Manual Testing Interview Question Part 2

46. How would you ensure that you have covered 100% testing?

Answer: The testing coverage is defined by exit criteria (There is exit criteria and entry criteria in the Test Strategy). For example, if the exit criteria says “The software will be acceptable to the client only if there are no critical defects, no high defects, no medium defects and only two low defects”, then all the critical, high, medium should be zero. Only 2 low defects are acceptable. Thus, 100% coverage is measured by the exit criteria. Also, 100% test cases must be executed in order to cover 100% of testing.

47. What problems did you face in the past? How did you solve it?
(You will be OK if you just give one of the problems below, not all of them)

Answer: I had many problems while testing applications in the past.
As far as I remember one of them (then describe one of them from below), this was the scenario:
(i) It was a web-based application. I was working on a module called “Transaction Summary”. There was “Submit” button on that page. After entering data in the all the fields, for example, First Name, Last Name, Social Security Number, Date of Birth and so on, I clicked the Submit button. Once I clicked Submit button, an error page displayed, “Page cannot be found…”. Since it was a critical defect, I immediately informed the Test Lead. There was a chaos in the room. All the developers, Database Administrators and Testers gathered in my cube (room). No body could tell exactly what was wrong with it. Finally, one smart guy checked into the database and found out that one of the files in the database was closed. The status of all the files should be in the open status. Once the status of the closed file was put in the “open” status, the application worked fine.
(ii) One of the problems was in the Login window (page). When the user enters and Login Name and Password, then Password should be encrypted. One of the Test Cases was that I needed to open database and see whether the password is encrypted or not. I found out it was not encrypted. I reported it as a bug (defect) and it was fixed in the next release (build).
(iii) Defects I have found in a project was a defect to close a window (pop up).
For example, in the last project, on a page, there was a button called “More Information”. Once the user clicked that button, the system would open a new window (pop up).We could close the new window in 3 ways:
-By clicking X at the top right corner of the page
-By clicking “Close” button on the page
-By pressing combination keys (Alt+F4) on the key board
Although the combination key (Alt+F4) was not mentioned in the test case, I just wanted to try how the application reacts when Alt+F4 is pressed. Then I pressed Alt+F4. The result was a disaster-the application crashed (broke). The application disappeared from the computer monitor. Since it was the last day of testing for us, it brought chaos in our Managers, Leads and the whole teams. Finally, the developers disabled Alt+F4 as a temporary solution and the application went into production.
(iv) Another problem was that a user would search for branch location information of a bank. The user logs in by using User Name and Password. After the log in, on the “Search Location” page, the user enters and zip code of the location he wants to find, then clicks Find button. After that the system (application) gives a number of branch locations. The user now clicks “Request Information” for one of the branches. As soon as the user clicks “Request Information” button, the application breaks (displays “Page cannot be found” error). I logged this defect as a critical defect. When the developers and database administrator looked into it, then they found out that in one of the tables, the data was not recorded. In all the tables (UserProfile table, ClientID table and SessionID table), the data should be populated with the information entered by the user. For some reason, in one of the tables, it was blank (null). Once they wrote a small code to populate data (enter data) to the table, the application started working.
(v) In my previous project, when the customer wants to upload a document, for example, a copy of a monthly statement (in Word format), on the website, the system should automatically change the Word document into .pdf format. Once the document was uploaded, I saw that the fields in the .pdf document were interchanged (misplaced). For example, the First Name displayed in the Last Name section. Date of Birth displayed in the Social Security Number field and so on. We found out that the problem was a mapping problem (remember this word). Once the mapping was correct, I tested in the new build. It was fixed.
(vi)  The most common problem that I have faced in my previous projects are the Java script errors, data connectivity, error, HTTP 500 error (This error occurs when server is down), HTTP 400 error (when file is not found) and so on.

(vii)  “Father” pop up displayed when Print/Print Preview button clicked. (This was coded by the developer to mark this coding portion  (for his/her own purpose as a mark to indicate where he/she made changes, however, forgot to remove it).  Once the developer fixed it, it still displayed the same thing (because it was in the servers memory and could not go).  Now, I had to reset memory of the server from my machine.  Therefore, what I did is, I went to the website I was testing (for example, http://mysite.app.org/My_profile) and added reset.aspx at the end of the URL (Now the URL becomes http://mysite.app.org/My_profile/reset.aspx and hit enter. It took me to the server memory and I selected section and submitted the query and it was cleared.  Retested again and it is now OK.

