August 2015

Welcome to RBCS, Inc.

Dear Reader,

And, just like that, the summer is just about over. It seems like it had just started, but then I guess we were so busy here at RBCS that the time just flew past.

One major accomplishment of the summer: the second edition of Advanced Software Testing: Volume 1 is now done! Amazon is taking pre-orders, and the only thing that remains is copy-editing. To celebrate, we've given you a little taste below, an excerpt of the book. Want to learn more about equivalence partitioning? Take a look below.

Another major accomplishment over the summer is the re-design of our website. A new, streamlined experience awaits you in just the next couple months. We're looking forward to making it even easier to use our store and access all the free resources on our site.

Over the next few months, I'll be at a couple of conferences. First, the ASTQB is running its second annual conference. I'll be there. I'll also be at the STP Conference, presenting our popular Agile Testing Foundation course. Get the details in this newsletter.

As summer winds down, you might consider looking at some training options to wind down the year. We have a good line up of live courses, and you can find all the details here.   

Too busy for conferences and live courses? Well, try our virtual courses and e-learning. Did you know you can take our Test Engineering Foundation course in English, Chinese, and Spanish? Perfect for distributed, multi-lingual test teams.  

Did you fall behind on the RBCS webinar series over the summer? A lot of people did, but don't worry. As always, they are recorded and available for you in our Digital Library.

In the blast-from-the-past category, we've featured a recording of my debate, with Cem Kaner, about schools of software testing, which was a keynote event at the STP Conference a year ago.  Hate it, love it, or know nothing about it, it's a worthwhile listen if you want to better understand the software testing profession.      

Enjoy the rest of your summer, and I hope to see you at a conference, in one of our classes (live or virtual), or on a webinar over the rest of 2015. 

Rex Black, President  

By Rex Black 
  

We start with the most basic of specification-based test design techniques, equivalence partitioning.

Conceptually, equivalence partitioning is about testing various groups that are expected to be handled the same way by the system and exhibit similar behavior.  Those groups can be inputs, outputs, internal values, calculations, or time values, and should include valid and invalid groups. We select a single value from each equivalence partition, and this allows us to reduce the number of tests.  We can calculate coverage by dividing the number of equivalence partitions tested by the number identified, though generally the goal is to achieve 100% coverage by selecting at least one value from each partition.

This technique is universally applicable at any test level, in any situation where we can identify the equivalence partitions. Ideally, those partitions are independent, though some amount of interaction between input values does not preclude the use of the technique. This technique is also very useful in constructing smoke tests, though testing of some of the less-risky partitions frequently is omitted in smoke tests. This technique will find primarily functional defects where data is processed improperly in one or more partitions. The key to this technique is to take care that the values in each equivalence partition are indeed handled the same way; otherwise, you will miss potentially important test values.

The ISTQB Test Engineering Foundation Level Test course, was created by Rex Black, past President of the International Software Testing Qualifications Board (ISTQB), past President of the American Software Testing Qualifications Board (ASTQB) and co-author of the International Software Testing Qualifications Board Foundation Syllabus. This course is ideal for testers and test teams preparing for certification.

This hands-on course provides test engineers and test managers with the essential ideas, processes, tools and skills they need in order to set themselves on a path for true testing professionalism.

The objectives of the course are as follows:

• Review the major test design techniques with lecture and exercises
• Methodology behind a successful testing program and covers a wide range of issues, from those related to the individual tester to those related to the testing department as a whole
• The testing process is presented, both through theory and hands-on exercises that follow an example project, including the difficult tasks of tracking and presenting tests result
• Creation of a test environment and test automation is also covered, along with system development lifecycles and how they affect testing

Purchase of the course tuition includes:

• Complimentary access to the RBCS e-learning course
• Instructor-led four-day course
• A set of approximately 700 PowerPoint slides covering the topics to be addressed
• NEW!! A downloadable copy of the complete note set. View the materials on and/or download the materials to a PC or mobile device. There is no expiration date on access to this valuable resource as they will be downloadable. Digital rights management and intellectual property rights are protected by some limitations such as the inability to share the file with others. Further, while the materials can be printed, each page includes a prominent watermark, with the exception of the pages in the ISTQB Syllabus and Glossary.
• Three sample Foundation Level mock exams to provide a review of the Foundation Level exam
• ISTQB Foundation Level Syllabus
• The latest glossary of terms used in Software Testing produced by members of the ISTQB
• Standards for Software Testing
• Test Engineering Foundation Sample Exam Questions embedded throughout course
• Exercise solutions
• Project Source Documents for Course Exercises
• Copy of the textbook "Foundations of Software Testing: ISTQB Certification"
• The $250 certification exam fee. Exams are held on the afternoon of the final course day and are administered by a representative from the American Software Testing Qualifications Board
• Course completion certificate (often used for employer reimbursement)

Re-accredited by the ASTQB June 2010. This course follows the ISTQB Foundation Level Syllabus 2011. Click below to download your preferred format of the syllabus: PDF format, EPUB (Nook) format or MOBI (Kindle) format.

Blended e-learning, licenses and volume discounts are also available for companies. 

 Visit the RBCS Store to purchase this course today!

Tip provided by our partner Green Mountain Energy.