1. Be Creative – A Visual Testing
Workshop
Andy Glover
Romania Testing Conference 2014

2. Intro’s

3. Objective

4. Agenda

6. Is visual testing for everyone?

7. Is this for everyone?
… Yes!

8. Is this for everyone?
… Yes!

9. Draw something

10. Examples

11. DRAW some more

13. Separators

14. Look and See

15. Arrows

16. Pub!

17. Bullet Points

18. Look + See + Imagine + Do (something)

20. Images in software help us work better

21. Letters
• A B C D…
• a b c d…

22. Quickly recognise and process what
we see

23. Draw stick people

24. • Who and What
• How many and how much
• Where
• When
• How
• Why
6 ways of seeing (6 problems)

25. Who and What
How many and how much
Where
When
How
Why
6 ways of seeing

26. More people and faces

27. 1. Who/What Portrait
2. How much Chart
3. Where Map
4. When Timeline
5. How Flowchart
6. Why Why graph
Visual Thinking Framework

28. Containers & Speech Bubbles

29. With Portraits
1. Keep things simple
2. Illuminate lists
Who/what problem: Portraits

30. Hint: Google search
Objects relating to your work

31. Example

32. Draw 3 portraits of your users
Draw something

33. Chart or Quantitative representation
1. It’s the data that matters
2. Pick simplest model
3. Stay with one model
The how many problem: Charts

34. Question
… % of time testing?

35. Example

36. Draw a recent working day at the office.
Don’t forget about coffee breaks!
Draw something

37. Maps!
1. Everything has a geography
2. North is a state of mind
3. Look beyond obvious
Where problem: Maps

38. Example

39. Draw a map of your
influence with other
people in your
department or
company.
Draw something
Or, draw a mind map of
your CV/resume with
skills, experience etc.

40. • Mindmap: A Test Plan
1. Everything has a geography
2. North is a state of mind
3. Look beyond obvious
Team exercise

41. Timeline
1. Time is a one way street
2. Cycles for repeating timelines
3. Liner: easier to draw and remember
When problem: Timeline

42. Example

43. • Draw a timeline plan for a typical software
development project.
1. Time is a one way street
2. Cycles for repeating timelines
3. Liner: easier to draw and remember
Draw Something

44. % of senses
Total Brain sense processing capacity

45. Flowchart
Use shapes to represent different actions
How problem: Flowcharts

46. Example

47. State Diagram

48. States and actions of a bug
Team Exercise

49. SQVID
• Simple v Elaborate
• Qualitative v Quantitative
• Vision v Execution
• Individual v Comparison
• Change v Status Quo

50. Bugs SQVID

51. Exercise
SQVID of a Tester

52. Why Graphs- Multiple-variable plot
1. Require patience
2. Medium-thick soup is best
3. Anything can be mapped to anything… but!
Why problem: Why Graphs

53. James Bach’s Testing Dashboard

54. Example

55. Example

56. 1. Who/What Portrait
2. How much Chart
3. Where Map
4. When Timeline
5. How Flowchart
6. Why Why graph
Visual Thinking Framework

57. 1. A Bug is found in the live environment. People are
blaming the test team.
2. The Boss Boss wants to automate ALL the testing…
3. Aliens who can’t speak English want to know what you
do.
- Get into groups of 2 or 3
- Discuss what specific point/s to focus on
- And then draw them!
- Present back to the whole group
Group Exercise!

58. 1. Who/What Portrait
2. How much Chart
3. Where Map
4. When Timeline
5. How Flowchart
6. Why Why graph
Visual Thinking Framework

59. Use visuals when ever you can!
Apply the visual framework
Try SQVID for a creativity rush
Summary
@cartoontester

60. Questions?

61. Thank You 
@cartoontester

62. One last thing
A toy car starts at the beginning of a racetrack
that looks like this:

63. One last thing
Which of the following would be a graph of speed vs. time for the car on this
track? (the question shows 4 possible graphs, but I will only show two).