(viii)  I was testing a web application.  On one page, I clicked Save & Continue button twice (my mistake).  Once this button is clicked twice, the system displayed an error message, “Could not save the answers, please contact technical support”. (When clicked only once, the button works fine.).

Solution:  Once the user clicks the button once, the button was disabled later so that the user cannot click twice.
(ix)  I was testing a web-based application.  Once all the fields are entered on the one of the pages, we had Print Preview button.  If the user clicks this button, we were supposed see the same information in a new window in PDF format. While looking at the data in PDF file, there were some fields missing, for example, Date of Birth was missing in the PDF file.

48. Tell me about the worst boss you’ve ever had. (Here, you should be careful not to say any negative words about the past boss. This will give a reflection that you cannot work with different nature of people. You should be able to show them that you can cope with any king of boss. Therefore, just take an idea below how the answer should be.)

Answer: I can hardly think of any Manager that was really bad. But when I compare, then I remember of a Test Lead who was just made a lead from the developers team. She used to feel that she has been very proud of her position and used to boss around. Some times, she used to call home and check where I was and what I was doing. Or have I completed my job before leaving and so on. I think, whatever she did, was in the benefit of the company and myself in the long run which would give me more confidence in future.

49. What do you like about QA?

Answer: The best thing I like about QA is, I like the job which is more process oriented. For example, we have to work right from reading the requirement documents, providing feedback to the Business Analysts as necessary, writing test plans, test cases, execute the test cases, interaction with different developers, attend walk-through meeting and so on. I am a very detailed oriented person. When I test applications, I try to get into the depth of functionality so that I don’t miss out anything. Finally, I love logging defects.

50. What are all the basic elements in a defect report?

Answer: The basic elements in a defect report are: Defect ID, Header, Description, Defect Reported by, Date, Status, Version, Assigned to, Approved by, Module where the defect was found and so on.

51. What is the difference between verification and validation?
Verification: Verification is a process to ensure that the software that is made, matches the original design. In other words, it checks whether the software is made according to the criteria and specification described in the requirement document. It is to check whether you built the product right as per design. It is a low level checking. (It is done in walk-through meetings generally). It checked whether it is made accordingly to the design..
Validation: Validation is a process to check whether the product design fits the client’s need. It checks whether you built the right thing. It checks whether it is designed properly.

52. How do you know it is sufficient testing?

Answer: Every company has entry and exit criteria. When we test applications, we refer to exit criteria. When we are about to finish testing, then the QA Team (QA Manager) refers to the exit criteria (exit criteria tells the level of defect that you can be comfortable with before it goes to production. For example, there should be ZERO critical defect, ZERO high level defect, ZERO medium defect, 1 Low level defect, all the test cases must be 100% executed etc). Once the exit criteria meet the requirements, then the software is considered to be sufficiently tested.
Every company has entry and exit criteria. When we test applications, we refer to exit criteria. When we are about to finish testing, then the QA Team (QA Manager) refers to the exit criteria (exit criteria tells the level of defect that you can be comfortable with before it goes to production. For example, there should be ZERO critical defect, ZERO high level defect, ZERO medium defect, 1 Low level defect, all the test cases must be 100% executed etc). Once the exit criteria meet the requirements, then the software is considered to be sufficiently tested.

53. How to derive test scenarios and use cases? What are the contents and format?

Answer: Test scenarios are derived from requirement documents. We follow each and every functionality (called business rules) mentioned in the requirement document. One functionality can have multiple business rules. For example, let us say in there is one requirement called “Login”. This “Login” may have various scenarios. For example, one scenario is, enter the right User ID and wrong password. The system should display an error message. Another scenario would be to enter wrong User ID and right Password. The system should display an error message. The third scenario could be to enter the right User Name and right Password. The system should allow the user to get into the system. This is how the test cases are derived from the requirement documents or from the Use Cases.
(For contents for formats of test scenario, please refer to question 4 in qaquestions.com)

54. What are the types of test cases that you write?

Answer: We write test cases for smoke testing, integration testing, functional testing, regression testing, load testing, stress testing, system testing and so on.

55. How to write Integration test cases?
Answer: I have never written separate Test Cases Integration Testing. Since Integration Testing is a test to check whether the all the modules are integrated together or not (meaning that when the developers compile all their module and make a build, all modules should be working when they are combined together and those modules when combined, should work as expected). If they are not integrated (combined) in a nice way, then the application breaks. Basically, when we do the functional testing, the integration testing is automatically done. This is my experience.

