensuring

the success.

A content-based model for test process improvement built

around twelve critical processes. These include highly visible processes, by which peers

and management judge competence and mission-critical processes in which performance

affects the company's profits and reputation. See also content-based model.

CTP

See Critical Testing Processes.

Critical Testing Processes:

A content-based model for test process improvement built

 around twelve critical processes. These include highly visible processes, by which peers

and management judge competence and mission-critical processes in which performance

affects the company's profits and reputation. See also content-based model.

custom software

See bespoke software

bespoke software:

Software developed specifically for a set of users or customers. The

opposite is off-the-shelf software.

cyclomatic complexity

The maximum number of linear, independent paths through a

program.

Cyclomatic complexity may be computed as: L – N + 2P, where

- L = the number of edges/links in a graph

- N = the number of nodes in a graph

- P = the number of disconnected parts of the graph (e.g. a called graph or subroutine)

[After McCabe]

cyclomatic number

See cyclomatic complexity.

The maximum number of linear, independent paths through a

program.

Cyclomatic complexity may be computed as: L – N + 2P, where

- L = the number of edges/links in a graph

- N = the number of nodes in a graph

- P = the number of disconnected parts of the graph (e.g. a called graph or subroutine)

[After McCabe]

A development activity whereby a complete system is compiled and linked every

day (often overnight), so that a consistent system is available at any time including all

latest changes.

A representation of dynamic measurements of operational performance for some

organization or activity, using metrics represented via metaphores such as visual ‘dials’,

‘counters’, and other devices resembling those on the dashboard of an automobile, so that

the effects of events or activities can be easily understood and related to operational goals.

See also corporate dashboard, scorecard.

An executable statement where a variable is assigned a value.

data-driven testing

A scripting technique that stores test input and expected results in a

table or spreadsheet, so that a single control script can execute all of the tests in the table.

Data-driven testing is often used to support the application of test execution tools such as

capture/playback tools. [Fewster and Graham] See also keyword-driven testing.

data flow

An abstract representation of the sequence and possible changes of the state of

data objects, where the state of an object is any of: creation, usage, or destruction. [Beizer]

data flow analysis

A form of static analysis based on the definition and usage of variables.

data flow coverage

The percentage of definition-use pairs that have been exercised by a test

suite.

data flow testing

A white box test design technique in which test cases are designed to

execute definition-use pairs of variables.

See database integrity testing.

database integrity testing:

Testing the methods and processes used to access and manage the

data(base), to ensure access methods, processes and data rules function as expected and

that during access to the database, data is not corrupted or unexpectedly deleted, updated or

created.

data quality

An attribute of data that indicates correctness with respect to some pre-defined

criteria, e.g., business expectations, requirements on data integrity, data consistency.

database integrity testing

Testing the methods and processes used to access and manage the

data(base), to ensure access methods, processes and data rules function as expected and

that during access to the database, data is not corrupted or unexpectedly deleted, updated or

created.

dd-path

A path between two decisions of an algorithm, or two decision nodes of a

corresponding graph, that includes no other decisions. See also path.

dead code

See unreachable code.

unreachable code: Code that cannot be reached and therefore is impossible to execute.

debugger

See debugging tool.

debugging tool: A tool used by programmers to reproduce failures, investigate the state of

 programs and find the corresponding defect. Debuggers enable programmers to execute

programs step by step, to halt a program at any program statement and to set and examine

program variables.

decision

A program point at which the control flow has two or more alternative routes. A

node with two or more links to separate branches.

decision condition coverage

The percentage of all condition outcomes and decision

outcomes that have been exercised by a test suite. 100% decision condition coverage

implies both 100% condition coverage and 100% decision coverage.

decision condition testing

A white box test design technique in which test cases are

designed to execute condition outcomes and decision outcomes.

decision coverage

The percentage of decision outcomes that have been exercised by a test

suite. 100% decision coverage implies both 100% branch coverage and 100% statement

coverage.

decision outcome

The result of a decision (which therefore determines the branches to be

taken).

decision table

A table showing combinations of inputs and/or stimuli (causes) with their

associated outputs and/or actions (effects), which can be used to design test cases.

decision table testing

A black box test design technique in which test cases are designed to

 execute the combinations of inputs and/or stimuli (causes) shown in a decision table.

