Manually Testing New Widgets

A brief primer in user testing. In this article, a Widget refers to anything you want it to. A Widget could be a product, feature, service, or whatever else needs testing.

Questions to ask

• Does Widget work as expected?
• Does Widget error as expected?
• Does Widget have documentation?
• Does Widget have helpful error messages?
• Is Widget intuitive?

Methods

1. Go sub-Widget by sub-Widget (RECOMMENDED)
   • Divide the new Widget into small Widgets
   • Test each small Widget one by one
2. Check the new Widget in its entirety and fix errors as they occur
   • Use Widget as expected
   • Use Widget in unexpected ways

Documentation

Why Should I Document?

• Defines WHAT the application should do and HOW to do it
• You are going to forget how things work
• Reading through the source code for an answer isn’t fun
• You’ll want to pass the application off to someone else
• Help your end users

Documentation Methods

• Guided tour through your application
• Text files (Markdown, LaTeX)
• Printed documents
• PDFs
• Slide show
• Help text

Good Practices

• DO create a useful and intuitive UX for your end users
• DO write in short, concise sentences
• DO explain features that are not obvious
• DO write for the user not the applications
• DO make it easy to find answers
• DO use pictures/images where appropriate
• DON’T rely on the end user actually reading it

Writing Documentation

• Step by step instructions
• Explain what feature does and why
• Assume end user has no prior experience/knowledge of the - application
• Keep task steps simple and isolated
• Add pictures/images to help end users follow along

Resources

• Why is Documentation Extremely Important for Developers?
• Real Users Don't Read the Manual
• Tips for Writing User Manuals