56. How to write Regression test cases? What are the criteria?
Answer: Regression test cases are also based on the requirement documents. They are written more into detail and with every release (build), the testers need to do regression testing. The criteria for regression testing are; there should be no major defects while we do our smoke test and functional testing.

57. Is there a format for a test case? Do you follow any methodology for numbering test cases?
Answer: Yes. It depends upon the company how the company has followed the numbering of test cases. However, normally, it is just a simple numbering in most of the time (see question 4 of qaquestions.com). But some companies may also relate this numbering to the requirement number. For example, if the requirement for Login is “REQ-LOG-001”, then we can number the test cases like REQ-LOG-001-001 and so on.

58. What is Test Harness?

Answer: (Definition from www.wikipedia.org) “In software testing, a test harness or automated test framework is a collection of software and test data configured to test a program unit by running it under varying conditions and monitor its behavior and outputs. It has two main parts: the test execution engine and the test script repository.”

59. How to write User Acceptance Test plan & test cases?

Answer: The way of writing Test Plan and Test Cases is the same in all the test phases. However, specifically for User Acceptance Testing, the testers use data nearly real data (meaning that the data is very much similar to the production data or real data). For the format, please refer to question 3 and 4 in qaquestions.com.

60. What are the different matrices that you follow?
Answer: There are various reports we normally prepare in QA:
• Test summary Report – It is a report that has list of the total test cases, list of executed test cases, remaining test case to be executed, executed date, pass/fail
• Defect Report – In this report we normally prepare a list of defect in spreadsheet e.g. defect # CQ12345 [ if you log a defect in the application called Rational ClearQuest]
• Traceability Matrix [also called RTM (Requirement Traceability Matrix)] Report – the document which shows the relationship between the functionalities or the business rules and the test cases. So, with the help of Traceability Matrix we make sure that we includes all the functionalities in our test cases according to the requirement document.

61. Explain Bug Life Cycle.

Answer: I would describe this as below:
A Tester finds a defect and logs it. (But before you log it, you must try to recreate it for 3 or 4 times so that you are 100% sure that it is a bug)
The defect is now approved or disapproved by the Test Lead.
(If it is disapproved, then the test lead will come to you ask for more details and you have explain to him why it is a bug)
After the Test Lead approves the bug, it is now assigned to a development Team Lead (or Development Manager). He/she now assigns that bug to the concerned developer. The developer now looks into the bug and fixes it. Once the fix is ready, there will be another build ready to test. The tester now tests the defect. It the defect is fixed, then the tester closes the defect, if not then the test will reopen it and same cycle starts.
Defect Life Cycle

62. What will you do if developer does not accept the bug?
Answer: If the developer does not accept the defect, then he will reject it. Once it is rejected, then it comes back to the tester. Now, the tester will ask for clarification with the developer why the defect is rejected. Since everything is based on the requirement documents, both tester and developer will have to look at the requirement document, validate it and then reopen it if necessary or close.

63. What are the different tests that can be done for Client Server Application and Web-based Application. Give details.

Answer: For both client server and web based applications, the testing is the same except one thing: We test web based applications in different browsers, for example, Internet Explorer (will test in different versions like IE 5.0, IE 6.0, IE 7.0), Firefox, Safari (for Mac) and so on where as for client server, we don’t need to test in the browsers.

64. What is an inspection?

Answer: An inspection is a formal meeting, more formalized than a walkthrough and typically consists of 3-10 people including a moderator, reader (the author of whatever is being reviewed) and a recorder (to make notes in the document). The subject of the inspection is typically a document, such as a requirements document or a test plan. The purpose of an inspection is to find problems and see what is missing, not to fix anything. The result of the meeting should be documented in a written report. Attendees should prepare for this type of meeting by reading through the document, before the meeting starts; most problems are found during this preparation. Preparation for inspections is difficult, but is one of the most cost-effective methods of ensuring quality, since bug prevention is more cost effective than bug detection.

