Testing Glossary - Testing Definitions T-U

technique
The method or procedure (with reference to practical or formal details), or way of using basic skills, in rendering an artistic work or carrying out a scientific or mechanical operation.

test
Ascertain the response of a system to stimuli and compare that response to a standard. Evaluate the quality of the response with respect to the standard. Given some software and a list of the functions it is supposed to perform, find out if it performs these functions as they are described. Additionally, find out if it does other things that are not described. (Validate and verify.)
test 1
(IEEE) A set of one or more test cases.

test case
A condition to be tested that includes its own identification and the expected response. Sometimes used interchangeably with test script.

test coverage
The percentage of everything that could be tested that was actually tested.

test effort
Process by which testers produce their product, involving developing and evaluating a software system by conducting tests and getting bugs removed.

test inspection
A formal process where the tests are inspected for defects.

test inventory
The complete enumeration of all known tests; path, data, module, design, system, and so on.

test script
A collection of tests or activities that are performed in sequence. Used interchangeably with test case.

test set
Term used to describe a group of tests.
See also test suite.
See also test inventory.

test suite
A group of tests run sequentially.

testing
(IEEE) The process of analyzing a software item to detect the differences between existing and required conditions (that is, bugs) and to evaluate the features of the software item.

theoretical
Limited to or based on theory.

theory
1. A mental viewing; contemplation. 2. A speculative idea or plan as to how something might be done. 3. A systematic statement of principles involved. 4. A formulation of apparent relationships or underlying principles of certain observed phenomena that has been verified to some degree. 5. That branch of an art or science consisting in a knowledge of its principles and methods rather than in its practice; pure, as opposed to applied, science, and so on. 6. Popularly, a mere conjecture, or guess. (Webster's New World Dictionary of the American Language, Second College Edition, Prentice Hall, 1984)

top-down testing
A testing process that first assembles a system and then tests the entire system at once from the user's perspective.

total independent paths (TIP)
Total number of linearly independent paths being considered.

Underwriters Laboratory (UL)
An establishment in the United States licensed to certify that electronic products meet established safety standards.

uniformity
State, quality, or instance of being uniform.

unit
A discrete, logical set of function(s). This can be a single small program.

unit test
To test a program unit, a separately compiled module, an object, or a group of closely related modules.

universal description discovery and integration (UDDI)
A cross-industry effort driven by major platform and software providers, as well as marketplace operators and e-business leaders within the OASIS standards consortium. UDDI creates a standard interoperable platform that enables companies and applications to quickly, easily, and dynamically find and use Web services over the Internet. http://www.uddi.org/

unreproducible bug
A bug that cannot be reproduced by following the same steps that produced it originally.

user acceptance test (UAT)
Tests performed by the user to determine if the system is acceptable