James Bach

If you think that test automation is mostly about executing tests, then you're missing out on a big opportunity. Or rather, you're missing a lot of small opportunities adding up to a big one. Consider this: stop thinking about test automation as merely executing automated tests, stop thinking about test automation as something you need expensive tools for, and start discovering automation you can implement in a couple of days and usually with extremely inexpensive tools or tools you already have available. In this week's column, Danny Faught and James Bach suggest taking a more Agile approach to test automation.

There is a notion that exploratory testing is devoid of and incompatible with planning. Supporters and skeptics alike tend to have concerns that exploratory testing might not work in their organizations because of this perceived lack of planning. Is exploratory testing necessarily unplanned? Let's take a look at the nature of plans and how exploratory practices fit into the big picture.

Exploratory software testing is a powerful and fun approach to testing. In some situations, it can be orders of magnitude more productive than scripted testing. I haven't found a tester yet who didn't, at least unconsciously, perform exploratory testing at one time or another. Yet few of us study this approach, and it doesn't get much respect in our field. It's high time we stop the denial, and publicly recognize the exploratory approach for what it is: scientific thinking in real time. Friends, that's a good thing.

This template lists potential risks that are common with software that automates the installation of software applications.