65. Give me five common problems that occur during software development.

Answer: Poorly written requirements, unrealistic schedules, inadequate testing, adding new features after development is underway and poor communication. Requirements are poorly written when requirements are unclear, incomplete, too general, or not testable; therefore there will be problems. The schedule is unrealistic if too much work is crammed in too little time.
Software testing is inadequate if none knows whether or not the software is any good until customers complain or the system crashes. It’s extremely common that new features are added after development is underway.
Miscommunication either means the developers don’t know what is needed, or customers have unrealistic expectations and therefore problems are guaranteed

66. What is the role of documentation in QA?

Answer: Documentation plays a critical role in QA. QA practices should be documented, so that they are repeatable. Specifications, designs, business rules, inspection reports, configurations, code changes, test plans, test cases, bug reports, user manuals should all be documented. Ideally, there should be a system for easily finding and obtaining of documents and determining what document will have a particular piece of information. Use documentation change management, if possible.

67. What if the software is so buggy it can’t be tested at all?

Answer: In this situation the best bet is to have test engineers go through the process of reporting whatever bugs or problems initially show up, with the focus being on critical bugs. Since this type of problem can severely affect schedules and indicates deeper problems in the software development process, such as insufficient unit testing, insufficient integration testing, poor design, improper build or release procedures, managers should be notified and provided with some documentation as evidence of the problem.
68. How do you know when to stop testing?

Answer: This can be difficult to determine. Many modern software applications are so complex and run in such an interdependent environment, that complete testing can never be done. Common factors in deciding when to stop are…
Deadlines, e.g. release deadlines, testing deadlines;
Test cases completed with certain percentage passed;
Test budget has been depleted;
Coverage of code, functionality, or requirements reaches a specified point;
Bug rate falls below a certain level; or
Beta or alpha testing period ends.

69. What if there isn’t enough time for thorough testing?

Answer: Since it’s rarely possible to test every possible aspect of an application, every possible combination of events, every dependency, or everything that could go wrong, risk analysis is appropriate to most software development projects. Use risk analysis to determine where testing should be focused. This requires judgment skills, common sense and experience. The checklist should include answers to the following questions:
• Which functionality is most important to the project’s intended purpose?
• Which functionality is most visible to the user?
• Which functionality has the largest safety impact?
• Which functionality has the largest financial impact on users?
• Which aspects of the application are most important to the customer?
• Which aspects of the application can be tested early in the development cycle?
• Which parts of the code are most complex and thus most subject to errors?
• Which parts of the application were developed in rush or panic mode?
• Which aspects of similar/related previous projects caused problems?
• Which aspects of similar/related previous projects had large maintenance expenses?
• Which parts of the requirements and design are unclear or poorly thought out?
• What do the developers think are the highest-risk aspects of the application?
• What kinds of problems would cause the worst publicity?
• What kinds of problems would cause the most customer service complaints?
• What kinds of tests could easily cover multiple functionalities?
• Which tests will have the best high-risk-coverage to time-required ratio?

70. What can be done if requirements are changing continuously?

Answer: Work with management early on to understand how requirements might change, so that alternate test plans and strategies can be worked out in advance. It is helpful if the application’s initial design allows for some adaptability, so that later changes do not require redoing the application from scratch. Additionally, try to… • Ensure the code is well commented and well documented; this makes changes easier
for the developers.
• Use rapid prototyping whenever possible; this will help customers feel sure of their
requirements and minimize changes.
• In the project’s initial schedule, allow for some extra time to commensurate with
probable changes.
• Move new requirements to a ‘Phase 2′ version of an application and use the original
requirements for the ‘Phase 1′ version.
• Negotiate to allow only easily implemented new requirements into the project; move
more difficult, new requirements into future versions of the application.
• Ensure customers and management understand scheduling impacts, inherent risks and
costs of significant requirements changes. Then let management or the customers
decide if the changes are warranted; after all, that’s their job.
• Balance the effort put into setting up automated testing with the expected effort
required to redo them to deal with changes.
• Design some flexibility into automated test scripts;
• Focus initial automated testing on application aspects that are most likely to remain
unchanged;
• Devote appropriate effort to risk analysis of changes, in order to minimize regression-
testing needs;
• Design some flexibility into test cases; this is not easily done; the best bet is to minimize the detail in the test cases, or set up only higher-level generic-type test plans;
• Focus less on detailed test plans and test cases and more on ad-hoc testing with an understanding of the added risk this entails.

71. What if the application has functionality that wasn’t in the requirements?

Answer: It may take serious effort to determine if an application has significant unexpected or hidden functionality, which it would indicate deeper problems in the software development process. If the functionality isn’t necessary to the purpose of the application, it should be removed, as it may have unknown impacts or dependencies that were not taken into account by the designer or the customer.
If not removed, design information will be needed to determine added testing needs or regression testing needs. Management should be made aware of any significant added risks as a result of the unexpected functionality. If the functionality only affects areas, such as minor improvements in the user interface, it may not be a significant risk.

