Testing in the agile world

Testing in the agile world has many specificities compared to the traditional way of testing. It takes a lot of flexibility and adaptability to be able to afford continuous feedback and react quickly to change.

Test execution cycles in agile testing are often highly compressed, by spending too much time on documentation, we could end up reducing the time that needs to be spent on running tests.

Certainly, in agile values, a working piece of software is more important than detailed documentation. But documentation remains a necessity of the project which serves to explain and document the work carried out.

What are the challenges with traditional test documents?

Traditional test documents are time-consuming. Testers spend a lot of time producing bulky documents that are boring and hard to review. When working in  an agile environment, we embrace changes, but the structure of Lengthy linear-styled documents is hard to maintain and not flexible to change.

To be more coherent with the agile methodology and requirements, we need to choose a new way of documentation that is more flexible and easy to apply changes. Using Mind maps in test documentation is a good and lean alternative.

What is a mind map?

A mind map is a visual thinking tool that reflects externally what goes on inside your mind. It is a diagram that visually represents a central topic and any point that flows from it Which can be ideas thoughts or strategies.

Every mind map is created around a concept, the concept is represented as an image in the center to which the associated ideas are added, Some ideas are connected  directly to the social topic and second ideas branch out from those.

The information in the mind map mirrors exactly the way our brain functions, our brains do not think in terms of lines and sentences, but rather in terms of imaginations and association.

For example, here is a simple example of a mind map in  daily life: a shopping list:

Benefits of mind mapping

With a mind map, a long list of boring information can be turned into a colorful, memorable and highly organized diagram that works in line with your brain’s natural way of doing things. Just like a road map, a mind map will:

• Give an overview of a large subject of the area.
• Enable you to plan routes or to make choices.
• Gather together large amounts of data. In one place.
• Encourage problem-solving by allowing you to see new creative pathways.
• Be enjoyable to look at, read and muse over.
• Simple to change, develop and add new ideas.

Designing test cases with mind maps?

Software testing is a creative activity. Designing test cases involve gathering and structuring ideas to explore Maximum features of the software and ensure maximum test coverage.

Mind Map helps present possible scenarios and ideas in a graphical way that is simple to read and edit.

To show this principle in practice, let’s imagine testing a simple “Connection” feature in a web application

Based on the entries below:

Here is the created mind map with possible scenarios:

Mind mapping tools

You can find many mind mapping tools on the market.

There are currently no specific products for the testing business, but the tools already marketed are perfectly usable. Below are some known products:

• Gitmind
• xmind
• simplemind
• smartdraw
• MindGenius
• MindMeister
• Microsoft Visio
• ...

Conclusion

As we saw earlier, mind maps are a great tool to use in an agile software testing environment. Mind map driving tests allow testers to organize and store as many test cases as they want and categorize them in a natural way, giving easy and instant access to all relevant stakeholders.

Being a lean artifact that provides fast, high-quality feedback, mind mapping is one of the best solutions to use in agile testing.