Like any other technology field,
software testing is also a continuously-evolving industry. To become a pro, it requires constant learning and keeping up with changing trends and happenings in the testing world.
Here are five popular and well-reputed books to help you master testing and learn the tips and tricks from the experts.
1) The Art of Software Testing – 3rd Edition
This book was first released around three decades back! With time, hardware and software have changed dramatically. This latest edition keeps in consideration all the modern styles and practices. It is a powerful, comprehensive, classic book that addresses the underlying analysis and concepts thoroughly. Hence this book is more suited for beginners and intermediate level, but can also help advanced testers polish their concepts and skills.
2) Agile Testing: A Practical Guide for Testers and Agile Teams
The book,
Agile Testing: A Practical Guide for Testers and Agile Teams, is a must for
agile testers , agile teams, their managers, and their customers. The writers have explained in-depth the agile testing quadrants, types of testing needed, and the tools that should be used to execute the tests. In addition to "everything agile", this book shows an agile software development iteration. This is done from the viewpoint of a tester and also explains the seven key success factors of agile testing.
3) Just Enough Software Test Automation
This book covers a lot of automation framework issues. It explains comprehensively about what actually should be automated, and gives complete insight into planning, implementing, and managing automated testing. A sample automation project plan given in the book is also very useful. It focuses on data-driven testing framework, automation of unit testing, integration testing, and regression testing, and usage of automated tools for manual testing.
4) Penetration Testing
The book serves as a helping hand for all the testers who want to dig deeper into ethical hacking and penetration testing. Penetration testing entails finding security weaknesses in networks, operating systems, and applications etc., and is not an easy feat. This book comes with loads of informative content and penetration techniques to evaluate enterprise defenses. It also comes with guidelines about ethical hacking, and why it is essential to stay within the ethical realms of testing.
5) The Way of the Web Tester: A Beginner’s Guide to Automating Tests
This is a wonderful book, and has something for everyone. Testers will discover fresh ideas about how to approach automation, and developers will gain insight into how to strengthen their testing practices. This book provides guidance about:
- Writing good automated tests for the web/UI
- Picking and choosing the right tests
- Explaining and coordinating within your team
Moreover, this book is not in a typical academic style. Rather, it’s filled with cartoons, graphics, best practices, war stories, and humor. Extremely engaging, the reader gets introduced to different levels of tests, best practices for writing and organizing tests, and insights into principles such as test-driven development and mocking.
If you haven’t read any of these books, do buy them or read them online. They’ll not only help improve your testing skills, but also give you a fresh perspective and widen your knowledge. And remember, the more you read, the more you grow! Happy reading!
FAQs
ISTQB Certified Tester, Certified Software Quality Analyst (CSQA), and Certified Software Test Engineer are just a few of the certifications that can prove to be highly valuable for testers, software engineers, and QA professionals. Certifications from companies like Microsoft, HP, and Oracle can also benefit professionals working with specific technologies.
Software tester salaries might vary depending on the company, location, and level of expertise. In general, software testers with more experience and advanced skill sets earn more. The average salary for a software tester in the United States is roughly $75,000 per year, according to Glassdoor. This, however, varies depending on region, company, and experience. Some senior or management software testers can earn much more than the average salary.
QA and software testing are closely linked fields. However, their focus and responsibilities differ. QA is a much broader term that refers to the complete process of ensuring a product's quality. In contrast, software testing involves the assessment of a digital product to find any bugs or defects. Both are critical in the software development process and frequently overlap. While QA is more concerned with the whole process, testing is focused on finding specific issues, and both can be done seamlessly with Testworthy.