72. How can software QA processes be implemented without stifling productivity?

Answer: Implement QA processes slowly over time. Use consensus to reach agreement on processes and adjust and experiment as an organization grows and matures. Productivity will be improved instead of stifled. Problem prevention will lessen the need for problem detection. Panics and burnout will decrease and there will be improved focus and less wasted effort. At the same time, attempts should be made to keep processes simple and efficient, minimize paperwork, promote computer-based processes and automated tracking and reporting, minimize time required in meetings and promote training as part of the QA process. However, no one, especially talented technical types, like bureaucracy and in the short run things may slow down a bit. A typical scenario would be that more days of planning and development will be needed, but less time will be required for late-night bug fixing and calming of irate customers.

73. What is parallel/audit testing?

Answer: Parallel/audit testing is testing where the user reconciles the output of the new system to the output of the current system to verify the new system performs the operations correctly. Let us say, for example, the currently software is in the mainframe system which calculates the interest rate. The company wants to change this mainframe system to web-based application. While testing the new web based application, we need to verify that the web-based application calculates the same interest rate. This is parallel testing.

74. What is system testing?

Answer: System testing is black box testing, performed by the Test Team, and at the start of the system testing the complete system is configured in a controlled environment. The purpose of system testing is to validate an application’s accuracy and completeness in performing the functions as designed. System testing simulates real life scenarios that occur in a “simulated real life” test environment and test all functions of the system that are required in real life. System testing is deemed complete when actual results and expected results are either in line or differences are explainable or acceptable, based on client input.
Upon completion of integration testing, system testing is started. Before system testing, all unit and integration test results are reviewed by Software QA to ensure all problems have been resolved. For a higher level of testing it is important to understand unresolved problems that originate at unit and integration test levels. You CAN learn system testing, with little or no outside help. Get CAN get free information. Click on a link!

75. What is end-to-end testing?

Answer: Similar to system testing, the *macro* end of the test scale is testing a complete application in a situation that mimics real world use, such as interacting with a database, using network communication, or interacting with other hardware, application, or system.

76. What is security/penetration testing?

Answer: Security/penetration testing is testing how well the system is protected against unauthorized internal or external access, or willful damage. This type of testing usually requires sophisticated testing techniques.

77. What is recovery/error testing?
Answer: Recovery/error testing is testing how well a system recovers from crashes, hardware failures, or other catastrophic problems.

78. What is compatibility testing?

Answer: Compatibility testing is testing how well software performs in a particular hardware, software, operating system, or network environment.

79. What is comparison testing?

Answer: Comparison testing is testing that compares software weaknesses and strengths to those of competitors’ products.

80. What is acceptance testing?

Answer: Acceptance testing is black box testing that gives the client/customer/project manager the opportunity to verify the system functionality and usability prior to the system being released to production. The acceptance test is the responsibility of the client/customer or project manager, however, it is conducted with the full support of the project team. The test team also works with the client/customer/project manager to develop the acceptance criteria.

81. What is a Test/QA Team Lead?

Answer: The Test/QA Team Lead coordinates the testing activity, communicates testing status to management and manages the test team.

82. What is software testing methodology?

Answer: One software testing methodology is the use a three step process of…
1. Creating a test strategy;
2. Creating a test plan/design; and
3. Executing tests. This methodology can be used and molded to your organization’s needs. Rob Davis believes that using this methodology is important in the development and in ongoing maintenance of his customers’ applications.

83. What is the general testing process?

Answer: The general testing process is the creation of a test strategy (which sometimes includes the creation of test cases), creation of a test plan/design (which usually includes test cases and test procedures) and the execution of tests.

84. How do you create a test strategy?

Answer: The test strategy is a formal description of how a software product will be tested. A test strategy is developed for all levels of testing, as required. The test team analyzes the requirements, writes the test strategy and reviews the plan with the project team. The test plan may include test cases, conditions, the test environment, a list of related tasks, pass/fail criteria and risk assessment. Inputs for this process:
• A description of the required hardware and software components, including test tools. This information comes from the test environment, including test tool data.
• A description of roles and responsibilities of the resources required for the test and schedule constraints. This information comes from man-hours and schedules.
• Testing methodology. This is based on known standards.
• Functional and technical requirements of the application. This information comes from requirements, change request, technical and functional design documents.
• Requirements that the system can not provide, e.g. system limitations. Outputs for this process:
• An approved and signed off test strategy document, test plan, including test cases.
• Testing issues requiring resolution. Usually this requires additional negotiation at the project management level.

