1. THE
AXIOMS
TESTING
OF
Paul Gerrard

2. This talk is an experiment118 slides in 35 minutes ;-)Ever seen presentationzen.com?(and I had some fun with Google images)
3. 4. Test Axioms Do They Exist?What might they look like?But first, some video
5. Pentagon Wars
6. A comedy, where the military officers lack principles except for
7. The NewTest Manager
8. The book/film is based on a true story a farceMy question for you is
9. Is there a single, agreed set of guiding principles for testing and test managers?
10. More formally
11. Are there a set ofaxioms that provide a framework for all test approaches?
12. What is an Axiom?
13. An uncontested principle
14. 2 + 2 = ???Something soself-evidently true it requires no proof
15. A foundation for thinking and behaviour
16. More formally
An axiom is something that is impossible to prove to be true but could be disproved with a single experiment/example.
17. Example AxiomDeclaration of independence para 2:
Wehold these Truths to be self-evident, that all Men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness.
18. Example Axiom 2
The shortest distance between two points is a straight line
19. We believe Axioms are INFALLIBLE(but we are prepared to be proven wrong)
We KNOW that heuristics are FALLIBLE
(cf the Context-Driven School)
20. Testers like principles
21. Testing as the conscience of the projectTesters tend to take principled stances
22. So, it would help if we had a set of principles or axioms to refer to
23. We all have our favourite testing sayings but
There is no agreed set of laws so our profession is based on weak foundations.
Repeat after me.
24. We need to start with a definition of test
American Heritage Dictionary:
Test: (noun)

A procedure for critical evaluation;

25. A means of determining the presence, quality, or truth of something; 26. A trial.