Saturday, July 27, 2013

Software Testing Evolution and Revolution

So far as the Information Technology industry is concerned, exponential growth has become a regular phenomenon. Although the history of IT is comparatively shorter than that of other industries, revolutions are predominant in it, taking into considerations the super computers, microchips, personal computers, power PC chips, Artificial Intelligence, the World Wide Web and lots more. Each of these had some or the other transformative impact on businesses and people. The last decade has witnessed the evolution of software testing solutions into a key constituent for businesses to accomplish success and a prospect for the most talented to build rewarding careers.



THE BYGONE MODEL: Only a few years ago, the software tester was a small player within the software development procedure. The fundamental role of software testing comprised capturing of bugs in codes, a procedure mostly carried out manually. The entire process was non-intellectual, repetitive and a routine one, concentrating more on templates and metrics.




In a life cycle including multiple steps, testing had a time slot immediately prior to release of the software product. Regarded as less important than the planning and development stages, the testing stage often had to be squeezed in towards the project's end. Due to this, testers often became answerable in case there were any quality issues cropping up after the product launch.



THE NEW MODEL: The rapid proliferation of the internet has literally transformed the way business is done. It has made room for fascinating avenues and prospects related to business development and profit. In the era of the internet, web-oriented applications have turned into means through which both internal and external customers of an organization interact with each other and the business.



As enterprise software applications became more and more consumer-oriented, the competitive advantage and competency of business gradually came to the forefront. This had a dramatic effect on businesses, especially for industries like healthcare, finance, media, education and retail.



However, the pitfall in this rapid revolution is that companies which are slow to adopt the changes and deal with the complexities that crop up as a result of this software revolution may face grim consequences.



THE FUNCTION OF SOFTWARE TESTING WITHIN THE NEW MODEL: The current business scenario involves more focus on consumer-oriented applications and since there is direct interaction between the business and consumers, such applications are required to perform faultlessly. To ensure optimum performance, software testing is given immense importance in the software development process and has become an integral component of system development lifecycle.



Presently, software testing has turned into a comprehensive domain that incorporates the complete software system from identifying defects to coming up with a supportive feedback device for the developer. In fact, evolving from the conventional stage of debugging codes, software testing now involves testing the analysis, testing the design as well as testing the development.



CHALLENGES OF THE NEW MODEL: As the software development procedure gradually assumed increasing importance, certain challenges cropped up. Since software testing has now become a comprehensive risk management and quality assurance activity, it requires a broader knowledge base and skill set on the part of the software testing engineers. They should have the ability to chart out, devise and execute efficient test processes to address concerns related to inconsistency and quality of data, end-user expectations regarding business flow and performance of the applications. Another obvious challenge in the domain of software testing is the complicated nature of software and technology, thanks to the consumer triggered application evolution.



ADDRESSING THE CHALLENGES IN SOFTWARE TESTING: The issue is that in comparison to the growing demand, the number of qualified engineers falls short. As the need for software testing is expected to see a considerable rise, there is indeed a large gap between the demand and supply for software testing engineers. To resolve this problem, organizations have three options. First, they can continue with the old testing model. Secondly, the existing testing staff can be trained to get adapted to the new testing model. Herein, it is imperative to make your testers involved in all the processes from design to implementation, so that they can contribute their knowledge, recommendations and proficiency across the entire lifecycle of application development.



There is a third solution for companies which cannot afford to lose time catching up with the new model of software testing because of their heavy reliance on web-based applications. There are independent service providers rendering expert software testing services through the incorporation of new trends such as agile development, testing in the cloud and so on. These organizations have turned into vital arms for a number of businesses intending to enhance their product quality effectively, economically and on time.



With the rapid evolution of software technology and many revolutions taking place in this field, software testing indeed becomes a promising and rewarding career for IT professionals. In fact, the software test engineer's role is rapidly becoming as prestigious as that of the software developer. And the number of is also increasing. The challenge now is to find companies which can provide the right testing services.



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