85. How do you create a test plan/design?

Answer: Test scenarios and/or cases are prepared by reviewing functional requirements of the release and preparing logical groups of functions that can be further broken into test procedures. Test procedures define test conditions, data to be used for testing and expected results, including database updates, file outputs, report results. Generally speaking…
Test cases and scenarios are designed to represent both typical and unusual situations that may occur in the application.
Test engineers define unit test requirements and unit test cases. Test engineers also execute unit test cases.
It is the test team that, with assistance of developers and clients, develops test cases and scenarios for integration and system testing.
Test scenarios are executed through the use of test procedures or scripts.
Test procedures or scripts define a series of steps necessary to perform one or more test scenarios.
Test procedures or scripts include the specific data that will be used for testing the process or transaction.
Test procedures or scripts may cover multiple test scenarios.
Test scripts are mapped back to the requirements and traceability matrices are used to ensure each test is within scope.
Test data is captured and base lined, prior to testing. This data serves as the foundation for unit and system testing and used to exercise system functionality in a controlled environment.
Some output data is also base-lined for future comparison. Base-lined data is used to support future application maintenance via regression testing.
A pretest meeting is held to assess the readiness of the application and the environment and data to be tested. A test readiness document is created to indicate the status of the entrance criteria of the release.
Inputs for this process:
Approved Test Strategy Document.
Test tools, or automated test tools, if applicable.
Previously developed scripts, if applicable.
Test documentation problems uncovered as a result of testing.
A good understanding of software complexity and module path coverage, derived from general and detailed design documents, e.g. software design document, source code and software complexity data.
Outputs for this process:
Approved documents of test scenarios, test cases, test conditions and test data.
Reports of software design issues, given to software developers for correction.

86. How do you execute tests?

Answer: Execution of tests is completed by following the test documents in a methodical manner. As each test procedure is performed, an entry is recorded in a test execution log to note the execution of the procedure and whether or not the test procedure uncovered any defects. Checkpoint meetings are held throughout the execution phase. Checkpoint meetings are held daily, if required, to address and discuss testing issues, status and activities.The output from the execution of test procedures is known as test results. Test results are evaluated by test engineers to determine whether the expected results have been obtained. All discrepancies/anomalies are logged and discussed with the software team lead, hardware test lead, programmers, software engineers and documented for further investigation and resolution. Every company has a different process for logging and reporting bugs/defects uncovered during testing.A pass/fail criteria is used to determine the severity of a problem, and results are recorded in a test summary report. The severity of a problem, found during system testing, is defined in accordance to the customer’s risk assessment and recorded in their selected tracking tool.Proposed fixes are delivered to the testing environment, based on the severity of the problem. Fixes are regression tested and flawless fixes are migrated to a new baseline. Following completion of the test, members of the test team prepare a summary report. The summary report is reviewed by the Project Manager, Software QA Manager and/or Test Team Lead.
After a particular level of testing has been certified, it is the responsibility of the Configuration Manager to coordinate the migration of the release software components to the next test level, as documented in the Configuration Management Plan. The software is only migrated to the production environment after the Project Manager’s formal acceptance.

87. What testing approaches can you tell me about?

Answer: Each of the followings represents a different testing approach:
Black box testing,
White box testing,
Unit testing,
Incremental testing,
Integration testing,
Functional testing,
System testing,
End-to-end testing,
Sanity testing,
Regression testing,
Acceptance testing,
Load testing,
Performance testing,
Usability testing,
Install/uninstall testing,
Recovery testing,
Security testing,
Compatibility testing,
Exploratory testing, ad-hoc testing,
User acceptance testing,
Comparison testing,
Alpha testing,
Beta testing, and
Mutation testing.

