- Enter the HICCUPP Heuristic
- Crossover Among Oracles
- HICCUPP Applied
- You Take It from Here
You Take It from Here
Remember that the HICCUPP test oracles are just heuristics. A heuristic is a solution to a problem that works most of the time. Translation: The HICCUPP heuristics are fallible! Relying solely on the HICCUPP test oracles is not something I would recommend. If you have requirements available, use them. If you have actual users available, quote them. Use these oracles to either support your existing data for a bug or to explain other aspects of your bug that may not be apparent if you only look at requirements.
Practicing the HICCUPP heuristic is easy for most testers to do. Every time you log a new defect, before you click Send see whether you can answer the following questions:
- Is this defect inconsistent with the product history?
- Is this defect inconsistent with the image our company (or project team) is attempting to portray?
- Is this defect inconsistent with a comparable product?
- Is this defect inconsistent with claims made about the product?
- Is this defect inconsistent with user expectations about the product?
- Does this defect show an inconsistency within the product?
- Is this defect inconsistent with the purpose of the product?
By going through this process for the types of defects you currently find, you’ll train your mind to find defects based on these criteria in the future. It’s a quick and powerful way to improve the way you think about your testing.