Tips to Write an Effective Test Case

Bangalore: A major activity of a Tester that has an impact on the testing phase is to write Test Cases. It may sound easy, however it requires proper planning and execution apart from the skills which are can be accomplished by a good experience and a thorough knowledge of the application. This will help the tester develop either a positive test case or a negative test case.

Here are few tips as cited on softwaretestinghelp.com that will help a tester write an effective test case.

1.    Keep it simple but not too simple; make it complex but not too complex
The content of the test case should be descriptive so that everyone understands when they read it and it should be to the point. It should without a doubt explain the purpose and the scope of the testing.

2.    Create Templates:
To write an effective test case, you would need to have a complete template design. This can be done on any of the spreadsheet or text editor.

3.    After documenting Test cases, review once as a Tester:
One the test cases have been written, the tester needs to go through the cases from the beginning not with a mindset of a test cases writer of a planner but as a tester. This is done to ensure that the cases can be understood easily apart from ensuring that the report is complete.  

4.    Bound as well as ease the testers:
The tester should not have the liberty of choosing the test data. However, the data can be divided among them. This will avoid the same data being used and also ensure that important data are not ignored during the execution. The testing cases can be divided into various categories and the application areas. This will simplify the testers’ overall activity.

5.    Be a Contributor:
A test case writer is not only for reviewing or to identify the test situations. However, they can also be a contributor by suggesting various changes that can be added such as meaningful messages or usability.

6.    Never forget the End User:
The success of the product depends on the end user. While identifying testing scenarios, the tester should keep in mind the needs of the end user.