Switching for Exploratory Testers

Trying to see how we switch approach while discovering things

When we explore, we might be working with a particular method until it's worth switching to another method. We might name the method, and consciously switch, or we might futz about and see what happens. We might futz about until we have named methods and deliberate switching, or we might get fed up with our patterns of work and drift to futzing about.

In this exercise, we'll play with revealing information. In Raster Reveal, you play with a block of colour to show details, and watch your mind to see when it sparks into hypothesis about what picture is revealed. In this exercise, a variant on Raster Reveal, we'll consciously limit our approaches, and observe what triggers a switch from one to another.

For each exercise, you'll wave your mouse / finger over the block. We'll all do the same block at the same time. We'll all be revealing the same picture. We won't talk until the end of each exercise.

Approaches

• Dragging across the image in straight lines (of direction / spacing / length)
• Making circles across (some part)
• Making a spiral into (some part)

Exercise 01

As you work, consider how you're approaching your exploration.

How and where / why did you switch approach?

Exercise 02

As you work, try to limit your approaches to the ones above, and limit those approaches to particular parameters.

How and where / why did you switch approach?

Exercise 03

Try to only use each approach once. What do you start with, and why?

How and where / why did you switch approach?

Exercise 04

this is a spare

Conclude

How dod you decide to switch approach?

What was your experience of revelation in this experiment?

Drawing from your experience just now, what do you recognise about how your mind works, when you recall your work exploratory testing?

Frameworks

Stopping Heuristics for Exploratory Testing

Let’s distinguish switching from stopping. You switch when you cold be doing something better. Stopping is when you’ve run out of resource.

A great way to run out is when you’ve set yourself a small budget – a timebox, a stack of discoveries: running out means it’s time to move on and switch to a different location or approach.

Here’s my non-exhaustive list of situations to stop, and here’s a better list from Michael Bolton and James Bach:

• out of resource: time / money / licenses
• found enough (by number)
• found enough (a big-enough problem)
• found nothing of note after some time (before out of resource?)
• answered all the outstanding questions (you did have questions?)

Tags

• Exercises