Web Software Testing

AUDIENCE: The course is designed for software testers and test managers. PREREQUISITES: A basic knowledge of the Internet and software testing. Attendance on the Structured Approach to Software Testing course would be an ideal prerequisite. DURATION: 3 days. Lecture presentations are supported by a realistic case study, based on a fictitious Web site, which allows reinforcement of learning and enhances the understanding process. In addition, various testing tools will be demonstrated. FOLLOW ON: Web Performance Testing; Web Security Testing OBJECTIVES: While many of the traditional concepts of software testing still hold true, Web sites and Web applications have a different risk profile to other, more mature environments. A typical Web tester now has to deal with shorter release cycles, changing technology, complex hardware and software platforms and an anticipated user base which is uncontrolled and may run into millions. Many testers and test managers are being asked to make the transition from testing traditional client/server, PC, and/or mainframe environments to testing Web sites and applications. This training course seeks to help those making this transition by explaining Web technologies, the issues associated with Web testing and suggesting solutions, strategies and techniques that can be used in a Web site’s functional, navigation, usability, and compatibility testing. At the end of the course attendees will be able to: - Understand the different technologies used in Web environments. - Communicate adequately with Web developers to ascertain the nature of the development and production environments including the functionality of the site or application. - Examine and validate functional and non-functional requirements for Web sites and applications. - Specify appropriate test environments. - Perform a simple risk analysis to identify and prioritise tests. - Create appropriate tests, test cases and test scripts. - Execute tests in a controlled manner using the correct setup conditions and inputs. - Understand the nature, availability and limitations of Web testing tools. COURSE CONTENT: Web Basics Internet and Web History, Basic Internet Architecture, Network Protocols, IP Addresses, URLs and DNS, Intranets, Extranets, Virtual Private Networks. Code Quality Assurance Quality Control and Quality Assurance, Unit Testing, Mark-Up Languages, Hypertext Markup Language (HTML), HTML Validation, Images, Fonts, Cascading Style Sheets (CSS), Client-side Scripting, Extensible Markup Language (XML), Document Type Definitions (DTD), XML Namespaces, XML Schema, Displaying XML with CSS, Extensible Stylesheet Language (XSL). Compatibility Client Hardware, Client Software, Different Browsers, Server Software, Choosing the Test Environment, Market Research, Tiers of Support, Software Combinations, Software Configuration Tools, Installability and Serviceability. Navigation Links, Static and Dynamic Links, Framesets, Inline Frames, Navigational Aids, Internal Search Engines, Site Maps, Navigational Efficiency, Link Checking Tools. Risk Based Testing Test Identification, Non-Functional Attributes, Business Impact, Failure Likelihood, Test Prioritisation. Client-side Functionality Forms, Client-side and Server-side Validation, Dynamic HTML, Scripting, Document Object Model, AJAX, Client-side Pop-ups, Client-side Objects, Java and the Java Virtual Machine. Server-side Functionality Server-Side Includes, Dynamic Page Generation (ASP, PHP, Python, Ruby, etc.), Common Gateway Interface (CGI), Database Interaction, Database Middleware, Interfacing to Back-Office Systems, Personalisation, RSS. Sessions Maintaining a Session, Cookies, Shopping Carts, Multi-Page Transactions, State Transition Diagrams. Server-side Functionality Server-Side Includes, Dynamic Page Generation (ASP, PHP, Python, Ruby, etc.), Common Gateway Interface (CGI), Database Interaction, Database Middleware, Interfacing to Back-Office Systems, Personalisation, Maintaining a Session, Cookies, Shopping Carts, Multi-Page Transactions, State Transition Diagrams. Usability and Accessibility Importance of User Interface, Workflows, Usability Testing, Colours, Screen Size and Resolution, Readability, Printer Friendly Pages, Help Systems, Usability Guidelines, Performing Usability Tests, Accessibility, Guidelines, Globalisation, International Environment, Legal Considerations. Post Implementation Maintenance Testing, Measuring Success, Search Engines and Directories, Meta Tags. Appendices Web Services, Testing Tools.