Software Testing: What Goes Around Comes Around

Software Testing Most people knowledgeable about technology generally understand that testing is useful, but they’re short on concrete details as to why. Furthermore, some fail to recognize that testing can be as problematic as it is beneficial. Some think that software testing is merely a set of tools—they have no idea about its rich history of debates over deep theoretical questions. Furthermore, they’ve never pondered its important relationship to mathematics. Many people with an otherwise sophisticated understanding of technology don’t fully grasp the basic concept of software testing—that it’s traditionally performed to either assess a characteristic, such as reliability or security, or estimate the density or number of code defects. Furthermore, many don’t know the benefits or weaknesses of static versus dynamic testing, nor when to apply one over the other. Even more astonishing is that these are the same folks who ask, “Why isn’t software certified?” They ask this as if certifying software were as simple as pushing an elevator button. Following are some of the key software testing questions we must consider: