How to become a qualified software tester

Computer Professional Skills
The professional skills in the field of computer science is a prerequisite for testing engineers. While anyone without an IT background can work on a test, a test engineer who wants to develop more space or have a lasting competitive edge is essential to computer expertise. Computer expertise consists of three main areas:
1. Test your professional skills
Testing expertise, the content of this book mainly to test personnel should master the basic professional skills. Testing expertise covers a wide range of basic testing techniques including black-box testing, white-box testing, test case design, unit testing, functional testing, integration testing, system testing, performance testing, and basic test process management, defect management, and automated test technology.
2. Software Programming skills
"Software programming skills should actually be one of the testers ' skills, and many testers have many years of development experience at Microsoft. As a result, testers must be able to write programs to achieve better career development. Only if you can write a program, you can be competent such as unit testing, integration testing, performance testing and other difficult test work.
In addition, the programming skills requirements for software testers are different from those of developers: testers writing programs should focus on running correctly, while taking into account the high efficiency, especially in writing test code related to performance testing. Therefore, the tester must have certain algorithm design ability. Based on the experience of experienced test engineers, test engineers should at least master a language such as Java, C #, C + + and corresponding development tools.
3. Network, operating system, database, middleware and other knowledge
Compared with the developers, the knowledge of the testers has the characteristics of "unfocused", and "art is not pressed" is a very figurative metaphor. As the test often needs to configure, debug a variety of test environments, but also in the performance test to the various system platform analysis and tuning, so testers need to master more network, operating system, database and other knowledge.
In the network, the tester should master the Basic network protocol and network working principle, especially to master some network environment configuration, these are often encountered in the test work knowledge.
Operating system and middleware, should master the basic use and installation, configuration and so on. For example, many application systems are based on UNIX, Linux, which requires the tester to master the basic operational commands and the associated tool software. and WebLogic, WebSphere and other middleware installation, configuration many times also need to master some.
Database knowledge is more to master the skills, the current application system is almost inseparable from the database. So not only to master the basic installation, configuration, but also to master SQL. At a minimum, testers should be familiar with the use of common databases such as MySQL, MS SQL Server, and Oracle.
Industry knowledge
Industry mainly refers to the test personnel in the industry involved in the field, such as many IT companies engaged in oil, telecommunications, banking, e-government, e-commerce and other industry areas of product development. The industry knowledge is the business knowledge, is the test personnel to do the test work of another precondition, only in-depth understanding of the product business process, can determine the developer to achieve the correct product function.
Many times, the software does not run abnormally, but the function is not necessarily correct. Only by mastering the relevant industry knowledge, can we determine whether the user's business needs have been realized.
Industry knowledge and work experience have a certain relationship, through time can be completed accumulation.
Personal accomplishment
As a good test engineer, the first thing to be interested in testing work: The test work is often a bit dull, so love the test work, it is easier to do the test work. Therefore, in addition to having the prior professional skills and industry knowledge, testers should have some basic personal qualities, namely the following "Five hearts."
1. Concentration: Mainly refers to testers in the implementation of testing tasks to concentrate, not the two use. Experience shows that high concentration not only improves efficiency, but also discovers more software flaws, and the best performance is often the team's most focused members.
2. Careful: mainly refers to the implementation of testing work carefully, carefully perform the test, you can not ignore some details. Some defects, such as the style of some interfaces, text, etc., are difficult to find if they are not careful.
3. Patience: A lot of testing work is sometimes very dull, it takes a lot of patience to do well. If you are more impetuous, you will not be "attentive" and "careful", which will let a lot of software defects from your eyes escaped.
4. Sense of responsibility: responsibility is one of the qualities necessary to do a good job, test engineers should carry it forward. If the test does not fulfill the responsibility, or even perfunctory, this will give the test work to the user to complete, it is likely to cause very serious consequences.
5. Self-confidence: self-confidence is a quality that most test engineers now lack, especially in the face of the need to write test code and other work, often think that they do not. To get a better career, test engineers should work hard to build confidence that they can "solve all the testing problems."
"Five Hearts" is just the basic requirements of testing work, testers should have a lot of quality. For example, testers should not only have a team spirit, but also learn to tolerate others, learn to understand the "developer", while respecting the development of the work of workers-developed products.

How to become a qualified software tester