88. How do you divide the application into different sections to create scripts?

Answer: First of all, the application is divided in different parts when a business analyst writes the requirement document (or Use Cases or Design Document), he/she writes EACH requirement document for EACH module.  Let us say, if there are 12 different modules in an application that a business analyst has written the requirements for, then a tester would write the test cases for each module, which means in 12 different sections.  This is the standard practice.  There might be scenarios where you might have to break down scripts into sub-categories.  For example, if a tester is writing a script for Login Page, he/she might write one for positive and negative testing and another sub-set of test cases would be for error message when the wrong information is entered.  In short, the test cases are divided according to the modules.
(The following questions were asked to Padma in one of her interviews very recently)
(This question is asked to check how ambitious you are as far as your career is concerned, whether you like the job you are doing and so on.  Therefore, no matter what, you should stick to your QA job at this point and say that you love this so much and your goal is some thing similar to the one below)
What is your salary requirement?
$70k (negotiable), or ($35 per hour)

Please provide information (an example) of your experience testing Linux and UNIX environments (including type of system tested, how tested, actual commands and steps used for test) Testing applications using Linux and UNIX.

Answer: I have tested applications using UNIX. For every backend testing I have done in the past, I have used UNIX platform while performing backend testing. For example, when the data is fed into the system in the front end, that data goes to the database after the batch processing. From the database, the data is now sent to the ETL system (in XML format) for data manipulation as per our need (ETL is a software tool of Ab Initio company which is used to manipulate data in the data warehouse). In the ETL system, we manipulate those data according to our need), for example, it could be income statement of the company, balance sheet, monthly reports, and so on. In order to produce income statement, we need to run a job in ETL. To run this job, we use UNIX. In the same way, different types of jobs are created for each need (creating balance sheet is another job, creating reports is next job etc) then I had to run different jobs in the ETL system. Once we run the job, the running job finally creates an output file which is now validated by us tester. This output file can be in text format or GUI format. Thus, this is the scenario where I had to use UNIX. (I have used Linux much, however, since UNIX and Linux are the same thing, I should have no problem in using Linux)
Some of the commands I used while testing using UNIX are;
Ls –l ———>to check the file list
Pwd———-> to see which directory I am in
Cd ———–>change the directory
Cd .. ———>change the directory one level up
Mkdir ———>make a directory
Rmdir ———>Delete the directory
setenv name v ——>Set environment
kill% ——–>Kill the running job
vi ———>editor Used to write scripts
more——-> to see the contents page by page
cat —–>list contents of the file
chmod ——–>change permission
cp ——–>copy
rm —–>delete a file
The following are the some of the things that a tester has to know (but may not be asked in the interview)What is a cookie?  (You must know how to clean cookies)
A small text file of information that certain Web sites attach to a user’s hard drive while the user is browsing the Web site. A Cookie can contain information such as user ID, user preferences, archive shopping cart information, etc. Cookies can contain Personally Identifiable Information.
Does a tester have to know about cookie?
Yes.  A tester has to know HOW TO CLEAN cookies (Does not have to know the difinition)
How to clean cookies?

Cookies are cleaned in the browsers like IE (Internet Explorer), Firefox, Safari (for MAC and windows both), Netscape and so on.
However, the mostly used (90%) browser is IE (Internet Explorer)
Here is how you clean cookies in IE (Internet Explorer):

1.  Open IE (Internet Explorer)
2.  On the menu, click Tools–>Internet Options–>Click Delete button (It is in General Tab)
(You will see different buttons now, for example, Delete Files, Delete Cookies, Delete History, Delete Forms, Delete Passwords,
Delete All).
3.  Click Delete All button.
Now the cookies are cleaned in IE.
Here is how you can clean cookies in Fire Fox:

1.  Open Firefox Brower.
2.  Click Tools.
3.  Click Error Console.
4.  Click Clear.
Now the cookies are cleaned in Firefox.
What are different types of protocols?

-Generally, a Tester does NOT necessarily have to know different types of protocols.  This is Network Engineers job.  However, if you want to know more for your knowledge, you can visit: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_network_protocols.

What is Web Architecture?

-A tester does not necessarily have to know this unless you are a very Senior Tester testing networks and doing some kind of development. However, if you want to know more about it, please visit: http://www.objs.com/survey/WebArch.htm
Does a Tester need SQL?