[Veenendaal04] See also decision table.

decision testing

A white box test design technique in which test cases are designed to

execute decision outcomes.

defect

A flaw in a component or system that can cause the component or system to fail to

 perform its required function, e.g. an incorrect statement or data definition. A defect, if

encountered during execution, may cause a failure of the component or system.

defect

A flaw in a component or system that can cause the component or system to fail to

 perform its required function, e.g. an incorrect statement or data definition. A defect, if

encountered during execution, may cause a failure of the component or system.

defect-based technique

See defect-based test design technique.

defect-based test design technique:

A procedure to derive and/or select test cases targeted at

one or more defect categories, with tests being developed from what is known about the

specific defect category. See also defect taxonomy.

defect category

See defect type.

defect type: An element in a taxonomy of defects. Defect taxonomies can be identified with

respect to a variety of considerations, including, but not limited to:

· Phase or development activity in which the defect is created, e.g., a specification error

or a coding error

· Characterization of defects, e.g., an “off-by-one” defect

· Incorrectness, e.g., an incorrect relational operator, a programming language syntax

error, or an invalid assumption

· Performance issues, e.g., excessive execution time, insufficient availability.

definition-use pair

The association of a definition of a variable with the subsequent use of

that variable. Variable uses include computational (e.g. multiplication) or to direct the

execution of a path (“predicate” use).

deliverable

Any product that must be delivered to someone but not the

product’s author.

Deming cycle

An iterative four-step problem-solving process, (plan-do-check-act), typically

used in process improvement. [After Deming]

design-based testing

An approach to testing in which test cases are designed based on the

architecture and/or detailed design of a component or system (e.g. tests of interfaces

between components or systems).

desk checking

Testing of software or a specification by manual simulation of its execution.

See also static testing.

static testing: Testing of a software development artifact, e.g., requirements, design or code,

without execution of these artifacts, e.g., reviews or static analysis.

development testing

Formal or informal testing conducted during the implementation of a

component or system, usually in the development environment by developers. [After IEEE

610]

deviation

See incident.

incident: Any event occurring that requires investigation. [After IEEE 1008]

deviation report

See incident report.

incident report: A document reporting on any event that occurred, e.g. during the testing,

which requires investigation. [After IEEE 829]

diagnosing (IDEAL)

The phase within the IDEAL model where it is determined where one

is, relative to where one wants to be. The diagnosing phase consists of the activities:

characterize current and desired states and develop recommendations. See also IDEAL.

IDEAL: An organizational improvement model that serves as a roadmap for initiating,

planning, and implementing improvement actions. The IDEAL model is named for the five

phases it describes: initiating, diagnosing, establishing, acting, and learning.

dirty testing

See negative testing.

negative testing:

Tests aimed at showing that a component or system does not work.

Negative testing is related to the testers’ attitude rather than a specific test approach or test

design technique, e.g. testing with invalid input values or exceptions. [After Beizer].

documentation testing

Testing the quality of the documentation, e.g. user guide or

installation guide.

domain

The set from which valid input and/or output values can be selected.

domain analysis

A black box test design technique that is used to identify efficient and

effective test cases when multiple variables can or should be tested together. It builds on

and generalizes equivalence partitioning and boundary values analysis. See also boundary

value analysis, equivalence partitioning.

driver

A software component or test tool that replaces a component that takes care of the

control and/or the calling of a component or system. [After TMap]

dynamic analysis

The process of evaluating behavior, e.g. memory performance, CPU

usage, of a system or component during execution. [After IEEE 610]

dynamic analysis tool

A tool that provides run-time information on the state of the software

code. These tools are most commonly used to identify unassigned pointers, check pointer

arithmetic and to monitor the allocation, use and de-allocation of memory and to flag

memory leaks.

dynamic comparison

Comparison of actual and expected results, performed while the

software is being executed, for example by a test execution tool.

effectiveness

The capability of producing an intended result. See also efficiency.

efficiency:

(1) The capability of the software product to provide appropriate performance,

 relative to the amount of resources used under stated conditions. [ISO 9126]

(2) The capability of a process to produce the intended outcome, relative to the amount of

resources used

efficiency

efficiency:

(1) The capability of the software product to provide appropriate performance,

 relative to the amount of resources used under stated conditions. [ISO 9126]

(2) The capability of a process to produce the intended outcome, relative to the amount of

resources used

efficiency testing

The process of testing to determine the efficiency of a software product.

