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Before our AMCON system leaves the company, our software must be thoroughly tested. At AMCON, this task is handled by our software tester Anna. Although she originally trained as a mechanical engineer, she also studied computer science. She is an ISTQB Certified Tester and has established various testing processes and tools with us. As the first and so far only software tester at AMCON, she gives insight into what occupies most of her time.
The key points in brief:
For quality assurance, software tester Anna thoroughly checks our AMCON system before it is delivered to customers. She uses various testing methods and tools and has truly established the software testing area within our company. Anna gets involved at the end of the Scrum process, after the developers have completed component testing and before the software is handed over to the customer. For this, she applies different tools and testing procedures and works, among others, with Katalon Studio to test API, web, mobile, and desktop applications.
“Program testing can be used to show the presence of bugs, but never show their absence,” once said the Dutch computer scientist Edsger W. Dijkstra. Translated, this means that testing a program can demonstrate the existence of errors, but never their absence. This is because one would have to test all possible combinations of letters, numbers, and characters in every input field in all possible permutations, which is practically impossible for most test objects. Therefore, there are different testing concepts and strategies that deal with how to achieve the highest possible test coverage with as few test cases as possible.
The Different Phases of Testing
In total, software testing is divided into four different test levels: component testing, integration testing, system testing, and acceptance testing. The component test, also called unit test, is performed independently by the software developers to verify the technical functionality and to check if correct results are displayed.
After that, Anna comes into play. She takes care of the integration tests and system tests. During integration testing, she ensures, for example, that the subscription management module correctly communicates with the tariff module and that the correct data is read and loaded in the right place. This is important so that the backend system can show in which tariff area or validity zone the job ticket is valid. She checks whether different components programmed by various developers communicate and work together correctly.
During the system tests, Anna tests the entire system with real data in a realistic environment before it is delivered to the customer. Only when our software passes this test can it be delivered.
Software Requirements
When a customer orders the AMCON system with modules specially tailored to them, they have clear expectations of what the software should be able to do. For this purpose, our project managers, in coordination with the customer, create so-called specifications that precisely document and record all requirements. That’s why Anna always works closely with the project managers.
An Example:
The customer wants to manage passengers in their database and assigns a customer number to each client. This number consists of a 10-digit numeric code. For this requirement, the developer must ensure that only 10 digits can be entered in the field, and that neither letters nor special characters are allowed. Additionally, the developer must make sure that no system errors occur if someone accidentally types something incorrectly. These are the kinds of things Anna tests, using various tools and strategies.
The acceptance test is then carried out by the customer, who also tests the software for another two to three weeks after delivery to verify whether it works as expected. After that, the final approval follows.
Tools and Testing Methods
Anna works with the automated testing solution Katalon Studio, among other tools. This software is based on the open-source automation frameworks Selenium and Appium, and offers a specialized IDE interface for testing API, web, mobile, and desktop applications.
For testing, she breaks down the code into small units – the smallest testable components of the software. If everything works correctly at this level, several units are combined into a group and tested together.
Let me know if you’d like this phrased more technically or simplified for a general audience.
When Anna finds bugs – that’s what software errors are called – she documents them and creates tickets in Jira for the developers so the issues can be fixed and included in upcoming releases. Currently, she works closely with the Abo (subscription) team, coordinating frequently with team lead Jonas and product manager Alexander.
In addition to tools like Katalon Studio, Anna also uses a variety of testing techniques and methods, including static and dynamic tests as well as specification-based techniques.
Since we have many more teams, Anna needs support.
So if you have experience in designing and implementing automated test procedures and want to help ensure our software meets the highest standards, take a look at our current job openings.