A primary problem faced by testers relates to time available to do testing. There is never enough time to do all the testing that may be possible to perform. Testing always involves a trade-off, making choices on what and how much to test within the constraints of available time. Look at it this way - if we were to measure test coverage as a percentage of all the tests that may be potentially performed, the test coverage would always be zero. This is due to the fact that for a significant real-world system, the number of tests that may be run are infinite.
Testers need to understand requirements, assess risks and prioritize tests to be performed. It is essential that testers involve stakeholders while making decisions on what to, what not to and how much to test. Time-boxing of testing is not restricted to any particular phase of activity. Time constraints are set from the start and tend to escalate as the project moves towards completion. It is not uncommon for testers to be pressurized to finish up testing quickly or shorten test cycles as the release date gets closer. It is important for testers to be able to clearly communicate the risks involved when deciding on dropping any tests to accommodate requests for shorter than normal cycle times. Stakeholders can use the information provided by testers to understand the risk-return trade-offs and decide on the release.
Testers need to understand requirements, assess risks and prioritize tests to be performed. It is essential that testers involve stakeholders while making decisions on what to, what not to and how much to test. Time-boxing of testing is not restricted to any particular phase of activity. Time constraints are set from the start and tend to escalate as the project moves towards completion. It is not uncommon for testers to be pressurized to finish up testing quickly or shorten test cycles as the release date gets closer. It is important for testers to be able to clearly communicate the risks involved when deciding on dropping any tests to accommodate requests for shorter than normal cycle times. Stakeholders can use the information provided by testers to understand the risk-return trade-offs and decide on the release.
