Most of you know that I work as the lead QA Analyst - huh huh anal huh huh - for a small software company. I test software for usablity, performance and that it meets the customer specifications and requirements; although in eight months I have yet to see either specs or requirements. Requirements? We don't need no stinking requirements!
Anyway, I have been "testing" a totally new application that I have neither specs or requirements for. This morning while testing the creation of ID numbers I ran across the following in the order of the ID numbers. A001, A002, A002, A002, B001, B002, A003, A003, B003. WTF*!? I called one of the project managers and told her what I found and that I was logging this as a bug.
Her reply to me was, "You don't need to log that as a bug."
"But shouldn't the ID numbers be unique?" I inquired. Recall that I do not have specs or requirements.
She says in a serious tone, "Look, I don't know how the design works, but I do know that this is by design"
My reply, "Say WHAT!?
I wonder what PC guru Habid would have to say.
*What the fuck
If this is the same kind of thing we've talked about, I'd say, "doomed."
Posted by: Geren on November 30, 2004 08:40 AMSeriously doomed.
"Well, you see, we had this key index field collision and 3/4 of the data we thought was being stored... isn't."
Hey, good luck with that. You have my sympathy if nothing else.
Doomed for sure. They throw stuff at me to test all of the time with no specs or reqs. What we will get is a wreck. I call it monkey testing. All I need is a hundred monkies at a hundred computers and we will surely find bugs. However, the monkies will likely find the bugs on each other first before they find them in the software. No matter, they still pay me.
Posted by: Will Burnham on November 30, 2004 09:42 AMAssuming someone has a clue, they are using another, invisible number for the primary key. We do that on one of our god-awful products.
That doesn't keep it from being really, really, REALLY bad design, though.
Posted by: Jeff on November 30, 2004 09:55 AMhello to will my wild the american is a fiend,
NO NO NEVER THE MONKEY. It has been to tried at the call center that habid is to support the locked american windows pc. Monkey always to reboot the pc, that is the good. but Monkey mess over all the keyboards, Need habid to say more
Just say no to monkey, besides then you would have the monkeys to commute on the 495, if you think SUV drivers are bad, wait until you see monkeys drive
habid
Posted by: habid el sharif on November 30, 2004 11:32 AMSo now your company has no requirements, no specs and no idea how the design works...sounds like a typical day in testing to me!
Posted by: Becky on November 30, 2004 11:57 AMClick on my name to see my comment on this topic.
Posted by: Clark on November 30, 2004 12:17 PMJeff,
I have a bad feeling about this.
Habid,
The monkies are the already to be driving the SUVs and the cars of the road. They are to be driving with the asshats and assclowns. It is what we are to call the circus!
Becky,
They have never had reqs, specs or an idea. I have NEVER seen any and each time I mention them people giggle. Seriously. In my second month here they gave me a new scanning module for our main application and said "test this". I just love that phrase. I asked for the requirements and I was told that they didn't exist and got a giggle. They client told the software engineer what they wanted, the engineer took some notes and just made it. The notes were lost, soooo I just had to test it. Either way they still pay me.
Clark, he he BUNNY he he.
Posted by: Will Burnham on November 30, 2004 12:50 PMHey Will you should write a book and call it SAY WHAY! You are to much! I love the cat and the light pic. May I post him on my pick of the day sight?
Posted by: Joe on November 30, 2004 02:42 PMI have a question for you Will darling. Why, with your obvious creative talents (photography, writing, acting), your outgoing personality and people skills are you working in one of the least creative and most mind numbingly boring jobs in existence!!?? AND DRIVING THE CRICLE OF DEATH TO DO IT!!?? I mean seriously, software QA?! That's a job where you find mainly no-personality introverts and those freaky weirdos with pocket protectors and a collection of firearms and a secret porno stash! I work in an office where we have QA guys like that. They are scary people. I am surprised that you don't have a photo studio where you photograph nude women all day. tee hee.
Posted by: SuzieQ on November 30, 2004 02:57 PMA collection of firearms and a secret porno stash sounds like the start of a good weekend. Throw in a case of whiskey, and you've got yourself a deal.
Without any expectations, how can you possibly say anything other than "Well, it doesn't explode" with any degree of certainty? I understand the "anti-overbearing software process" crowd, but I'm not down with the "anti-common sense" crowd.
Can I ask you where you work so I can know to avoid the place like the plague?
Posted by: Craig on November 30, 2004 11:00 PMSuzieQ,
Everyone I know in software QA/test has a unique personality. Okay, so they have some firearms. I don't see that as a problem. Now if they do indeed have a secret porno stash I am pissed that they haven't shared it with me. I mean really, I can keep a secret.
Peace, --Will