Answer:  Yes.  For a Tester, SQL is needed.  I had the same question in mind becore I came to the actual implication-what is SQL used for?  And now, I know that when we do the backend testing (see qaquestions.com for details), we need to write SQL queries to retrieve the data from the database and compare this data to the one with reports or output.  Another scenario is, if something goes wrong in the application, for example, if there is an error, then we might have to write SQL queries to retrieve the data from the database and check what went wrong.  Let’s say, we need to check in the Error Log table what went wrong.  To check this, we open the database, go to Error Log table and find out that happened.  In the Error Log table, there are many records, so which one is your error then?  To find out which one is yours, we need to write SQL queries. Example, you logged in to the application with User and password=sn992jj.  Now, to retrieve your record, you can write a query some thing like this:  select * from Error_Log where userID=devin99;  This query will retriev your record only so that you can see what happened.
What is a ‘Show Stopper’?
A show stopper is a defect or bug that stops the user for further action (testing).  It has no work around.  In other words, it stops every thing and the user cannot go any futher.  This is called show stopper in software industry languague.  (This is not an interview questions, but you have to know this terminology)
Some Glossary
Test Plan, Test Case, Test Script, Requirement Document, Design Document, Shared Drive, Network Driver, Share Point, System, Build Configuration Management Team, Defect, Log, Automation Tools, TestDirector, Quality Center, ClearQuest, ClearCase, Rational Robot, Rational Functional Tester, WinRunner, LoadRunner, Business Objects, Crystal Reports, SQA, QA
Answer:  My goal is to be QA Lead (or QA Manager) in near future.
90.  What are you expecting from our company?

Answer:  My expectation from you company would be I will have more challenges and new things to learn and whatever the skills I have to contribute, hopefully, I will be able to contribute if they are in any way helpful to enhance productivity of the company.

91.  What did you learn from your previous companies?

Answer:  I learned a lot from the previous companies wherever I have worked.  Wherever I have worked, I found out the there is always something to learn.  Different companies have different ways of working.  The environment and technology always differ from one company to another company.  I have never found one company’s environment matching with another company.  For example, if one company is using documents called requirement documents, then the other company might be using Use Cases and some companies might be using Design Document and so on.  Therefore, in my experience, there are always new things to learn in every company and we can always contribute these thing in the next company if they help to be more productive.

92.  What do you want to be in next 2 years?

Answer:  I want to be QA Lead in another two years.
Why QA Lead? Why not something else?

Answer:  QA is the only thing I love doing it.  I love this job and want to progress in this sector.  I want to know how to manage QA process, how to handle different jobs and so on.  Since the next step is the QA Lead, that would preferably be one I will targeting for.

93.  Why do you want to work for this company?

Answer: (This is a tricky question.  They want to know what really interests you and you have to be careful when you answer this question.  You must admire the line of that company.  For example, if you are being interviewed by a pharmaceutical company, then tell them that you are always interested in the medical applications and the better part of your company is that it has exciting products that I am really curious to learn.  That’s why I would feel really great if I am given the opportunity to work in your company)

94.  Did you get any compliments from your previous employers?  What were those situations?

Answer:  Yes. I did.  There were many occasions where I had compliments.  For example, I was testing an application going a little bit off my test cases. After I finished executing my test cases, I always think in a way what a real user would possibally click in various parts of the application.  So I was just clicking back and forth and at one specific scenario, the application simply broke and displayed an error message.  That scenario was not in the test cases. The manager really appreciated me and thanked for finding this kind of critical defect.  Answer:  Yes. I did.  There were many occasions where I had compliments.  For example, I was testing an application going a little bit off my test cases. After I finished executing my test cases, I always think in a way what a real user would possibally click in various parts of the application.  So I was just clicking back and forth and at one specific scenario, the application simply broke and displayed an error message.  That scenario was not in the test cases. The manager really appreciated me and thanked for finding this kind of critical defect.  

What are your strengths?

Answer: I am a very detailed oriented person. I have the sense of urgency. I can prioritize my job according to the deadline. I am very much dedicated towards my job. I am honest. I have the skills and expertise in QA process. These are some of my strengths.

What is your weakness?

Answer: I think my weakness is that whenever I am given some responsibilities and there is a deadline for it, I work day and night, 7 days a week. This is probably bad for my family life, but I can’t sleep unless I am done with my assignments.
(Note: You should think of your weakness where because of your weakness (like the one above), still the employer benefits. DON’T SAY anything negative thing, like “I cannot work long hours, it is hard for me pick up things, it is difficult for me to understand requirement documents etc)

89.  What is your goal?
Ans:  My goal in the next 4 years is to be a QA Manager.

90.  What is RTM (Requirement Traceability Matrix)?
Answer – Tractability matrix is used to cross check the test cases as per the requirement of the test cases.  In other words, it checks whether the each functionality is covered in the Test Cases as per requirement document.  (We create RTM using Quality Center tool)