EFQM (European Foundation for Quality Management) excellence model

A nonprescriptive

framework for an organisation's quality management system, defined and

owned by the European Foundation for Quality Management, based on five 'Enabling'

criteria (covering what an organisation does), and four 'Results' criteria (covering what an

organisation achieves).

elementary comparison testing

A black box test design technique in which test cases are

designed to execute combinations of inputs using the concept of modified condition

decision coverage. [TMap]

embedded iterative development model

A development lifecycle sub-model that applies an

iterative approach to detailed design, coding and testing within an overall sequential

model. In this case, the high level design documents are prepared and approved for the

entire project but the actual detailed design, code development and testing are conducted in

iterations.

emotional intelligence

The ability, capacity, and skill to identify, assess, and manage the

emotions of one's self, of others, and of groups.

emulator

A device, computer program, or system that accepts the same inputs and produces

the same outputs as a given system. [IEEE 610] See also simulator.

simulator: A device, computer program or system used during testing, which behaves or

operates like a given system when provided with a set of controlled inputs. [After IEEE

610, DO178b] See also emulator.

The set of generic and specific conditions for permitting a process to go

forward with a defined task, e.g. test phase. The purpose of entry criteria is to prevent a

task from starting which would entail more (wasted) effort compared to the effort needed

to remove the failed entry criteria. [Gilb and Graham]

entry point

An executable statement or process step which defines a point at which a given

process is intended to begin.

equivalence class

See equivalence partition

equivalence partition:

A portion of an input or output domain for which the behavior of a

component or system is assumed to be the same, based on the specification.

equivalence partition coverage

The percentage of equivalence partitions that have been

exercised by a test suite.

equivalence partitioning

A black box test design technique in which test cases are designed to execute representatives from equivalence partitions. In principle test cases are designed

to cover each partition at least once.

equivalence partition coverage

The percentage of equivalence partitions that have been

exercised by a test suite.

equivalence partitioning

A black box test design technique in which test cases are designed

 to execute representatives from equivalence partitions. In principle test cases are designed

to cover each partition at least once.

error

A human action that produces an incorrect result

error guessing

A test design technique where the experience of the tester is used to anticipate what defects might be present in the component or system under test as a resultof errors made, and to design tests specifically to expose them

error seeding

See fault seeding

fault seeding: The process of intentionally adding defects to those already in the component

or system for the purpose of monitoring the rate of detection and removal, and estimating

the number of remaining defects. Fault seeding is typically part of development (prerelease)

testing and can be performed at any test level (component, integration, or system).

[After IEEE 610]

error seeding tool

See fault seeding tool.

fault seeding tool: A tool for seeding (i.e. intentionally inserting) faults in a component or

system.

error tolerance

The ability of a system or component to continue normal operation despite

the presence of erroneous inputs. [After IEEE 610].

establishing (IDEAL)

The phase within the IDEAL model where the specifics of how an organization will reach its destination are planned. The establishing phase consists of the

activities: set priorities, develop approach and plan actions. See also IDEAL.

IDEAL: An organizational improvement model that serves as a roadmap for initiating,

planning, and implementing improvement actions. The IDEAL model is named for the five

phases it describes: initiating, diagnosing, establishing, acting, and learning.

evaluation

See testing.

testing: The process consisting of all lifecycle activities, both static and dynamic, concerned

with planning, preparation and evaluation of software products and related work products

to determine that they satisfy specified requirements, to demonstrate that they are fit for

purpose and to detect defects.

exception handling

Behavior of a component or system in response to erroneous input, from

either a human user or from another component or system, or to an internal failure.

executable statement

A statement which, when compiled, is translated into object code, and

which will be executed procedurally when the program is running and may perform an

action on data.

exercised

A program element is said to be exercised by a test case when the input value

causes the execution of that element, such as a statement, decision, or other structural

element.

exhaustive testing

A test approach in which the test suite comprises all combinations of

input values and preconditions.

exit criteria

The set of generic and specific conditions, agreed upon with the stakeholders

 for permitting a process to be officially completed. The purpose of exit criteria is to

 prevent a task from being considered completed when there are still outstanding parts of

the task which have not been finished. Exit criteria are used to report against and to plan

when to stop testing. [After Gilb and Graham]

exit point

An executable statement or process step which defines a point at which a given

process is intended to cease.

expected outcome

See expected result.

expected result: The behavior predicted by the specification, or another source, of the

component or system under specified conditions.

experience-based technique

See experience-based test design technique

experience-based test design technique: Procedure to derive and/or select test cases based

on the tester’s experience, knowledge and intuition.

experience-based testing

Testing based on the tester’s experience, knowledge and intuition.

exploratory testing

An informal test design technique where the tester actively controls the

design of the tests as those tests are performed and uses information gained while testing to

design new and better tests. [After Bach]

extreme programming (XP)

A software engineering methodology used within agile

software development whereby core practices are programming in pairs, doing extensive

code review, unit testing of all code, and simplicity and clarity in code. See also agile

software development.