Thursday, May 23, 2002
More on Quality and Testing. In previous entries I covered most of the newer books on quality, reliability and testing. However, there are some older books that are still valid or contain enough information of value that they merit a mention.
- Testing Very Big Systems. After you've peeled back the layers of testing techniques that are better documented and more refined in more recent books, and archaic language that characterized the mainframe lingo that was dying out when this book was first written a decade ago you'll find gold.
First, the way test case management is presented stands the test of time. The author is obviously well versed in managing complex system testing and it shows in his detailed approach to developing a test strategy and managing a large array of test cases. As good as this material is, it isn't a sufficient reason to track down a copy of this book because Rick Craig and Stefan Jaskiel have a more modern book, Systematic Software Testing that accomplishes the same goal.
The real gold is in the way that this book integrates testing, issue management and metrics. Although there is a large body of knowledge on these topics, this book manages to sort out the complexities in the clearest terms I've encountered. I also think that the approach change management is excellent, and especially the way this is linked to issue management. On the subject of issue management, the taxonomy of issue types has served me as a model during numerous consulting engagements for service delivery and software engineering process development, and have been proven in the field.
Additional gold is in the chapters on test documentation (especially the treatment of status reporting) and managing management. I also like the way that the author takes economic considerations into account, which was not much in vogue when this book was written in 1992.
If you're an SQA or applications delivery practitioner I strongly recommend tracking down a copy of this book. Look past the archaic parts and you will find one nugget after the other of useful information. I wish this book would be rewritten to reflect today's environment and the lessons that the author learned in the decade since this book was first published because there is much in this book that you will not find elsewhere. - Ensuring Software Reliability. Despite this book's age and the subsequent software reliability books that have since been published, it adds a perspective and information that is either not in more recent books, or is not given the same comprehensive treatment.
If you are familiar with software reliability as a discipline and with any of the major books, such as John Musa's Software Reliability Engineered Testing, you'll probably not find anything new in Part I, although chapters 3 (software failures and failure processes), and 6 (reliability terms and definitions) add clear, succinct descriptions and definitions to these topics.
Part II, however, is where this book shines and why I use this book as one of my principal references. Specifically, chapter 7, which covers software reliability data collection, is thorough and comprehensive. I especially like the way data collection is integrated into a reporting process, and the near exhaustive list of error, product and process metrics and their associated descriptions. Chapter 8 is another gem. It describes 12 major reliability models, ranging from Musa's models to predictive models. One of the most interesting models in this catalog is the 'Leone Test Coverage Model', which is based upon percentage of completion and coverage of specific development and testing tasks. For each model the author gives a summary description, provides assumptions and parameters of the model, and the associated math. Each model's summary contains strengths and weaknesses, and when in the life cycle the model is best employed.
Overall, this book contains some invaluable information and information that has been superseded by newer books (especially the last chapters in Part II). If you're seeking information that I've highlighted above, this book is a worthwhile investment. If you're looking for a book that is more up-to-date I recommend Software Reliability Engineered Testing by John Musa. This book will remain an often referenced part of my library for some time to come.
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